common to see white exhaust smoke when first starting a car, especially on
cooler days. This is generally steam caused by condensation. As the engine warms
up and the condensation dissipates the white exhaust smoke (steam) is no longer
seen. If excessive white exhaust smoke is present well after the engine warms
up, it is necessary to have the car inspected for possible internal coolant
leaks. Indicators of an internal coolant leak include billowing white exhaust
smoke accompanied by a sweet odor or a low coolant reservoir level. An internal
coolant leak can also contaminate the engine oil giving it a frothy, milky
appearance. Even small amounts of coolant entering the combustion chamber will
produce white exhaust smoke.
It's also not unusual to see small amounts of water coming from a tail pipe. It is just condensation.
Before you believe you have a blown head gasket, run a compression check. A compression gauge is not that expensive. You can read up on how to use one.
Best Luck :DHave a good day foryou!-
What you described is a textbook case of a leaking head gasket, or possibly worse. If the car is still running fine then you can replace the gasket before things get bad. Having coolant mixing into the oil is only going to cause severe problems with your oil not protecting the engine.
Make, model, year, and engine are critical to even guessing what is wrong. If it is a GM vehicle, model year 1996-2005, with a V6 or V8 engine a failed lower intake manifold gasket is far more likely than a failed head gasket. If it s a Renault 4 cylinder with a turbo the head gasket is almost certainly bad. Most cars fall in between.
White smoke means coolant is in the combustion chamber, best case scenario is a head gasket, get it to a shop. It could also be a cracked block or head, though that is rare in modern engines
Buy a block check test kit and use it . . .
Recently my car started having white smoke and water coming out of my tail pipe. I know this is basically a blown head gasket. Also I filled up my coolant and after having the car on for a little while the coolant levels had already dropped. The one thing that gets me is they my car hasn't showed any signs of overheating. The day before this all started I changed my radiator because it had a leak. I checked my oil and it seems to be fine but when I checked the oil cap, there was a milky residue on the top. I guess I'm just looking for a confirmation if my head gaskets are blown. Also my car runs perfectly fine!
