Civic EG

When i revved my engine today for the hell of it while in neutral i saw white smoke coming from exhaust, i was reading somewhere it can be a coolant leak?
i did notice i had to refill my coolant reservoir fast than normal last moth.

how can i check for leaks? my car doesn't overheat and oil level is good.
please help me.

95 civic sedan d15 engine 5spd 161k miles

Check the oil for any coolant in it.

Sounds like the head gasket could be going. I'd do a compression check after checking the oil for coolant and then looking for any coolant in the oil. Milkshake oil or cookie dough under the radiator cap are both sure signs of a bad head gasket.

How does one complete a compression test?

http://civic-eg.com/viewtopic.php?t=2703

teal_dx wrote:http://civic-eg.com/viewtopic.php?t=2703

Thanks for the link, that was very helpful! I am going to try to grab a c-tester tonight or tomorrow, but to confirm the link shows how to do one cylinder so I just repeat that process for all 4 right?

Also, if I am billowing white smoke out of the tailpipe and it makes my eyes burn, that's most likely a head gasket right?

Again, sorry for the thread jack.

Yep, do it for each cyl. And by the sound of it, you have a leaking headgasket (or warped head is possible if your engine overheated).

Ok, just got home and thought I would check here while that engine cools off a bit.

This morning, the car started fine, idled normally and there was a lot of white smoke from the tailpipe. It left the light or stop sign pretty sluggish but settled down once rolling and the rpm was consistently above 1500 (hwy driving). Started to really bog and smoke towards the end of my commute, approximately 30 minutes or so.

The drive home was fairly uneventful. Little smoke, idled normally start to finish, peppy though I took it pretty easy. I could smell a little something though, not a coolant smell but a kind of burning.

I had someone mention to me that the catalytic converter can get plugged and cause white smoke, could that be the culprit? This condition did just pop up the day after I discovered the car really moves north of 4000rpm. Is it possible I just cleaned it out?

I have ordered a new head gasket set ($210+tax!!!!) and would like before I go and pay for it if that may not actually be the problem. I am about to go out and pull the plugs to inspect, expect pictures shortly. The way it was idling last night I would have expected to find at least one full of coolant, but after the drive home I don't know what to expect.

No CEL. Temp never above 1/2 way.

Checked the plugs:








...aaaand then I started pulling the head.

Head's off.


Any thoughts on why three cyclinders are black and the 4th is clean?
1.


2.

3.

4.

Did you do the compression test? What were the results?

I did not. By the time my buddy showed up with the tester I had the head off lol

One thing I have noticed is that no one finishes their "OMG WTF is happening with my car" threads and even though this isn't MY thread I will share what appears to have fixed my white smoke issue.

I replaced the head, intake and exhaust manifold gaskets as well as the thermostat, valve cover gaskets and did a thorough job of bleeding the cooling system of air. It was a lot of work, but not really all that difficult a job, the bulk of which was cleaning and scraping before reassembly. It was handy to have the Chilton manual open and, of course, a buddy who had done one before.

The smoke hasn't completely disappeared, but it has greatly reduced in volume already and I just finished the job last night.

I hope this helps others who have, are or will be experiencing the same issue.

The test would have been helpful to know which cyl(s) were leaking.

To avoid confusion, Cyl #1 is closest to the timing belt, #4 is by the distributor.
I'd suspect that your leak was by cyl no. 1.
Notice how clean it is compared to the others, possibly due to coolant entering and being burned maybe


If it was only the cat converter, your coolant level would not be getting low or getting air pockets in the cooling system.

Since it's already apart, I'd clean everything up, get a new head gasket, head bolts/studs and check the head to be sure it isn't warped.

I'd suspect that your leak was by cyl no. 1.
Notice how clean it is compared to the others, possibly due to coolant entering and being burned maybe

That was my initial inclination but, if you're baffled...

If it was only the cat converter, your coolant level would not be getting low or getting air pockets in the cooling system.

Good point.

Since it's already apart, I'd clean everything up, get a new head gasket, head bolts/studs and check the head to be sure it isn't warped.

Done, done, and done.