Why is My Car Smoking but Not Overheating?

car smoking


It’s always important to be mindful of your vehicle’s health and wellbeing as you’re making your way across the streets of Atlantic City and Egg Harbor, NJ. While there’s plenty to check under the hood, if there’s smoke, it doesn’t always mean that there’s fire when it comes to your car.

At Boardwalk Honda, we’re going to cover some issues that your engine can face. Most notably, we’ll answer the question, “Why is my car smoking but not overheating?”


Issues That Can Cause Your Car to Smoke

The most common answer to, “Why is my car smoking but not overheating?” is that there’s a type of fluid that’s landed on the engine. This can be motor oil, fuel, transmission fluid, coolant, or even condensation. It can cause your engine to smoke because it’s burning off that fluid from the engine.

However, this won’t cause your engine to overheat, resulting in more significant issues that will cause you to pull over and turn your vehicle off.

Why Is My Car Smoking Under the Hood?

It’s most likely a fluid that’s made it onto your vehicle’s combustion chamber, which will then burn off the fluid, causing it to seep smoke from under your hood. The important question, though, is what is the liquid, and how did it get onto your combustion chamber?

The cause can vary, but it’s likely that your car has a blown head gasket or even a broken seal. It could also be piston rings that have worn out, or the PCV tube is clogged. The general function of these systems is to drain fuel into your engine cylinder.

Diagnosing the Issue

To find out why your car is smoking but not overheating, you’ll want to schedule service, so a team of technicians can investigate the issue and use tools and diagnostic technology to get to the bottom of it and determine the cause.

They’ll inspect the various components to find the culprit that’s causing smoke to come from the engine, or excessive white smoke from emanating out of the exhaust pipe.

Once they determine the cause of the issue, they’ll provide the necessary maintenance, service, or replacement parts to correct the problem. They can ensure that your vehicle is performing perfectly and is smoke-free as you head back out on the road.

Schedule Service if Your Vehicle Is Smoking

Now that you’re aware of the probable causes of why your car is smoking without overheating, and you realize that it could be a number of things, you’ll want to contact us at Boardwalk Honda to schedule service with our technicians. They’ll carefully inspect your vehicle to make sure that it’s free of issues and your car is no longer smoking.

If you see smoke coming from your vehicle, don’t hold off—schedule your service right away with us! We’ll make sure that your vehicle is in great shape to perform at its best throughout the streets of Atlantic City and Egg Harbor, NJ!