Howdy all,

My ‘63 F100 292 is billowing white smoke from the exhaust. Lots of white smoke. It is constant - not just when it starts. It smells like … exhaust, I guess. I’m not smelling oil, and I don’t see a blue tint.

I’d be grateful for ideas of what is going on, and is it serious?

Thanks in advance.

Mike

 

Steam perhaps from a bad head gasket or worse?

 

White smoke in a gas engine is usually a coolant issue such as a blown head gasket. How are the coolant levels and does the coolant look clean?

 

Thank you for the idea

 

Thanks Jimmy. I’ll check the coolant tomorrow.

Is a blown head gasket bad … should I stop driving the truck?

 

I would not drive it.You could be pumping coolant into the cylinder, rust and hydraulic issues can break a lot of parts. Coolant can fill the cylinder and it cannot compress and something got to give, piston, rods etc.

 

If in fact you do have a blown head gasket the coolant may be a bit low and you are not holding coolant pressure. The coolant system can be pressurized to check and verify you are leaking. I strongly suspect head gaskets with white smoke. You need to park it and verify the problem. as stated above a fairly inexpensive fix can get costly if you hydrolock that engine. Things will break.

 

The head gasket isn't a big deal as far as fixing, but you do not want antifreeze in the oil, it will destroy the bearings. I wouldn't start it anymore until you find the issue. If this just started happening it isn't a freezing problem, so I'd assume the head gasket is bad, that's a pretty easy engine to work on, drain the oil make sure there is no sign of antifreeze, then pull the intake and the heads. IT's a good time to send the heads to the machine shop have the valves done and plane the heads.

 

It just my opinion but to me coolant leak is white but its steam and it disappears quickly out the tail pipe ,oil burns white and stays in the air for the cars behind you to say boy he's burning oil and fuel is black smoke

 

You didn't accidentally put diesel fuel in it did you? Just a thought since I've seen vehicles billowing white smoke when some did that. Not me, but someone

But then it smelled of kerosene too

 

Sounds like a blown head gasket or cracked head. Have you checked your oil and if so how does it look?

 

Check your compression if its good try some valve seals its pretty cheap

 

Valve seals have nothing to do with white smoke.

 

What do the spark plugs reveal, any residue? I assume this truck has a manual trans. With automatics the modulator can leak trans fluid causing it to be drawn in by the engine, ATF burns white.

 

Thanks to all. I'm going to have to take this to my mechanic, as the steps involved are beyond me. For my education, some specific follow ups ...

@lizardman1 I pulled a plug last week and it didn't have residue, but looked black. Pic attached.
@MikeyLawless nope ...no deisel!
@EricJ I can change the oil ... if I do, how will I know if there is antifreeze in there? And if there is, does that mean head gasket or something else?
@Jimmy's Pilot Service got it. Coolant looks low - can't touch it with my finger.

All ... the smoke is white-ish. Not Puffy white smoke like steam from a stack ... maybe it is oil? if it is, does that mean valve seals?