2008 Chevrolet Silverado - Not old enough to smoke yet

Maintenance/Repairs
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1

White smoke comes out of my exhaust when i first start it… Why?

2

if it’s only when you initially start and then goes away it’s most likely condensation. If it persists after the car warms up it could be a head gasket breach

2 Likes
3

Thank you…

4

I noticed it happens occasionally when it’s been sitting for a few hours and I start it.

5

Valve seals might leak a little oil into one or more cylinders.

1 Like
6

I’ll have to go get it checked.

Thank you. :+1:

7

Valve seals leaking would tend to have more blue smoke right?

8

I’ve always had trouble seeing “blue” smoke, but maybe just me…

9

You’ve probably had better running cars than me. I’ve had cars with issues. Super rich running (caused by misfires or leaky injectors) can release white smoke. So can condensation or head gasket leak.

Black/blue smoke is usually oil burning. I was burning a quart every 150 miles. On start, uphill, downhill, black/blue smoke. A little blue/white smoke on start is probably just a tiny bit of oil past the valve stem seals accumulating in the combustion chamber along with rich cold open-loop mixture.

10

Mine is just clean white smoke. Clears up quickly.

11

Have someone start it and you smell the smoke.

12

If you live in a humid climate, this is normal. Moisture will condense in the exhaust system and vaporize when the engine is started but not warmed up yet. As soon as the exhaust gets hot enough, the smoke disappears. Also, one of the by-products of combustion is water vapor.

13

Thank you…