white smoke coming from exhaust..
 

hey..can anyone tell me reasons for white smoke coming fom exhaust.. it comes out sometimes in large amounts for about 5 to ten minutes,and other times just for a few seconds.. its a 02.. do i need a new engine..?

Is this when it's cold out or when you first start the engine? It's probably just steam and normal when you first start the car. The only other thing it could be is coolant so check the radiator and overflow tank. If both are to the proper levels, then you are fine.

it happens all weathers really, maybe even a bit more in the heat..leaves clouds of smoke behind.. happens sometimes wen i start the car, but other times wen im stuck in traffic, or driving slowly..coolant seems ok..not sure on the over flow tank and the whereabouts..
Thanks for reply..:)

so how do you know the 'coolant is ok' if you're 'not sure on the over flow tank and the whereabouts'? that makes no sense. my brain just exploded.

please check your owner's manual. anytime you see white smoke and suspect a problem out of the ordinary the coolant should be monitored daily to see if its dropping. burning coolant is usually indication of a blown head gasket or worse a cracked block.

no the coolant hasnt budged..stll at the same level since i can remember.oh im sorry that ur brain has exploded..havnt a clue about the different parts of cars.. mechanic has ripped me off before so i was just wondering if the job was simpler then puttin a new engine in..he supposedly reconditioned the engine last month..

ok good, just wanted to make sure that you're not losing coolant. in that case it is very likely just condensation collecting in the engine and exhaust over night, very normal and not harmful at all.

forums are here for you to learn and (hopefully) not get ripped off. you might not get all the info on a silver platter, but a few here (myself included) are happy to help out someone that just does not have the knowledge.

as far as 'reconditioned' the engine, i'm curious to know exactly what he did and what he charged you. thats not exactly normal as a maintenace job...not sure what you mean there.

well he's explained now that engine was not actually reconditioned, it was just the starter motor that was reconditioned and refitted.he said after work was done that there would be no problemm for another few years anyway..
jobs that wer done were:
-Oil filter, engine oil and air filter
-plugs cleaned and gaped
-belts checked and adjusted
-rocker removed and sealed
-belts checked and adjusted
-gearbox checked
-all brakes checked, adjusted
-lights leveled and checked

he charged 400, but is lookin for another 700 telling me that i need a new(second hand) engine, and that i might aswell get a new clutch in now aswell as the one i have may only last 6 months or more..

Thanks for ur help..:)

that clown is ripping you off hardcore. find a new mechanic asap!

-Oil filter, engine oil and air filter
you can get this done for a little over $30

-plugs cleaned and gaped
this takes 10 minutes, pile of horse****

-belts checked and adjusted
so he put his finger on the belt to check tension...nice

-rocker removed and sealed
totally unnecessary unless it was leaking oil

-belts checked and adjusted
only 'adjustment' for belts needed is to ensure they are tight. probably didn't need new belts anyhow, thats a classic scam.

-gearbox checked
meaning what?? he drove it up the road?? thats all checking the transmission is!

-all brakes checked, adjusted
front brakes do not require adjustment. rear drums consists of turning a screw with a flathead, takes less than 5 minutes.

-lights leveled and checked
so he checked that they were on. light 'leveling' or aiming adjustment is only done when needed. again, he's scamming you

$400 for that...wow if i was ripping people off like that i wouldn't be able to sleep at night.

now its $700 for a new engine. and why do you need one? your car is a 2002 and these engines are quite tough. i call bull****.

PLEASE get a new mechanic. people like this don't deserve to be in business.

ha ha ha.. i will deffo get new mechanic.. he just took the car the other day to put a new plug in it, the car use to chuck wen in a lower gear,he was meant to do this when workin on the engine last time, i then explained that there was still smoke coming from it so he took it for a spin and he was like " yeah im afraid ur gonna need a new engine, wear and tear in the engine is causing the smoke "..he didnt think to tell me this after gettin 400 euros , not sure if ders dat much of a difference with dollars anyway.. lucky i came on this site or id be really ripped off, thanks zero_gravity..:)

so...smoke damaged the engine....u should ask him how the exhaust valves survive.

ha ha well i wont be geting him again.. no way.. do you think i should get it looked over by another mechanic or just leave the car be..

Wow felt like I was just put back in time about 8 years ago. We were dealing with this every week. On some accents the oil was going between valve guide and head . You could see this when car sat overnight it would smoke alot. The fix was just pop a head on it and done ready to roll. I havent seen one with any lower end problems. The head swap took like 3 hrs and its done. Now if you gonna get a head and you buy from hyundai you need to go ahead and get new valves and the seal kit and have machine shop do the building of the head. We did our own in shop but again we had tools to do the job right. It might cost same for a new head as it is for a used engine. Weigh that option.We never had luck with machine shop fixing old heads due to casting issue between guide and head. Either way you go good luck and thanks for taking me on a trip down memory lane.

yeah the vlaves leaking oil is always a possibility here, but that does not cause white smoke as the OP is having. you'd generally get black or grey smoke, definitely not white. white is either coolant burning or a bunch of condensation in the engine.

my feeling here would be to have someone else take a look. and as far as the valve seals/guides do you notice smoke behind you when you take off from a stop light? thats the big tip off for that problem. however a new engine, no freakin way.

options if its the valve problem are as suggested a new head, head rebuild, or even one from a junkyard.

the condensation (which i suspect) is really only evident after the car as been left for a while (usually overnight) so that condensation has a chance to build inside the engine. thats very normal and not harmful. take careful note of when this problem occurs and that will determine if you need to have it looked at - preferably by a more competent mechanic that isn't out for money.

unfortunate as a female who does not understand cars, the crooked mechanics prey on your type. just be careful and ask lots of questions, ask friends who they go to as well.

