Seems to have a lot of vapor from the exhaust

Tiny
JOHN HEGARTY
  • MEMBER
  • 2011 OPEL ASTRA
  • 1.4L
  • 4 CYL
  • TURBO
  • 2WD
  • MANUAL
  • 124,000 MILES
I know in winter and cold weather its a lot worse and I am living in a cold climate where it freezes and snows this time of year and I see a lot of cars that are not warmed up emitting lots of heavy steam but my car seems to keep doing it even when warmed up. I took it for a one hour drive at highway speeds a few nights back thinking it might be a build up of condensation that needed to be burned off but still the vapor remains. Comes in wisps but quickly evaporates I can see it at lights when stopped or when accelerating away but quickly evaporates. I also noticed that my exhaust is almost cold to touch nearer the tailpipe even after a drive its warm at best. I could even put my hand on it. Is that normal? Or what would cause this? I have no apparent loss of coolant or oil and no signs of contaminated oil. Temperature gauge stays at a regular central position of 90c. No sweet smell from exhaust or no bad smell. Car seems to drive great. If I place my hand near exhaust it literally just feels like steam and doesn't leave any residue or oily feeling. I am assuming because the exhaust pipe isn't hot it's making it harder for the vapor to burn off but I can't understand what would cause this and can find very little information. On it. Any help or advice greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Tuesday, December 10th, 2019 AT 12:06 AM

7 Replies

Tiny
AL514
  • MECHANIC
  • 4,692 POSTS
Hello, any excessive smoke from the exhaust that doesn't pretty much clear up after the engine reaches full operating temperature is some liquid getting into the cylinder(s). Most likely coolant even if it isn't showing signs of being real low. It doesn't take much coolant to make a lot of white steam/smoke. This can be caused by a bad head gasket, a crack in the cylinder head or some other mechanical failure.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/excessive-smoke-coming-from-the-exhaust-pipe
https://www.2carpros.com/articles/head-gasket-blown-test
https://www.2carpros.com/articles/white-smoke-or-steam-coming-from-the-exhaust-pipe
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Tuesday, December 10th, 2019 AT 4:14 AM
Tiny
JOHN HEGARTY
  • MEMBER
  • 4 POSTS
Thanks for the reply. Any reason why the exhaust pipe is cold/barely warm though even after driving? What about PCV valve/membrane failure?
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Tuesday, December 10th, 2019 AT 6:35 AM
Tiny
AL514
  • MECHANIC
  • 4,692 POSTS
It would be a good idea to have someone take a look at the live data stream while the car is running and a test drive, just to make sure all the sensors are reading correctly and there's no codes stored. It's possible the engine isnt getting up to operating temperature. A decent scan tool can read all the sensors at once giving a good look into the current running condition.
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Tuesday, December 10th, 2019 AT 2:00 PM
Tiny
JOHN HEGARTY
  • MEMBER
  • 4 POSTS
Update: Okay, so was at the Opel main dealers servicing depot today for an inspection on the car and most things looking good and thankfully after a pressure test there is no leaks in the coolant system so the head gasket is all good. Phew! Seems though that I have ignition coils on the way out so will need to be replaced along with spark plugs. 486e they quoted lol :D Well I know I can get the coil pack for about 200 and spark plugs are about 60 for the set so. 226e for a 30 minute job Opel? No chance. Will be taking other avenues for that but I must say was great service and the examination and information given was tip top otherwise and inexpensive at 50e for a whole check up and pressure test to put my mind at ease. Its worth noting on my original post that a bad ignition coil could on occasion cause a little extra smoking/vapor to come in bursts from the tailpipe or run a little rich. Hopefully if anyone else is having this type of issue this has helped in some way.
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Wednesday, December 11th, 2019 AT 8:05 AM
Tiny
AL514
  • MECHANIC
  • 4,692 POSTS
Glad you got it all straightened out.
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Wednesday, December 11th, 2019 AT 11:34 AM
Tiny
JOHN HEGARTY
  • MEMBER
  • 4 POSTS
AL514 thanks for the help.
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Wednesday, December 11th, 2019 AT 12:16 PM
Tiny
STEVE W.
  • MECHANIC
  • 13,464 POSTS
Thank you for using 2CarPros, tell a friend about us.
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Sunday, December 15th, 2019 AT 9:54 AM

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