4 replies to this topic

[Tomoyo]

Well, I can't drive my car yet, so I do start it about twice a week just to keep the fuel from going solid and stuff like that. Today, I started the car, and I noticed a LOT of smoke coming from the exhaust.

But I'm not sure if it's smoke. It's been a little cooler here then ususal..Could it just be because it's cooler out?

Car also sputters for some odd reason. You give it gas, it revs fine, but while it's going back down, it gives little 'Pop pop's from the exhaust..Anything I should be concerned about?

[eldo]

With it being colder ,you will get more smoke (Or call it cloudy stuff ) and as long as the exhaust is not blue or black, you're ok.
Does it sputter only while the choke is on or does it do it when it's warmed up too? It's done the popping thing to me when i had the carb mixture way too lean or too rich.(Like the time i had a vacuum leak in the carb mount plate)

Ed

Edited by eldo, 12 November 2004 - 02:53 AM.

[DarkHand]

Let the car warm all the way up; idle it for a half hour or so and see if it still smokes. It's probably just from sitting there.

For the popping, how much gas is in the tank and how long has it been sitting? The gas could just be getting old. The gas in my crx had been in the car for a year when I got it... Before I worked up the nerve to drain the tank I bypassed it with a gas can full of fresh gas and some spare fuel line and was amazed with how much better the car ran.

Edited by DarkHand, 12 November 2004 - 09:31 AM.

[Omega Mugen]

I was getting bluish smoke until I switched to manual choke and figured out that the car smokes when the carb is over-choked, the flap is closed too much and not enough air can get in. If I open up the choke a little there is no smoke. Maybe you want to check your choke for over-choking.

[hanburu_juuboku]

This is just my opinion so take this with a grain of salt because I am not experienced enough to know how accurate this information is:

I was told that blue smoke usaully means you need a valve job.
Black usually is a sign of a bad fuel mixture or exhaust problems.

I had a sputtering problem just this past month, Honda told me it was a bad distributor; I got a second opinion and I'm glad I did. It turned out to be a clogged catalytic converter. It was pricey to replace, but it really made a difference and it added some power. It turns out the fuel mixture was too high, this can and did ruin a catalytic converter.

A few signs that it may be a bad fuel mixture:
Engine continues to run after you turn off the car.
Black smoke
Sputtering
Idles too low or high
Bad gas mileage
Exhaust may smell like gas

If you start to lack power, especially going uphill, check out the catalytic converter.
It takes a pretty good mechanic to diagnose if it's the converter or not, the guys over at Honda weren't any help. I had to go to a very experienced trusted mechanic to get the problem diagnosed correctly so good luck. I hope this information helps.