water vapor from exhaust

[nkx]

my 1.8 brighton has an issue with water vapor. i know its normal for some water to come from the tailpipe, but rev it up to 4-5k and this thing shoots out a plume that looks like a dryer vent exhaust on a cold night. the water, and i use that word loosely, leaves a black spot on the ground if its allowed to drip from the tailpipe, and smells of gas. it seems to run fine, its just a little messy!

does anyone know whats going on with this thing?

[97ScoobyL]

I know that this may sound stupid, but are you sure this s water vapor and not gasoline? I had a customer come in once about "oil in his exhaust" and it wasraw unburnt fuel.

[nkx]

I know that this may sound stupid, but are you sure this s water vapor and not gasoline? I had a customer come in once about "oil in his exhaust" and it wasraw unburnt fuel.

what would be the best way to check? it doesnt smell like straight raw gas.

[nkx]

does anyone else have a suggestion?? the only thing i can thing of is to try to run a hotter spark plug.

[RS MN]

id say gather some of it in a coffee can, and move quite a ways from the car and try to light it on fire, but that might not be a smart idea, its just the pyro in me.

[nkx]

id say gather some of it in a coffee can, and move quite a ways from the car and try to light it on fire, but that might not be a smart idea, its just the pyro in me.

safer than my idea, i was just gonna hold a torch to the tail pipe! :lol2:

[RS MN]

haha that was my first immediate thought too, but i was like "actually, not smart..."

but like i said, collect it, and light it.

[Gnome]

hahahhahahahhaaha i thought the same damn thing!!!
but, you could skip the coffie can and just let it drip then move the car and try lighting the stuff on the ground

[TouringBubble]

You can generally tell what it is by the color.

Fuel = Black
Oil = Thick bluish-white and lingers
Water = Translucent white and dissipates quickly

Sadly, noticeable water vapor under throttle could be a head gasket. Take off the oil cap and make sure that it doesn't have a chocolate milk looking residue on it. that's a sign of water and oil mixing and would indicate a head gasket issue.

There will be a little water condensed in the exhaust on a cold start. This can shoot out and take some suit from the exhaust pipes out with it and cause those spots on the floor. If it keeps doing that when warm, there is an issue.

[nkx]

You can generally tell what it is by the color.

Fuel = Black
Oil = Thick bluish-white and lingers
Water = Translucent white and dissipates quickly

Sadly, noticeable water vapor under throttle could be a head gasket. Take off the oil cap and make sure that it doesn't have a chocolate milk looking residue on it. that's a sign of water and oil mixing and would indicate a head gasket issue.

There will be a little water condensed in the exhaust on a cold start. This can shoot out and take some suit from the exhaust pipes out with it and cause those spots on the floor. If it keeps doing that when warm, there is an issue.

there isnt really smoke to tell the color, its just water vapor. it dissipates pretty quickly. the puddle of water when it collects is dark though.

i highly doubt that the headgaskets are bad because i replaced them not too long ago, complete with refinishing the heads. it doesnt use coolant either. the car had this issue with the water vapor before i tore the engine down...

[RS MN]

try to light it up yet?

[nkx]

not yet. i dont think ill make it to my garage until friday.

[RS MN]

i see i see.
well let me know!