seanpoe

My engine started smoking for no reason(that i'm aware of) tonight. It wasn't smoking on the way home or anything, but when i got home, it started smoking. I know it could be anything... so any lead into the right direction would be great. Maybe the weather? its like 50degrees, so could that be it? thanks.


btw.... i have a 1998 vw jetta vr6

BAMF

Color will tell. Look at the color, and you don't even need to post, there are 1204971259087 websites out there than have analysis of smoke. I don't quite remember it all offhand, but I thinks its something like blue=oil, white=water, black=unburnt gas? If its any other color, you've got some serious problems...

seanpoe

its whiteish... what does a water problem mean?

BAMF

It means you get to spend 15 bucks on new head gaskets, rip off the valve covers and heads, and put replacement gaskets in. Usually.

Edit: by the way, blown head gasket. It allows water that circulates through the engine jackets to keep it form melting to seep down into the pistons and get burned out with the rest of the gasses. Harmless at first, but if left untreated and allowed to grow, the problem can result in one hydrolocked engine.

seanpoe

$15? for VW head gaskets?.... why would it do it so randomly? i wasn't driving it hard at all... if anything, i was babying it.

BAMF

Not sure, 15 bucks was a generic figure, they're probably more. Hmm, well thats the most common cause...and I'm not a mechanic, but I'm not sure where else just water would get in from - if anyone knows a bit more, chime in. Usually beating the piss outta your car will do it, but I'm not sure, maybe it was just their time to go?

Its not hard to find out - just check your coolant levels every so often. If they go down abnormally fast, and you don't see water leakign from the lines, and you see white smoke, then thats a very good assumption to make. On another note, if you decide to let the problem ride, always check your coolant. If you run out, your temp gauge will not register the engine overheating until its way too late.

seanpoe

thanks for your help. i'll take it to my mechanic to get it checked out futher though. ty

Rey

I lheart working on veedubs... teh somewhat simpleness until you get into y2k .. then it's teh suck with all the plastic

Illswyn

$15? made of what, cardboard boxes?

Mine for the Mazda was around that.
Plus exhaust gaskets.
Plus intake gaskets.
Plus taking the head to be checked (it can be warped if it overheated)
Plus any hoses that should be replaced at the time.
Plus timing belt (change it if you remove it, good maintenance)
Plus any other belts (probably a serpentine on a newer car)
Plus oil and coolant, which you'll have to drain.

If that comes to $15, good luck!

And if you take it to a mechanic, expect it to be about $1,500+. Even more for a VW I would imagine.