Forum:
Hey all,
Hope we all had a good Christmas, and going to drink too much tonight... 
Anyway, on start-up on our 1990 2.8TD Fourtrak we get alot of white smoke, but once she's got going she seems to settle down.
We only use her for off-roading once a month in the summer and once in a blue moon in the winter.
Could this be purely down to condensation or moisture building up in her whilst she sits around doing nothing?
I've always been told white smoke is water being burnt hence why Im thnking it could he the dreaded head gasket, although it runs fine after a few mins.
Any views would be much welcomed.
Happy New Year....
Shaun
white smoke (steam)
In most cases the condesation emitted is due to hot gases meeting cold steel and immediatly turning the condensation into steam. In addition hot gases into cold air will cause the white steam.
An indication of water being burnt is consderable, abnormal steam at all times and of course a loss of water rapidly. In addition "salad cream" forms in the cylinder head where the oil and water are mixed inside the engine and sump. Unless you are losing water and having the salad cream problem then I would think that the cylinder head gasket is fine. (For all Hijet drivers you may find a small amount of sludge inside your oil filler cap which is caused by the length of exposed pipe between the head and the cap. This causes condensation in cold temperatures).
Once the cold weather has passed so will the white steam apart from on initial start and that will be minimal.
OLDMINIMAN
ALL HAVE A GOOD TIME TONIGHT AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL> D
KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR :PLODS!!! 
:wink
M J Young