I have a 1995 Camaro Z28 and I just recently got it and it's got a lot more problems than I would care for it to have, one of the more recent ones being a very thick, heavy, white smoke POURING out of the tailpipes. After sitting for about 7 hours, the smoke poured out thick for about 5-10 minutes and then just stopped. I drove home and I was running it here and there for about 2 hours and no smoke, left it off and about 4 hours later I started it, no smoke. Then as soon as I put it in gear and started rolling, the smoke pours out again for 1-2 minutes but then stops. I checked oil and coolant, both are good. I know the omnispark distributor, water pump, and exhaust manifold (leaking) all have problems. I really hope that this smoke isn't caused by a blown head gasket, so I'd love some outside input. Thanks.

 

When my head gasket blew, there was no mixing of oil or coolant. When it was running and i had the radiator cap off, the exhaust was coming out of it. Try checking that.

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Sounds like leaky valve seals behavior, although the white smoke is usually more liquid vapor. Still maybe.

 

Abnormal white smoke from the exhaust is likely going to be coolant/water. You might want to pressure test the cooling system and possibly do a leakdown test. If you pull spark plugs and find one (or more) that look unusually clean, those would be the cylinders with leaks.

 

Are you in the cold weather? Thick grey smoke in the cold may appear white-ish. It's usually a pretty bright white. Not sure if you meant thick/heavy as in bright in color or just dense.

Oh and make sure there isn't any water in the AIR Pump unit or hoses. That is a common problem with that if the exhaust check valves are not maintained. Exhaust condensation builds up in the pump, and then can sometimes flow into the motor. The left side(passenger) head will be much cleaner looking then the right because of the way the hoses are routed and where the water feeds in.

 

Im having a simular issue. Oil...good, coolant...good, temp....180-200, no stains or obvious signs of yet what it could be. The shifter stick is hot, and the e brake. Erg valve was sticking but, not likely to cause smoke. Tranny operates very smoothly so, grounding to shift is ruled out. I have a suspicion that the sensor in the radiator may need cleaned. Idk if this will cause smoke....its been operating fine....eventhough it trips the check engine light from time to time. Radiator light went on after the smoke and temp went to zed....but the gage indicates a good running temp. Im baffled!

 

The sensor in the radiator is a coolant level sensor. It does not connect to the PCM, only to the dash light for "low coolant". Hence, it can't turn on the check engine light. It will not "cause smoke". Unless of course the dash "low coolant" light is going on because the coolant level in the radiator is too low.

Scan the PCM for codes and find out what is turning on the SES light. Could be the coolant temp sensor in the water pump housing that feeds the PCM.

What does "temp went to zed" mean - the the coolant temp gauge pegged, or that the shifter got hot? The coolant temp gauge is fed by a different coolant temp sensor, in the driver side head, so it's possible the dash gauge could read fine, but the PCM may not be getting the coolant temp info it needs to control the fans.

 

April, get a mechanic buddy to look at it and post a better description of what seems to be wrong. Half your post makes less sense, but we can help ya if we get a little better information. Injuneer is like the Encyclopedia Brown of LT1 engines and I can get it if he can't, but we need more accurate info.