2016eversince

Just changed water pump after finding a massive coolant leak. No overheating so far and not a major leak observed but I drove to work, parked, and noticed white smoke coming from the engine compartment from the oil reservoir ... I dont know if it's coolant, and if it is... why??? If its not overheating or leaking then???

Firechicken82

What's your oil look like?

2016eversince

I checked it recently, within a week ago, and its maple syrup brown... doesn't need topped off, maybe excess got lost while filling coolant a while ago and thats whats burning?

Firechicken82

It could be just burning off. Make sure you have cooling system pressure.

2016eversince

Thank you. I know i burn oil but its never smoked in the engine bay only in the exhaust.

Tom 400 CFI

What is the "oil reservoir"? Is white smoke coming out of the dipstick tube? Oil-fill hole? The oil pan is the "oil reservoir", IDK how white smoke would come from the pan....

2016eversince

oil fill hole. sorry forgot to clarify specifics.

Tom 400 CFI

That sounds like blow by. I'd start with a leak down test.

2016eversince

if that is the issue, it would not surprise me... noticed a lot less fuel efficiency lately. like, burning half a tank within a day of normal driving.

2016eversince

Here's some pictures of the smoke coming through the hood gap... Some things to note:
-i'm running to 220 after 10 minutes
-the coolant i used is Fram 50/50 green, but i'm led to believe that it has a lower heat capacity than desirable, as straight water for example has a specific heat of 4.2 J/g-K whereas 50/50 antifreeze seems to have a specific heat of 3.5J/g-k... meaning to say that it gets hotter more quickly...
-no coolant leaks on the outside of the car
-no check engine light
-the steam/smoke is only visible in the morning when it’s cold, and i don't notice it at all when i go home for the day...

Tom 400 CFI

A pic of where it's coming out of the engine would be more helpful. What's the smoke smell like?

2016eversince

Yikes on bikes! Scrapping this car asap. (Kidding…) The coolant on the left is straight from the bottle and the coolant on the right was taken from the radiator using a syringe. Note that the coolant on the right is no more than a week old…

formularpm

A 50/50 mix of water/coolant isn't going to cause cooling issues. That's how the car is designed to run. Shouldn't be at 220 driving down the road. More like 190ish.

The smoke could be from a coolant leak that's just burning off before it has a chance to hit the ground. But the discoloration definitely isn't normal and shouldn't be caused by a leak. Also, white smoke coming from the oil fill sounds like water making it's way into the oil. Usually that's a bad head gasket or cracked head.

Is there white smoke coming from the exhaust also?

72buickgs

how about a leaking frost plug? Been there & had that.