White Smoke - Embarassing?

[lexusisfan]

I'm a very proud owner of a IS200, and every often I get compliments from friends or some odd member of the public about how good it looks even though is a 12 year old car.

Well, up until winter kicks in! The amount of white smoke that the exhaust generates is unbelievable while stood at traffic lights!

I could even see it coming all the way to my drivers side window!!

What about the fellow members? Do you also experience the same issue?

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

Yep. But only until it's warmed up. Not noticeable after that.

[petayV8]

Yep same on mine. I dont mind it

[JPWilson]

I dont think mine is overly smokey but i have only noticed it because my last car didn't seem to smoke at all...

But as soon as its warm it stops, eyes forward and foot down ;-)

[scudney]

Hi, why worry yourself over nothing?

[IHgs300]

Its only the condensation in the exhaust burning off while engines cold and the usual warm gas/ cold air......nothing to worry about.

[panya]

Totally normal it's happen to my is300 too with custom exhaust.

[Steve]

question is... is it condensation or something more sinister?

does it go away when car is warmed up?

[Lex-Scott]

Had the same with mine too in the cold months. I always assumed it was a condensation thing seeing as it was never a problem in warmer weather.

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

The IS200 will smoke like hell in the cold. If its white then your ok it's just condensation etc.

If its got blue or black in the smoke then it will be something more sinister! I have to drive mine about 10 miles in this weather before it stops smoking :)

[rigga955]

As said just moisture burning off..... you want to see what my impreza can do if its left for a couple of days in low temps, I can fill the road with dense white smoke it's a touch embarrassing.

[matt-c]

Actually, if it's white smoke then you have serious issues. White smoke indicates water in the engine, which could be a head gasket failure (blue smoke is oil, black smoke is fuel).

However, if you're just talking about condensation, which I think you all are, then you're fine. Part n parcel of a stainless steel exhaust.

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

Actually, if it's white smoke then you have serious issues. White smoke indicates water in the engine, which could be a head gasket failure (blue smoke is oil, black smoke is fuel).

However, if you're just talking about condensation, which I think you all are, then you're fine. Part n parcel of a stainless steel exhaust.

Yeah condensation. if it's still smoking white like mad when the car is warm fair enough, I'd be worried too. :)

[gsdude]

Mine does this too, same as my previous IS200....Very noticeable in the recent cold weather! I think more than just the colour of the fumes, the smell will be a big indicator if there's a problem. A smell if its strong and distinctive might be cause for concern but otherwise nothing to worry about.

[jomo]

So its not smoking its steaming!

Well tis the season to be jolly, fal la lala la la, fal la lala.......

[wicked677]

Never noticed this at all on mine, I don't think I have a stainless steel exhaust though. I think you have seen it one time from when your car is cold and it's playing on your mind. I expect tomorrow morning I will take more notice now too LOL

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

Never noticed this at all on mine, I don't think I have a stainless steel exhaust though. I think you have seen it one time from when your car is cold and it's playing on your mind. I expect tomorrow morning I will take more notice now too LOL

Really? They blow like mad in the cold. Bet you notice now lol :)

Why don't you think you have a stainless steel exhaust? They were standard.

[AdamBu]

My LS400 blows like a biatch when cold. Can't remember if my IS200 did though

[Exdee]

My IS does that too. I think it looks kind of cool with the dual exhaust. But I know what the OP means since there are other cars on the road that have virtually no steam. So it does kind of make you wonder if there's anything wrong with your car.

People who use their car less often and/or for short trips will probably have more water in their exhaust systems and hence more steam in the winters. Could be that these Lexus exhausts are more prone to retaining water inside them.

In comparison to smoke, steam disappears into thin air pretty quickly and is not inconvenient for other road users so I think there is nothing to be embarrassed of.

[wicked677]

Never noticed this at all on mine, I don't think I have a stainless steel exhaust though. I think you have seen it one time from when your car is cold and it's playing on your mind. I expect tomorrow morning I will take more notice now too LOL

Really? They blow like mad in the cold. Bet you notice now lol :)

Why don't you think you have a stainless steel exhaust? They were standard.

I just assumed that because it was a charcoal colour and not shiny that it was a bog standard exhaust.

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

Nah they were stainless steel. Mines still on the original from the factory nearly 12 years on. Your exhaust is not gonna be shiny silver after a few years. It will discolour and can even get rust spots on the surface which will clean off and not corrode the exhaust :)

[wicked677]

Ah right, I imagine mine is the original too as it has aged then, I have not had to spend a penny on maintenance for the car. Except some new wipers at 6.79 off eBay. This is why I have been so reluctant to "give" my car away as a part exchange, so decided to keep it until I run it into the ground. As the majority of cars around seem to have at least 150k on the clock, I imagine I have many years of "free" motoring ahead of me.

[ChrisIS200SportTTE]

You'll still be driving the IS in 10 years then... It's not gonna break! :)

[TAAN]

Mine do white smoke when i start engine after that no smoke just a low steam thats it .Is it the indication of oil consumption

[Lost it]

Ha! You should see the state of the rear view from my 3.0 Xtype. Twin pipes, stainless exhaust, Porsche designed engine, chain driven cams, 240bhp... It's like it's making it's own cloud this weather.

The easy way to tell, if the "smoke" rises it's water vapour. If it sits on the floor, it's not so good....

Something cool about twin pipes on a car emitting two streams of vater vapour even if it's silenced a bit too much. My wife's old Lexus used to do the same though, the issue she had was that the journeys she used to make were not really long enough for the car heater to get up to temp, and I think that produced more water condenstae because when I used to take it out mid winter for it's monthly clean out it would steam for about 6 miles.

I had to give it an "italian" every month, she never used to get the revs high enough to get the VVt bit working... The emissions test numbers were always impressive though.