You are driving along and you glance at your rearview mirror. You see a ton of exhaust wafting into the air behind your automobile. Normally, you cannot see your car’s exhaust. This is normal. Why, all of a sudden, can you see the exhaust flowing out of the tailpipe now? LP & Sons Auto Care advises that your engine has likely developed a serious fluid leak and the fluid is being burned by the engine. This creates excess exhaust that is visible to the naked eye. The color of the exhaust reveals which fluid is leaking from the engine. Let’s talk more about this below.
Black
If the exhaust that you see coming out of your tailpipe is black, your engine has developed a serious fuel leak. Naturally, it is not safe to drive your automobile if the engine is burning fuel and producing black exhaust. The more the fuel leaks the greater the risk of an engine fire. As such, we recommend that you pull over and call for a tow truck to bring your vehicle to our shop. You do not want to drive your automobile if it is releasing black exhaust.
Blue
You also want to avoid driving the vehicle if it is releasing blue exhaust. This is an indication that the engine is burning the motor oil. This usually happens if you have blown the head gasket and the motor oil is making its way into the cylinders. When the spark plugs ignite the air and fuel in the cylinders, the motor oil also burns. Consequently, the burning oil creates the blue exhaust that you see. What’s worse is that you won’t have motor oil circulating through the engine because it is leaking into the cylinder block. This can damage the engine severely.
White
Another sign that you have blown the head gasket is white exhaust. This means that the engine is burning the coolant that is spraying out from underneath the gasket as well as mixing with the motor oil. This combination can kill your engine in a very short time. As such, and as with the other types of exhaust discussed above, we recommend that you pull over and have your vehicle towed to our shop. Driving the engine when it is burning coolant will increase the engine’s temperature to dangerous levels. This can cause additional engine damage.
Call LP & Sons Auto Care in DeLand, FL, today if you are having a problem with your vehicle’s exhaust.