What Does Colored Exhaust Smoke Indicate?

No matter how well you take care of your car, there will be times when it just does not seem to be performing at its optimal level. It can often be difficult to figure out what the issue is, but there are some indicators that you can be looking for. One of those involves the color of the smoke that is coming out of the exhaust. That will often direct you to the likely culprit. Here are three of the most commonly seen exhaust smoke colors and what they tend to indicate.

A Black Color

This is probably the most common color that you will see. It is an indicator that your mixture of air to fuel is a bit off. Most gas engines are meant to operate with just the right mixture of fuel and air. This creates the optimal condition for combustion once a spark is introduced. If there is too much fuel, then mechanics call this being rich. That is not what you want.

A Blue Color

If you see blue smoke coming out of the exhaust, then you are probably burning some oil. This is not what you want. Oil is very important as it keeps your engine properly lubricated. Burning off too much oil can result in decreased fuel efficiency as your engine begins to work hard to compensate. 

A White Color

White exhaust can be cause for concern. While it can mean different things, the most common culprit is that some coolant has escaped into the combustion chamber. If this has happened, then there is a bigger issue going on and it needs to be addressed right away. If left unchecked, this can lead to your engine overheating and cause potential damage to the engine itself. 

When your exhaust system is in need of repair, feel free to contact our auto repair shop so that we can help get your vehicle back in great running condition.