Any Ideas Excessive White Exhaust Smoke

[Simon69]

Hi I recently bought my dream car a 2004 X5 3.0l sport diesel which I loooooooooove however a few minor problems which I can live with til I get them fixed or replaced £££££££ ,Ok heres where I need advice shes done 115k engine purrs however I keep getting a lot of white smoke from the exhaust which doesn't effect performance but it is really embarrasin . Doesn't happen all the time and only lasts for 5-10 mins then it seems to clear, is it a common problem??

Any Ideas or Suggestions ?????

Simon

[Greydog]

Congratulations and Welcome

From what I have read this is fairly common with diesel BMW's and normally happens at cold start disappears when warm. When was it last serviced? I have read there are two types of EGR one with a filter and one with a Vortex separator. Also the fuel filters on the diesels often don't get changed as it is behind a cover plate and gets forgotten.Just Google your symptoms

[Simon69]

Many thanks for advice ,shes not had a service in the last 12 months from what I gather so maybe , I have looked elsewhere and gathered that fuel additives ie redex diesel can clear blockages but this is white smoke not blue or black smoke so I understand white smoke is a coolant issue ?

[Guest jeffthro]

White smoke is usually water/moisture. As Greydog says, does it not go away once the engine has warmed up after a few miles? If not, I would recommend getting it checked at the garage sooner rather than later, better safe than sorry?

[Simon69]

Many thanks .

From cold start apart from norm white smoke she seems to be fine nothing excessive then randomly she will blow white for a couple of minutes even when warm driving or idling in traffic quite bizzare. I have no warning lights and temp gauge norm as greydog suggested could a dirty fuel filter be a culprit and again I ask the question would a dose of redex help ?? shes done 115K which is nothing really, I am not being a tight ##### just askin if any of you guys have had a similar problem I am new to X5 allways had 3 series with no major probs,

[Guest jeffthro]

Simon, its not a question of being tight, its just sensible with what might be a very small issue to get it properly checked sooner rather than later. Go to a garage with the correct equipment for fault analysis, (NOT a BMW main dealer-- very expensive) and get it checked out while it is, hopefully, minor or nothing.

[Simon69]

Jeff I got her booked in for Friday will post the verdict many thanks

[Simon69]

Took her to my local garage and thankfully just needed a new engine breather filter and new air filter seems to have cured the problem many thanks to all

[Greydog]

Great news that it just needed a service, I would get the fuel filter changed when you can as they are hidden behind a cover in front of the rear wheel. A clogged filter can give all sorts of spurious issues, even Dealers miss these.

Now enjoy

[Guest jeffthro]

Result Simon, pleased for you!

[Guest DazH]

Took her to my local garage and thankfully just needed a new engine breather filter and new air filter seems to have cured the problem many thanks to all

Congrats on the cheap fix matey,

Aslong as that lump is serviced regually it should last you a looooong time. BMW diesels treat their owners very well but if you neglect them, they'll bite back. Also worth noting that they thank you for motorway blasts on the regs :rolleyes:

Welcome to our community fella

Daz

[Brime]

I have a bmw x5 35d 2011, screen says malfunction engine and power loss.

if i press on the gas almost to the floor 

smoke comes out of the exhaust!

btw no power for a minute then it it’ll pick up but doesn’t go over 40-50 miles 

[Greydog]

Mornin Brime

Welcome your screen is telling you there is a fault, the engine management has put the car in restricted performance mode to protect it. You need the codes read and the cause of the problem sorted to avoid damage to the car. The smoke is quite probably over fueling when you plant your big right foot.

As restricted performance (limp mode) can be triggered by many issues such as but not restricted to, throttle body, MAF sensor, Fuel pressure, Injector issue, cam sensor, crank sensor, EGR, DPF, even gearbox issue the list goes on. The only way to be certain is to get the codes read, BMW Dealer (obviously the most expensive option) BMW specialist, Independent Garage with the correct software (autologic or similar) There may even be a Forum member near you who is willing to run a diagnostic for you.

Without the codes we are all guessing and if you start down that road you will need a fat wallet.

Dave