If it was coolant they would notice a loss. Have you ever noticed loss of oil in between oil changes? The only way to determine what is causing the smoking is an accurate diagnosis. You can remove spark plugs and check for oil burning on them. You can also see if it is coolant . Now for smoking takin off at stoplights....never seen a hyundai have that problem . FIRST... diagnose find what is causing the smoke , then work on solution. I would look at all of the spark plugs. Check for loss of oil or coolant. Maybe do a compression test or even a cylinder leak down test. Look in the intake throttle body is there any oil? How about the PCV valve ...is it operating properly? There are a number of things to look for. We do this all day so we know what to look for so just do some research and lets see where it leads.

Oil smoke would be blueish in color but it can't hurt to check the oil level and plugs.

checked the coolant again today, still the same..sometimes while taking off but it mostly happens when driving slowly..sometimes goes on for a few mins, leaves clouds behind, other times its not as bad, its worse in the heat..yeah the car is burning oil real quick.. thought it was a leak at first but wen that mechanic checked he said well these cars do burn oil quicker.. but now its down to wear and tear in the engine.. 2 to 3 litres im putting in every 2 to 3 weeks al depends how much driving im doing.. other than this, have no other problems with the car..

yep thats what we were looking for here. your engine is burning the oil for sure. if you have emissions laws to contend with where you are it WILL fail. and no these cars don't really burn oil fast at all normally. from what you describe there is a problem with the valve seals and/or guides, this means some rather expensive head work.

"sometimes while taking off but it mostly happens when driving slowly" theres the big clue as to it being a valve sealing problem. i can't say 100% and as hyundai-tech suggested a proper diagnosis is needed. what i'm saying is that behaviour is common to the valve problem.

here are the possible problems, someone will chime in if i miss anything:

-valve seals and guides. this means your exhaust and/or intake valves in the engine head have lost their seal and are allowing oil to enter the combustion chamber and be burnt creating your smoke. requires removal of the head and some somewhat extensive rebuilding. a used engine head is another option.

-head gasket. although rather rare on these cars and even more rare to be oil, the head gasket can be leaking oil into the combustion chamber.

-piston rings. at that point yes a new or used engine is probably your cheaper option. the rings that seal the pistons inside the engine may have worn out and allow a good deal of oil to enter the combustion chamber again.

-yes as hyundai-tech suggested check in the throttle body and check the PCV valve. thats a simple and cheap fix so i would start there.

step one is to provide any more information here you can, even the things that seem small and trivial may give us another clue. second step ask around for a good mechanic. ask here if you are unsure and want some advice of what a mechanic tells you.

finally if its something like the valve seals/guides the repair bill is going to hurt...fair warning.

not sure on emmision laws,im here in ireland, as far as i know the higher it is the more tax we pay on it..
how much do you think it will hurt if it is the valve problem..?
not sure on any other things that might help. sometimes i get the odd smell as its smoking, not a burning smell as such.. the smoke doesnt happen ongoing, as i drive it, it will just start coming out at anytime,and yeah as i said, only wen driving slowly, never wen driving fast, when it does happen its quite embarrassing.but as i live in a small town i tend to be driving a lot slower most of the time.i have no problems while drivng fast, or on long distance drives.sometimes the fan kicks in after turning the engine off for maybe 30 seconds in the heat..even after a short drive.. however, not all the time.. thats all i can tell u for now.. thanks for that.. i will go on a mechanic hunt over the next few days..:)

well short term its really not too damaging as long as you can keep putting oil in. here in canada (and most of the US) we have to go for emissions tests every so often. every other year here. if it fails, you have to get it fixed and costs a bit. if you have nothing like that, then emissions are not a worry for you.

long run you're going to get a lot of buildup inside the engine. problems are going to include spark plugs wearing out a lot faster, buildup on valve seats making the engine much less efficient, partial blockage of the intake (throttle body mainly), blockage of various emissions components such as the PCV valve, eventual blockage/damage of various sensors such as the o2 sensors and MAP sensor, and i'm not 100% sure but i would imagine that long term could kill the catalytic converter.

once you get a proper diagnosis make your decision from there. if its the valve problem you're looking at repair engine head, replace engine head, or maybe it might even make sense to get rid of the car and get another. thats up to you.

yeah will do..might not get much for the car so will just see how much it costs to get fixed first.. the mecahnic that ripped me off has offered 600 euros for it even though he wants 700 off me to fix it..i was told not to take that amount.
would make more sense to get rid of it i suppose..:(
you should start charging for all ur advice..:)

Think I hit this one on the head......like I said we did a ton of these back in the day. Needs a head never had lower end issues.

am i best off goin to a hyundai garage for this..?

thats a difficult one to answer...

any *good* mechanic can hadle this just as well. its just finding a good one.

as for the dealers, their mechanics will have more experience with that specific car than an outside mechanic - but you are likely to pay more for that. at the same time you are more likely to have the job done right in this case. thats mainly because without the car repair knowledge it can be difficult to find that good 3rd party mechanic.

that outside mechanic can do the job just as well and usually for less. like i said its just finding him.

k thanks for all ur help guys.. will let you know how i get on..:)

I know your reply was to someone else but, I was looking for an answer of my own when I came across your post. Thank you, you solved my problem also! 😊

Thank you, you helped me also.