Ford Trasit white vapour from exaust
Discussion
I recently bought a Ford Trasit drop side on a 13 plate. I'm a milkman so do a lot of stopping but do note stop the engine. A whites vapour started to appear from my exaust which smelt like a radiator overheating. This was happenening intermittently but not excessive. I took it back to the garage and they forced a re-gen rate on it but has not done the trick, I bought 40 miles away so had a good run as well. I'm thinking its unspent deisel but not sure how this can be fixed. Any good mechanics out there who know where there talking about please help as this is getting very annoying. Many thanks
Hirsty-1 said:
It's been on a diagnostic check which forced the re-Gen, if the diagnostic did not come up with any other faults how can I get it fixed, many thanks
I think the two problems are unrelated - like most garages they probably go entirely by what the diagnostic computer tells them. White smoke/vapour is usually indicative of a problem earlier in the engine - it could be a clogged fuel filter, incorrect injector pump timing, a worn engine or contamination in the fuel. Unless you're prepared to get your hands dirty, you'll need to find a garage that's prepared to do some proper investigative work.
shakotan said:
Unburnt fuel would be black smoke, not white.
White smoke is usually conducive of an issue with the coolant circuit, namely coolant entering combustion chambers.
Your first statement is incorrect.White smoke is usually conducive of an issue with the coolant circuit, namely coolant entering combustion chambers.
Black smoke in a diesel = Poorly or partially combusted fuel - insufficient air/fuel mix.
White smoke = Unburnt fuel...
Your mention of coolant smell adds to the probability of a coolant leak in the engine,
1. has the coolant level dropped?
2. are there any signs of bubbles in the header tank / is the header (coolant) tank overflowing or low at operating temp, is there any milkshake / mayonnaise style deposits on the coolant cap?
3. can you see any small metallic like particles floating in the header tank indicating the use of coolant leak inhibitor to hide a problem?
4. does the coolant look like it has any contamination ie dirty in colour, oil floating in it?
5. do any of the coolant pipes (particularly the upper ones in the engine bay feel very hard or bulging when the van is running?
because diesels run at a higher combustion it is more often that a leaking head gasket etc leaks combustion gases into the coolant system, but coolant can leak down into the oil ways and combustion areas as well.
It would probably be worth getting a compression test on the cylinders and an exhaust gases check done on the coolant soon if you think this is a worry as the headgasket can be a pricey job to get done if its at fault.
1. has the coolant level dropped?
2. are there any signs of bubbles in the header tank / is the header (coolant) tank overflowing or low at operating temp, is there any milkshake / mayonnaise style deposits on the coolant cap?
3. can you see any small metallic like particles floating in the header tank indicating the use of coolant leak inhibitor to hide a problem?
4. does the coolant look like it has any contamination ie dirty in colour, oil floating in it?
5. do any of the coolant pipes (particularly the upper ones in the engine bay feel very hard or bulging when the van is running?
because diesels run at a higher combustion it is more often that a leaking head gasket etc leaks combustion gases into the coolant system, but coolant can leak down into the oil ways and combustion areas as well.
It would probably be worth getting a compression test on the cylinders and an exhaust gases check done on the coolant soon if you think this is a worry as the headgasket can be a pricey job to get done if its at fault.
If it's sunburnt diesel it's going to be pretty easy to detect over water vapour.
Dry rag over the exhaust for a few seconds when the white vapour is present and smelling it will be easy to tell what it is.
Is the engine having a chance to get up to operating temperature?
I know in the cold snaps recently mine dropped to 60-70 degrees if I was just idling (cdti insignia)
Have you checked the oil cap for mayo?
Also, regen will put extra diesel in but if the combustion isn't hot enough then it will come out unburned.
Or in some cases wash past the piston rings and dilute the engine oil
Dry rag over the exhaust for a few seconds when the white vapour is present and smelling it will be easy to tell what it is.
Is the engine having a chance to get up to operating temperature?
I know in the cold snaps recently mine dropped to 60-70 degrees if I was just idling (cdti insignia)
Have you checked the oil cap for mayo?
Also, regen will put extra diesel in but if the combustion isn't hot enough then it will come out unburned.
Or in some cases wash past the piston rings and dilute the engine oil
Edited by roverspeed on Wednesday 21st March 14:52
Perhaps leaving an unattended vehicle running may be another worry?
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Everything seems fine, water, oil levels including cleanliness of them. The van drives awesome, no signs of a problem at all until you stop and see the vapour. I do about 50 miles in 6 hours so there is a lot of idling. Temperature is bang on in the middle and never exceeds it. They have told me they want me to take it to a diesel expert to check it out now. It's just frustrating as the van drives really well, but can not live with this vapour as it gets in the cab when my door is open. The smell does change as the night goes on though, it smells a little like a rubbery smell,:-((. Van not going in now til the 4th April but need to use it, hope it doesn't do more damage if any. Many thanks for the points
White smoke coming out of ANY exhaust means only ONE thing.
It is WATER VAPOUR.
All engines suck air in from outside. (NO engine would run unless air is used in the combustion process).
