The gas coming out of your exhaust engine should always be colourless. There shouldn’t be the smoke of any colour. If black cloudy smoke is coming out of your mini cooper S R53 exhaust system that is a matter of concern. It can be slightly blue or white other colours are not normal.
Exhaust Smoke Colours and Their Causes
If your car engine is giving out coloured smoke, it can be an indication of a problem in the engine. Here are some colours and their causes.
1. Light White Exhaust Smoke
If your exhaust smoke has a light white colour to it, it just means that the smoke has some amount of water vapours in it. When the cold engine starts to heat up, it produces water vapours which come out as steam. It is not anything to be concerned about. This mostly happens during chilly days when you first start your car in the morning.
2. Blue/Gray Exhaust Smoke
Blue/Gray smoke is common and is caused due to some kind of leaking. It is an indication that something is burning in the combustion chamber of your exhaust. When the oil is leaking, the engine starts to burn oil which produces a dense bluish-grey smoke when you start your car. A leak can be anywhere in:
1. Damaged Piston Rings
2. Valve Seals
3. Valve Guides
4. Damaged Cylinder Walls
If you see blue smoke during acceleration that means that your car’s piston rings are damaged. Blue smoke emitting out during deceleration means that there is a problem in your engine’s valve guide. Diagnose your car and then take it to a technician.
3. Black Exhaust Smoke
When the exhaust smoke is illegal dense black, there is always a problem related to the burning of fuel. The ratio air in the air-fuel mixture in your car may be a little high that causes rich fuel condition. In this condition, the car burns fuel more than normal. This leads to several cylinders fills in a day.
It can be caused by a clogged fuel pressure regulator or a leak in the fuel injector. Sometimes, the fuel return line gets lined with gunk that restricts the returning of the fuel. This results in excessive burning of the fuel. Some more causes are a bad sensor, blocked air filter and manifold. If you see your engine running rough and has a poor mileage take it to a technician.
4. Thick White/Gray Exhaust Smoke
This colour of white smoke is also not normal. If you see thick white/grey smoke continuously coming out of the tailpipe then most likely your coolant is burning. Coolant may leak out from somewhere and make its way to the combustion chamber.
When the coolant is burnt thick cloud-like smoke is formed. Early diagnosis can save you from bigger engine problems such as blown head gasket. Your car’s engine may be overheating as you drive due to this condition. Possible causes are damaged head gasket, the deck of an engine block may be cracked where the coolant jack is present or damage in the cylinder head near the coolant jacket.
Also Read: Blown Car Exhaust Causes & Symptoms
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