nipracw@yahoo.com wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I'm the owner of a 1994 Honda Civic DX. Well anyhoo, I was driving to
> work the other day, and all of a sudden my engine started missing.
> Pulled up to a stop sign, and as I'm idling I look out my rear window
> and I notice a plume of white smoke coming from my tailpipe... I
> sputtered away from the stop sign and drove the rest of the way to
> work (I was about 2 or 3 miles away by this point) leaving a contrail
> of white smoke behind me...
>
> Got there, checked the oil, and there was no unusual milky residue or
> anything. The coolant was low so I topped that off... after work I
> brought it to the nearest garage, with the same symptoms on the way
> (sputtering at idle, THICK cloud of smoke that, from as best I could
> tell was steaming antifreeze)
>
> Haven't heard back yet, but it seems fairly obvious that it's the head
> gasket. Unless there's something I'm missing?
>
> That being said, I have a couple of questions -
>
> 1. Two days prior I picked up a bottle of injector cleaner and added
> it to my fuel. Is it possible that this somehow worsened the
> condition, and made it manifest itself now?
>
> 2. Wouldn't there be residue in the oil if it's steaming this badly?
> Or is it possible that the anti-freeze is steaming and being blown out
> of the engine via the tailpipe without falling into the oil pan?
>
> 3. Is there anything else that could cause symptoms like this, or is
> it pretty much guaranteed that my own assumption is correct?
>
================================

Burning brake fluid makes a ton of white smoke. Had any problems with
the system using brake fluid mysteriously?

It could just be a valve sticking open, which will allow lots of oil to
migrate into the hot exhaust manifold.

'Curly'