Mixed in with this air, whether you agree or not, is water vapour. This, along with the air, is burnt. On a cold engine, this comes out of the exhaust as white smoke. As the vehicle, (and the exhaust system) heat up, this water vapour is burnt off, BEFORE it gets to the end of the exhaust. A catalytic converter gets VERY hot after about 15 minutes.
The ONLY other way that white smoke can come out of the exhaust continually is if the water in the cooling system is allowed to get into the combustion chamber. This is usually via a blown head gasket. This would also be apparent because the engine uses water at a rate.
Blue smoke is oil getting past other components into the combustion chamber. (Piston rings, valve stem seals etc.).
Black smoke is unburnt fuel. This is caused by badly calibrated fuel systems. Along with this goes a huge rise in fuel consumption.
It is WATER VAPOUR.
All engines suck air in from outside. (NO engine would run unless air is used in the combustion process).
Mixed in with this air, whether you agree or not, is water vapour. This, along with the air, is burnt. On a cold engine, this comes out of the exhaust as white smoke. As the vehicle, (and the exhaust system) heat up, this water vapour is burnt off, BEFORE it gets to the end of the exhaust. A catalytic converter gets VERY hot after about 15 minutes.
The ONLY other way that white smoke can come out of the exhaust continually is if the water in the cooling system is allowed to get into the combustion chamber. This is usually via a blown head gasket. This would also be apparent because the engine uses water at a rate.
Blue smoke is oil getting past other components into the combustion chamber. (Piston rings, valve stem seals etc.).
Black smoke is unburnt fuel. This is caused by badly calibrated fuel systems. Along with this goes a huge rise in fuel consumption.
White smoke usually indicates coolant into combustion chamber/bores but in some cases can be a blown turbo .
Get a proper mechanic to look at it rather than a computer / playstation nerd that most seem to use these days .
The coolant may be leaking due to headgasket, cracked head or cracked block .
The first checks would be a sniff test and pressure test of the cooling system .
The cold weather may well be masking any latent overheating problems added to the fact that the engine isn't doing any work .
If your feeling brave take it for a run and put it under load up some hills , give it a proper work out . This will give a better indication of engine fitness .
Get a proper mechanic to look at it rather than a computer / playstation nerd that most seem to use these days .
The coolant may be leaking due to headgasket, cracked head or cracked block .
The first checks would be a sniff test and pressure test of the cooling system .
The cold weather may well be masking any latent overheating problems added to the fact that the engine isn't doing any work .
If your feeling brave take it for a run and put it under load up some hills , give it a proper work out . This will give a better indication of engine fitness .
Burning a gallon of petrol or diesel produces amongst other things a large amount of water.
This condenses inside the exhaust system & is the main reason why cars used only for short journeys go through exhaust systems faster than those used for distance as the system doesn't get hot enough to boil it off.
Adding urea to diesels (adblue - a mix of urea & water) further reduces the amount of NOx by converting it to gaseous nitrogen & more H2O.
In cold weather this water vapour is visible as steam. You will also notice liquid dripping from the tailpipe at any time of the year.
If you are not losing any coolant you don't have a hgf - or at least not a coolant one.
Get the coolant checked for the presence of combustion gases - a simple test: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jjDn3yUw08 watch from 4:30.
May also be worth getting the emissions checked to see if anything is unusually high.
Mayo in the oil filler is not the surefire indicator of hgf that many believe it to be & I wonder how many have had their trousers pulled down by unscrupulous garages for unnecessary work.
This condenses inside the exhaust system & is the main reason why cars used only for short journeys go through exhaust systems faster than those used for distance as the system doesn't get hot enough to boil it off.
Adding urea to diesels (adblue - a mix of urea & water) further reduces the amount of NOx by converting it to gaseous nitrogen & more H2O.
In cold weather this water vapour is visible as steam. You will also notice liquid dripping from the tailpipe at any time of the year.
If you are not losing any coolant you don't have a hgf - or at least not a coolant one.
Get the coolant checked for the presence of combustion gases - a simple test: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jjDn3yUw08 watch from 4:30.
May also be worth getting the emissions checked to see if anything is unusually high.
Mayo in the oil filler is not the surefire indicator of hgf that many believe it to be & I wonder how many have had their trousers pulled down by unscrupulous garages for unnecessary work.
Edited by paintman on Wednesday 21st March 18:10
You don’t say what engine? But on a Mondeo TDCI it was exhaust gas going through a cooler for the EGR at the back of the engine
I was told you can clamp off the water feed pipes to see if the stops the white smoke if so that’s the problem.
I got a second hand one for £25
CHECK EGR COOLER
I was told you can clamp off the water feed pipes to see if the stops the white smoke if so that’s the problem.
I got a second hand one for £25
CHECK EGR COOLER
datum77 said:
White smoke coming out of ANY exhaust means only ONE thing. It is WATER VAPOUR.
Black smoke is unburnt fuel. This is caused by badly calibrated fuel systems. Along with this goes a huge rise in fuel consumption.
1. Wrong, unburnt diesel is WHITE.Black smoke is unburnt fuel. This is caused by badly calibrated fuel systems. Along with this goes a huge rise in fuel consumption.
2. Black smoke is caused by over-fuelling in a diesel engine, NOT to be confused with unburnt diesel.
https://www.bellperformance.com/blog/bid/115989/di...
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