Diesel blowing white smoke at idle

What could make a diesel engine produce white smoke? What does it mean when a diesel engine is blowing white smoke? Why does my diesel engine have white smoke? What is the reason for diesel smoke? Blowing white smoke is a red flag for your diesel engine , yet we see this happen all the time to our customers.

In many cases, white smoke emanating from the tailpipe (often at idle once the engine reached operating temperature) typically means a worn out injector. White or Blueish smoke is a sign of excessive fuel in the combustion chamber and all of it (atomized fuel ) not getting burned completely on the compression stroke. If you are NOT making oil , then extra fuel is getting into the cylinder some how, some way. This will cause white smoke , along with the idle issue. This is very easy to recognize since there is a difference between burning gasoline explosion and a burning oil explosion.

For big diesel engines this is big because it is not uncommon for these vehicles to be used for more than a half-million miles before retirement. Last week, just as I was thinking I had seen it all, a Ford F2was checked in that had a problem of Heavy White Smoke constantly emanating from the tailpipe at idle and worse as you increased RPM. If you drive one, or see one on the roa you can easily spot a truck with injector issues. At an idle (and worse in gear) these early Duramaxes will haze smoke at idle.

Lots of folks think this is a normal deal for a diesel. That haze is letting you know that one or more injectors are dribbling fuel into the combustion chamber. White smoke coming from the exhaust usually points to one point of failure: the injectors.

Usually, white smoke indicates that the diesel fuel is not burning correctly. Unburned diesel fuel will make its way through the exhaust completely unused. Be careful of white smoke as it will irritate your eyes and skin. The PowerStroke fuel injection system is designed for diesel burning vehicles. It uses a combination of the hydraulic injectors of old diesel engines and the electric injection system of gasoline engines to provide diesel vehicles with a reliable means of fuel injection.

WHITE SMOKE occurs when raw diesel comes through the exhaust completely intact and unburned. Some causes of this include. White Smoke White smoke can be caused by either excess fuel or an internal coolant leak in your engine. This is a case where you’ll probably want to call in the diesel pros, but here’s a diagnostic tip: While the engine is smoking, hold your hand over the exhaust outlet for seconds or so.

Don’t restrict the exhaust, just attempt to coat your fingers with the smoke. The unburnt fuel particles blow out the tailpipe producing a rich, thick, diesel fuel odor. It is normal to see white smoke from the exhaust during sub-zero and colder weather, at least until the engine warms up. Ad - White smoke occurs in a diesel engine when the diesel fuel goes through the engine and reaches the exhaust without having been burned.

This typically occurs due to the engine being too cool to burn the fuel, often resulting from low compression in one cylinder, problems with the fuel injection timing or a defective fuel injector. Diesel Engines Blowing White Smoke from Exhaust. Dealer says fuel return rate is ok.

Bob Brady, a diesel technician from Burnaby, British Columbia (Canada), suggests that one way to check PLN injector timing problems is to loosen the fuel line nut one half turn.