White smoke....

[30Surfer]

1st of all my surf is a 3.0L and all the searches i've done point to the 2.4 and I don't know if the setup would be the same.

Right, I have a screen of white smoke coming out of my surf when it's idling.....when I start it up cold there's no smoke, but after about 20-30 secs as it starts to warm up I get the smoke. My first thoughts were 'head gasket'...because there is a distinct 'sweet' smell which I thought was coolant, but it has been deemed as smoke and not steam, mainly because the smoke doesn't disperse into the air as quickly as the steam would. When i'm driving along the smoke is not noticable, but when you come to rest...i.e at a junction or to park..out comes the constant white smoke again. Now it has been said that this is caused by fuel delivery problems and pointed towards the fuel pump and/or timer control valve....so question is what are your thoughts on this and has anybody had the same problems or symptoms, if so what was the problem...????

P.S the t-belt has just been changed and the timing was spot-on, I did have a radiator leak but that has now been fixed, and the problem still persists....
Thanx Darren

[kitesurf_phil]

Is your EGR valve still connected? All my smoke problems disappeared when I did the mod. A quick search on EGR Valve should turn up the instructions.

[30Surfer]

No the EGR valve ahs been blocked off and there was no change....

[coolsv650]

Diesel does sometimes have a sweet smell if partly unburnt. Could be blocked or dribbly injectors. Have you tried running injector cleaner through the system to see if it clears?

does the engine idle ok, what about driving, does it seem to pull or is it struggling?

[contaminated]

[QUOTE=30Surfer][b][i][font=Comic Sans MS][color=yellow]1st of all my surf is a 3.0L and all the searches i've done point to the 2.4 and I don't know if the setup would be the same etc etc

Have you had any luck with this? Mine has the exact same symptoms. It's the 3.0 not the 2.4, smokes like buggery on idle but not while moving, no overheating etc. Mate of mine says there are compression gases in the coolant, so probably the head or gasket.

[mickey]

..come summer, and i'll bet all will be fine..the surf has a fair few feet of plumbing, and takes time to evaporate all moisture away..even when the exhaust is nice and dry, the outside temperature will condense the hot gasses into a steam like substance..look at a jet liner passing overhead, when it hits a certain level it too will leave a nice trail, and in all probability there will be an anxious pilot looking through the cockpit window with thoughts of penning his "head" concearns on the airbus forum..

ok, i'm not a technition, a glance through some of my previous posts will quickly assertain that..but, i have owned a surf for a fair few seasons, and i can assure you, all the charecteristics you describe, including the "sweet" smell, are all entirely normal..i strongly doubt that there is anything wrong with your vehicle regarding the white smoke issue..depending on air density and temp, the condensation, or smoke will linger to varying degrees.if its fuel related, i'd imagine it to be a rather dirtier cloud? if my memory serves me right, then white equalls water, either atmospheric or cooling fluid..grey, or black is partially unburnt diesel, although exhaust soot can be evident on a good flooring, and a blue haze relates to oil?

as for the remark by "contaminated" in regard to exhaust gasses escaping into the coolant, well, depending on the accuracy of the diagnosis, this would be an entirely different issue.the white smoke could be coolant being expelled through the engine and out of the exhaust..have you tried holding the rubber tube from the expansion bottle cap, just under the coolant level? you might notice it bubbling..on cold start, with the radiator cap off, can you see escaping gasses bubbling up through the coolant? are you actually losing any coolant? try getting the engine hot, then shutting down, letting it stand for two minutes before restarting.any coolant dripping into a bore from an open crack should be noticeable through a cloud of steam eminating from the rear..

[contaminated]

..come summer, and i'll bet all will be fine..the surf has a fair few feet of plumbing, and takes time to evaporate all moisture away..even when the exhaust is nice and dry, the outside temperature will condense the hot gasses into a steam like substance..look at a jet liner passing overhead, when it hits a certain level it too will leave a nice trail, and in all probability there will be an anxious pilot looking through the cockpit window with thoughts of penning his "head" concearns on the airbus forum..

ok, i'm not a technition, a glance through some of my previous posts will quickly assertain that..but, i have owned a surf for a fair few seasons, and i can assure you, all the charecteristics you describe, including the "sweet" smell, are all entirely normal..i strongly doubt that there is anything wrong with your vehicle regarding the white smoke issue..depending on air density and temp, the condensation, or smoke will linger to varying degrees.if its fuel related, i'd imagine it to be a rather dirtier cloud? if my memory serves me right, then white equalls water, either atmospheric or cooling fluid..grey, or black is partially unburnt diesel, although exhaust soot can be evident on a good flooring, and a blue haze relates to oil?

as for the remark by "contaminated" in regard to exhaust gasses escaping into the coolant, well, depending on the accuracy of the diagnosis, this would be an entirely different issue.the white smoke could be coolant being expelled through the engine and out of the exhaust..have you tried holding the rubber tube from the expansion bottle cap, just under the coolant level? you might notice it bubbling..on cold start, with the radiator cap off, can you see escaping gasses bubbling up through the coolant? are you actually losing any coolant? try getting the engine hot, then shutting down, letting it stand for two minutes before restarting.any coolant dripping into a bore from an open crack should be noticeable through a cloud of steam eminating from the rear..

I can't speak fo Mickey but the amount of smoke coming out mine is deffo not down to atmospherics. If he's got no oil in the water, compression gases and otherwise does not suspect the head or gasket then my money is on the turbo seals. Unless of course it is just a little bit, in which case I agree.

[30Surfer]

Diesel does sometimes have a sweet smell if partly unburnt. Could be blocked or dribbly injectors. Have you tried running injector cleaner through the system to see if it clears?

does the engine idle ok, what about driving, does it seem to pull or is it struggling?

I've run gallons of fuel additives/cleaner through it no change. It has been said that the white smoke(not steam) is air getting into the fuel, I have been advised to thoroughly check my fuel lines for even the slightest pinhole or crack....especially if any of the hoses rub against anything, also change the fuel filter and ensure a good seal BUT as yet no luck......the only other option is to completely re-new all the fuel plumbing....

As for idling and power there are no problems there....idling fine and still goes like greased whale ****

[mickey]

ookay..so it might not be steam or condensation.i was really judging it on my own vehicle, which does smoke in winter, and occassionally, if stood for a while in damp conditions, (hours, not days) throws the white stuff out like a dry ice machine..this will be her third uk winter, and its always the same story.

air getting into the fuel? well, ok..i had a similar problem with a diesel van, the fuel line had gone porous..however, it never smoked, and ran very erratically..as i mentioned earlier, my mechanical know how is, at best, scant..personally i don't see how air would increase the smoke levels, but i dare say the diagnosis was given by someone more knowledgable than i

hope the problem proves easier to cure than replacement of the entire fuel system plumbing..now that doesn't sound like much fun.

[contaminated]

ookay..so it might not be steam or condensation.i was really judging it on my own vehicle, which does smoke in winter, and occassionally, if stood for a while in damp conditions, (hours, not days) throws the white stuff out like a dry ice machine..this will be her third uk winter, and its always the same story.

air getting into the fuel? well, ok..i had a similar problem with a diesel van, the fuel line had gone porous..however, it never smoked, and ran very erratically..as i mentioned earlier, my mechanical know how is, at best, scant..personally i don't see how air would increase the smoke levels, but i dare say the diagnosis was given by someone more knowledgable than i

hope the problem proves easier to cure than replacement of the entire fuel system plumbing..now that doesn't sound like much fun.

Update on mine, head cracked!! New one ordered from Stevo!!