vw white smoke trouble

[cbutter]

i got a vw trike and it blows a lot of white smoke from exhust and was wondering what could be the cause of this

[Gorilla]

Well::: It is not water unless your VW is a water cooled engine from a Rabbit. Oil is normally blue so that leaves fuel. Sounds like you might be real rich from MAYBE a stuck float or something. Just a guess on my part. Ted

[Sandman]

Hold a clean white cotton rag close to the exhaust, about 1 min. then smell the rag. What you smell is what it is.

[trikes4ever]

I'd look at the breathing system. I've seen this in air cooled VWs where additional carburetors and or displacement are added and the crankcase is not vented properly. If the oil does not get hot enough (can happen if fuel system is too rich) water never completely evaporates from the crankcase, and can cause this. Normally oil will be blue in the exhaust. Some oil when first started is not that unusual in these engines as some sits in the heads under the valve covers, which are horizontal and I assume gets past valve guides. Check your oil fill area and see if there are any signs of white oily foam - if so you need to get your engine hotter - by rejetting the carb(s) and / or making sure the original air flap thermostat is functional (frequently not an option - aftermarket tin does not have this) or removing any external oil cooler. I always add a crankcase vent box to all VW engines along with valve cover vents. This is especially important in larger (>1600) displacement engines.

[redneckray]

hold a white rag against the exhaust and smell it and thay will tell you what you have, that is a new one for me,lol but hey i am an old dog and might learn a new trick,lol

[redneckray]

if the engine is blowing white smoke, it tells me of 2 things water in your oil or too lean, if it was too rich it would blow black smoke,
my 2 cents worth
ray

[1550vt]

Too rich would be black smoke. Blue, or white smoke just about has to be oil. Is it coming "out of the exhaust" or maybe just coming off the pipes from a drip or leak? It would not be beyond the possibility that an enemy dumped some oil in your fuel either. Does it still run fine, how do the plugs look?

[Loner]

Light colored (white looking but generally very light blue) smoke is an indicator that one or more sets of rings is not seating. My guess would be (not knowing all the facts) that the engine has set idle for some time in the near past. Before you panic and go tearing it down (or paying to have it done), go to your local parts house and get a bottle of 'sea foam' and follow the instructions. If stuck rings are to be freed, 'sea foam' will do it.