white smoke?

[H.Rivera]

So i have been trying to bring the car back to life little by little. now i am noticing that the car is letting go of white smoke from the tail pipe and also from the flex pipe.

the motor was opened and the piston rings were replaced. and along with it the seals.

it had a full tank of premium gas.. and all tune up parts are less than ah year..

So hear are my questions..

1. what could be causing the white smoke. ?

2. with the flex pipe.. whats the worst that can happen if left like this for ah few months.

3. with the flex pipe.. whats so special about this one?
http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/de...85c7ab9e&gan=1

actually now looking at it.. it says 97 and i have ah 94.. so im guessing it would not fit anyway.. right?

[hill8570]

Classic cause of white smoke is coolant getting into the combustion chambers (blown head gasket, etc). Is the coolant level in the overflow tank dropping? Might be worth getting the coolant checked for combustion byproducts...

[fenixus]

if this is an HG issue then the motor oil would be milky (mixed with coolant), coolant itself in return tank would be discolored (darker) and motor oil fill cap would have chocolate milky sludge on it. if OP doesn't experience any of those then HG is unlikely.

another "classic" (got this one) are valve stem seals that can be letting some oil through.
H.Rivera, does it make a small puff of white smoke every time you start the engine cold and then it quickly goes away? if yes, then you might have this problem - it's cosmetic really, nothing to worry about. repair is not worth the effort.

[H.Rivera]

hello,

well i went ah bit crazy with pictures but hear it is..

Checked the little overflow tank



THIS IS WHAT WAS IN IT..


THEN CHECKED THE OIL CAP.. ITS BEEN LIKE THIS AS LONG AS I CAN REMEMBER.. EVEN AFTER THE PISTON RINGS WERE REDONE..



ALSO CHECKED THE COLOR OF THE OIL IT LOOKS DARKER..




AND I FOUND NO MILKY SUBSTANCE.. JUST KINDA DIRTY.. ANY SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO CLEAN THE OVERFLOW TANK.. OR SHOULD IT JUST BE REPLACED..

AND WELL THE WHITE SMOKE JUST STARTS.. AND IS CONSTANT.. IT HAS YET TO GO AWAY..

NOTE: THE CAR HAS NOT BEEN DRIVEN ON THE ROAD SINCE THE NEW RINGS AH MONTH AGO..

[hill8570]

Oil cap and dipstick look fine.

WTF is that crap in the overflow tank? Oil? Old pieces of hose? Alien life forms? I cringe at the thought of that stuff circulating in an engine...

Overflow coolant level was basically at "empty" -- I don't think the hose in the tank reaches all the way to the bottom. What's the level in the radiator? Please tell me your radiator coolant doesn't look like the crap in the overflow.

Clean vs new...depends on what the crap is -- if it's something alive (like algae), then you could probably bleach it out. Otherwise, replacement tanks on fleabay are pretty cheap. If that stuff in from your overflow hoses shedding, I'd certainly replace those too.

BTW, what's the white smoke smell like? Usually smoke from coolant smells an awful lot like antifreeze (assuming you're not running pure water in the cooling system).

[fenixus]

by looking at the oil cap, it seems you might have a sludge problem. any idea how did insides of engine (e.g. under valve covers) look like during piston rings replacement ? how often do you change oil ? did a mechanic (or you) checked/changed the head gasket ?

your coolant overflow tank shouldn't be almost empty. it's either leaking somewhere out or getting mixed with motor oil in my opinion (not an expert here). you can wash that coolant tank with soap or detergent (and rinse well), that's what i did to mine when flushing coolant.

do you have any leaks or stains under car ?

long time ago my ancient ford probe was burning oil and blowing white smoke. eventually an oil change helped with white smoke, however it was still burning a little oil with fuel.

EDIT:
white smoke from burning coolant should have a sweet smell while oil ... will have an oily smell (and blueish tint in color)
I agree on checking the hoses. those black pieces look scary. it might be pieces of rubber hoses. if old coolant was very bad, it might become corrosive and was damaging all rubber parts (seals and gaskets). flush it well.

[H.Rivera]

Originally Posted by hill8570

Oil cap and dipstick look fine.

WTF is that crap in the overflow tank? Oil? Old pieces of hose? Alien life forms? I cringe at the thought of that stuff circulating in an engine...

Overflow coolant level was basically at "empty" -- I don't think the hose in the tank reaches all the way to the bottom. What's the level in the radiator? Please tell me your radiator coolant doesn't look like the crap in the overflow.

BTW, what's the white smoke smell like? Usually smoke from coolant smells an awful lot like antifreeze (assuming you're not running pure water in the cooling system).

idk.. what that is.. but the radiator and the motor just had a flush about 1 week ago.. along with 2 new belts( not the timing)
oriley guy recommended this stuff.. so we put it in.



but since im fixing her up i will buy a new overflow tank.. hmm.. or get one made.. possibly clear.. idk.. just possible projects for later..

the smell.. hmm.. its not horrible.. but i will pay more attention tonight.. when i put it back in the warehouse..

[fenixus]

I would flush coolant again and check if drained fluid has same black pieces in it. you may need to flush it a few times to get rid of all crap inside. inspect all cooling hoses. i just hope there is no "pieces" in radiator as they might have clogged it. any former problems with engine overheating ? water pump leaking or loud ? this stuff may be in need of replacement IMO.

if looking for cheap replacement OEM parts, check online toyota/lexus OEM retailers. they have prices lower by around 30-50% (and no sales tax) than local dealer. I frequently use www.1sttoyotaparts.com, seems they are cheapest.

[H.Rivera]

well the radiator is only ah month old.. and when we did the flush it came out ah bit orange but that was from i want to say rust or corrosion but another flush would not hurt..

any ideas on the white smoke ?

[hill8570]

Nothing particularly wrong with that brand of coolant.

OK, what's the coolant level in the radiator? Pop the cap off and look -- if it's really low, it's yet another thing pointing at a coolant leak....

[H.Rivera]

Originally Posted by hill8570

Nothing particularly wrong with that brand of coolant.

OK, what's the coolant level in the radiator? Pop the cap off and look -- if it's really low, it's yet another thing pointing at a coolant leak....

WELL I OPENED IT AND ITS RIGHT THERE.. NOT LOW it could use maybe ah thimble of water to top it off.

[hill8570]

Originally Posted by H.Rivera

WELL I OPENED IT AND ITS RIGHT THERE.. NOT LOW it could use maybe ah thimble of water to top it off.

OK, either we just hit it just as the last bit got sucked out the of overflow tank, you don't have a coolant leak, or it's a darn small leak.

Sure be nice to nice to know what the smoke smells like. Could you take a picture of that?

[H.Rivera]

ui will do my best.. to get ah picture tonight.. but its already getting dark.. so i will see what i can do..

[H.Rivera]

ok.. so i did my best.. i guess my flex pipe is getting worse.. cuzz now all the smoke is seeping out trough their..



but did find some odd perspiration on my muffler..



and the smell.. well it smells like the car has been sitting still to long..

[Mike Gerber]

"2. with the flex pipe.. whats the worst that can happen if left like this for ah few months."

Exhaust can be entering the passenger compartment. You could lose brain cells as carbondioxide enters the passenger comparment as part of the exhaust; or it could be even worse. I'm sure you could figure out what's worse and since TN needs all it's members, I would get that fixed. Just an FYI; I paid $150 to an independent muffler shop in my area to cut out the flex pipe section and weld in a new aftermarket one on my 94.

Mike