My diesel truck is blowing white smoke

What does it mean when a diesel engine is blowing white smoke? What makes a diesel blow blue or white smoke? Can bad diesel cause white smoke? Why do diesel trucks sometimes leave black smoke?

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. Another possible issue is a worn-out injector , an injector with a cracked tip , or a bad. 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 SMOKE occurs when raw diesel comes through the exhaust completely intact and unburned.

Some causes of this include. One reason for white smoke is very common and completely harmless. One of two conditions is responsible for white smoke blowing out of your exhaust. First is normal condition (so you don’t have to panic) and the second is a not so normal condition which should be fixed as soon as possible.

But mostly, it is the incorrect injector timing in the cylinders. When the fuel pump injection timing is off, it is difficult to determine the root cause. There are two main reasons, the first might be dirty or low quality fuel (something which can be problematic with diesel engines). However, if your diesel pickup truck is specifically blowing white smoke, there could be a few different reasons why.

These include the ones listed below. A common condition for white smoke blowing from your vehicle’s exhaust is condensation. This is usually the last color of smoke you want to see, particularly on gas cars.

If the smoke is thin, and goes away relatively quickly, than it is merely condensation. However, thicker, longer lasting smoke is a much larger headache. Your engine is more than likely burning coolant. White Smoke While Starting the Engine.

Diesel trucks also produce smoke during the cleaning exhaust filter operation. If this is the case, there is nothing wrong with your truck. Sometimes diesel engines emit a white smoke while starting. The white smoke is due to unburnt fuel caused by improper heating.

It can be especially difficult to start a diesel engine during cold weather. Diesel engines need high compression and heat for fuel combustion. Diesels with an engine temperature below about F. Heavy duty diesels and most trucks emit some white or black smoke on startup or accelerating. It is often a result of bad driving technique (lugging), poor injector maintenance, or excessive fuel delivery rates.

It may also be a combination of all three. Gray, black, or white smoke emissions are warning signs. What it means it that your diesel is leaking engine oil into the cylinders and when the oil is burnt it produces blue smoke.

It is also another sign things are not working as they should. HOWTO looks at all the possible reasons why white smoke is coming from your exhaust pipe. What happens is that the valve guide seals or piston rings are worn out, and oil is leaking past from where it should be lubricating the moving parts, to the combustion chamber where it’s being burned up with the fuel. This video should only be used as guidance and not as an absolute-guide.

If you don’t know what you are doing.