[94RedRocket]

ok, so this is honestly probably the 15th time SOMETHING has busted on the car.....we JUST got back from the dealership where we got it, and they "cleaned out the EGR", considering it was our 4th time up there, for the SAME check engine light code (43, EGR) which also tripped them up considering the car is obviously from california, when they thought it was a local trade in..hmmm?? anyway, so again, same problem today, the light came on, and almost immediately afterwards, it began to smoke A LOT of white smoke out of the tailpipe, and idle roughly.....code is still for the EGR....so does ANYONE know what this is, b/c obviously 3 different shops AND the dealership have no idea how to fix it??? any suggestions!?
my guess, is that we should now move on to getting a whole new EGR, is this right? i mean, they tried telling me it was the TPS, the EGR, then the whole CPU itself? PLEASE HELP!!

 

[94RedRocket]

thanks for the help

 

[DSMturbo2]

go get a service manual and quit whining. this could be a million things, start doing checks and replacing simple parts if you can.

 

[takumi4G63]

White smoke means you are probably burning oil, which is bad. Take your car to a respected DSM shop, not the dealer, if you are not willing to figure it out yourself. I don't know of any in NC but I'm sure there are some within 100 miles.

 

[ossmosisjones]

I recently had white smoke coming from my car as well. It was the head gasket I believe (still having issues). Let your car cool off, take off the radiator cap, and check your fluid to see if it is all bubbly/frothy. This tends to indicate a bad head or something. Just something worth checking out. Also, try to smell your exhaust some, but not too much. Carbon Monoxide isn't very fun stuff...

 

[PC Talon]

Just like ossmosisjones said,
Make sure you are not burning coolant. Because if you are it will only get worse.

 

[95talon_TSi]

Dont ya just love DSMs sometimes? Let it cool off and take off your coolant cap. Check for oil in your coolant to see if you head gasket is taking a shit on you... It could be a couple more things put just get out your manual and start troubleshooting, believe me you will find out alot more about your car doin this

 

[dsm93talon]

Hey FYI, DSMs aren't exactly your 'drive it & forget it' kinda car.

Either learn how the car works, or be prepared to become friends with your mechanic. Whining will get you no where.

With that said... Check your throttle body, coolant flows through there (to heat up the intake manifold) you may have an issue with coolant getting into your intake.

 

[COPPER95]

Quote "Hey FYI, DSMs aren't exactly your 'drive it & forget it' kinda car."

"Either learn how the car works, or be prepared to become friends with your mechanic. Whining will get you no where."[/quote]

Well said dsm93talon ! If it is white smoke like you say it is I would definitely say your burning coolant. I don't know anything else that would cause white smoke?
While it’s idling walk to the back of the car if it’s burning coolant you should smell it.

 

[Talon666]

Everyone has got it right.

White smoke=burning coolant Blue smoke=burning oil

Do a compression test and that will tell you if you have a bad head gasket, and if you have bad piston rings. Like everyone said, check your coolant for oil. You can check the bottom of your oil cap as well for cloudy water residue. Do a oil change and check the oil for coolant as well. If you find any of those or all of them. You will need a new head gasket. Seems your car was badly abused before you got it. I feel your pain.

 

[MegaGS]

take the vaccum line off the egr valve and block the vaccuum line. Live with the code, it won't hurt anything. You can take the egr valve off if you want and clean it with carb cleaner till the valve inside moves freely if you want to.ALL 94's have an egr sensor. It's not a cali model more than likely.

Checked your pcv valve lately?

 

[clipsGS]

hey if any one can say it for sure, its me. dont whine about it but dont givein when this little kind of problem occurs, as for blown head gaskets and other parts, dont so what i did, buy a part you dont even need, make sure you know what the problem is and! how to solve it, as for shops and mechanics, i go to a place called All Imports, they doo amazing work, but it aint ecaxtly free. ya that sounds a bout rite, white smoke prolly a coolant problem

 

[djmixerx]

im not sure if ur car is 0bd2 or something but on my car 90 TSI i took out the egr and put a block off plate. i never hit a egr code. just unplug it or something.