White exhaust smoke.
A little white smoke on a cold start is usually water vapour and clears in a few minutes. If it is thick, carries on once the engine is warm or smells sweet, it may be coolant burning inside the engine, and driving like that can wreck it.
Can I keep driving?
- Stop now
Thick white smoke that does not clear once the engine is warm, above all if the temperature rises, the coolant drops or the smoke smells sweet.
- Go to a garage soon
Smoke that appears when you accelerate or comes back every day although the temperature is normal. On a diesel, white smoke with jerking or hard cold starts.
- It can wait
Thin vapour on cold or damp mornings that clears within a few minutes, as the engine warms up.
What it usually means
- Condensation
- Water in the exhaust evaporating. It is normal in cold or damp weather and lasts a few minutes.
- Coolant getting into the cylinders
- The most cited serious cause: a damaged head gasket, a warped cylinder head or a cracked block. It usually comes with coolant loss, a sweet smell and high temperature.
- On a diesel: incomplete combustion
- Leaking or faulty injectors, glow plugs that fail in the cold, low compression or an air leak in the intake.
- Turbo
- A faulty turbo or a damaged turbo pipe can give smoke when accelerating, above all on diesels.
What you can check yourself
- With the engine cold, look at the coolant expansion tank level and note it down. If it drops within a few days without leaving a puddle, it may be leaking inside the engine.
- Look at the dipstick and the oil filler cap: a milky, coffee-coloured paste or foam means coolant is mixing with the oil.
- Keep an eye on the temperature gauge or warning while you drive.
- Never open the coolant cap with the engine hot: the liquid comes out under pressure and burns.
What the garage confirms
- A pressure test of the cooling system and a coolant test for combustion gases.
- A cylinder compression test.
- On a diesel: reading the fault codes and checking the injectors and glow plugs.
Products that “seal” the head gasket are at most a temporary fix.
Engines with related sheets
Faults documented with sources on Testigo related to this symptom, across 489 engines. These are the ones with the most; look for yours under Cars.
- Volkswagen Polo VI (AW) 1.6 TDI (EA288)2017–2026 · 2 sheets
- Volkswagen T-Roc (I) 1.6 TDI (EA288)2017–2025 · 2 sheets
- Volkswagen T-Roc (I) 2.0 TDI (EA288)2017–2025 · 2 sheets
- Volkswagen Golf V (1K) 1.9 TDI PD2003–2008 · 2 sheets
- Volkswagen Golf V (1K) 2.0 TDI PD2003–2008 · 2 sheets
- Volkswagen Golf VII 2.0 TDI (EA288)2012–2020 · 2 sheets
- Volkswagen Tiguan I 2.0 TDI (EA189)2007–2016 · 2 sheets
- BMW Serie 5 GT (F07) 550i (N63, 4.4 V8)2009–2017 · 2 sheets
- BMW X6 (E71/E72) xDrive50i (N63, 4.4 V8)2008–2014 · 2 sheets
- Peugeot Expert (I / II) 1.6 HDi2000–2016 · 2 sheets
- Peugeot Expert (I / II) 1.9 D / 2.0 HDi2000–2016 · 2 sheets
- Citroën Jumpy (I / II) 1.6 HDi2000–2016 · 2 sheets
- Citroën Jumpy (I / II) 1.9 D / 2.0 HDi2000–2016 · 2 sheets
- Fiat Scudo (I / II) 1.6 Multijet (PSA)2000–2016 · 2 sheets
- Fiat Scudo (I / II) 1.9 / 2.0 JTD-Multijet2000–2016 · 2 sheets
- Lancia Thema / Voyager 2.8 / 3.0 CRD2011–2015 · 2 sheets
- Ford C-Max / Grand C-Max (II) 1.0 / 1.5 / 1.6 EcoBoost2010–2019 · 2 sheets
- Toyota Yaris (III) 1.4 D-4D2011–2020 · 2 sheets
- Toyota Corolla (IX) 1.4 / 2.0 D-4D2000–2007 · 2 sheets
- Toyota Corolla Verso 2.0 / 2.2 D-4D2001–2009 · 2 sheets
- Toyota Avensis (II) 2.0 / 2.2 D-4D2003–2008 · 2 sheets
- Toyota Land Cruiser (J150) 3.0 / 2.8 D-4D2009–2024 · 2 sheets
- Volvo C30 1.6D / D2 / 2.0D / D3 / D42006–2013 · 2 sheets
- Volvo S40 (II) / V50 1.6D / D2 / 2.0D / D3 / D42004–2012 · 2 sheets
Sources
Guidance only: it does not replace a garage inspection and your car's manual always comes first.