MY98 UK, white smoke after hard drive?!

[Bearo]

Warmed her up and gunned it down the bypass and up to butts brow(steep hill). I stopped at the top and saw a fairly small amount of white smoke coming out of the scoop & sides. Opened the bonnet and it seemed to be coming from drivers side rising from underneath. I left it idleing, no smoke out of exhaust and it all went after a min or 2. Cars been running fine all day, no misfires & boosts up fine to me.

Ive done a bit of research online and took some pictures underneath my car where i believe the smoke was coming from. I think it may have been residue oil on the exhaust heat shield that was causing the smoke but where that oil is coming from i dont know.

Read some threads saying a replacement rocker gasket is needed or it could be coolant related or even power steering, although i dont think it is steam. It could be more serious including piston failure, which means it may be a short journey into scoobys for me!






Tube going into oil pan looked oily (i think, probably completely wrong)


Oily area in between oil pan and exhaust heat shield.


Ive read that a compression test is very advisable if you see any white/oily smoke. Know where i can get this done?

Thanks for any help! (copied my thread from Sussex Scoobies)

[andy-m]

White smoke is water (Steam)
oil burning off is usualy blueish

not sure about yours, but on mine (V1/2 i thiknk) i had the standard coolant header tank, which is plastic. it has a water coolant return pipe from the turbo which gets hot and brittle with age. if it begins to leak, water will run off the top of that tank and drip down on to the drivers side exhaust heat shield under the car.
mine went about a month ago although less steam as i wasnt driving hard at the time

[2-jaffacake-tone]

id say its oil, as water dosent stain the heatshields, id say crankshaft oil seal and a n/s cam cover gasket.

Crank shaft oil seal sounds favourite,mine was fooked and had same sort of thing.