1980 Kawasaki LTD 440 White Smoke

[rashuno]

I just bought a used 1980 Kawasaki 440 from a friend. It has 7500 miles on it and was kept in a garage for about 2 years, anyways, I got it started with some carb cleaner , it seems to run pretty good except for some white smoke comming from underneath the motor ? Im not sure if bikes are suppose to release white smoke or not Im new to owning a bike so any information will be very helpful, It almost seemed like the exhause pipe has a hole in it or something but is it normal for white smoke to be released ? Any help will be greatly appreciated thanks

[Curt]

I'm not familiar with the 440, but here's my 2 cents.

Run your finger under the engine. Poke around and see if you can find a leak (especially oil or coolant -- if that's a water cooled engine, that is). If everything's okay, check your oil level. Make sure it's not high or low. If you have a radiator, check your fluid there, too. Then ride it all weekend and give us an update on Monday.

It may be the water drain holes in the bottom of your exhaust pipes. And it may be that in two years a mouse built a nest somewhere in there, and now you're cooking the stuff out. Under normal operation there should not be any smoke coming from the engine, but you just bought this baby, so air it out a little an get back to us later.
Curt

[rashuno]

the bike is air cooled, so the coolant isnt the problem. I have looked under themotor and didnt see any leakage of oil either ? Im going to give it a nice spin this weekend and see how it goes. thanks for your input Ill let you know how it turns out =)

[1Adam12]

If it is white smoke coming out of the exhaust, You may have too much oil in your bike, it could be the vavle oil seal is damaged, piston oil ring is worn - maybe cylinder head gasket needs to be replaced.......


Please update if the problem worked itself out or not.

[rashuno]

Well I rode the bike, it seems as if the smoke stops after about 20 mins or so , ? I guess it was just carbon buildup ? although I did see a puff of it come out for a split second when I started it up 4 hours later ? Thanks for the input =)

[Curt]

Sounds good. 1Adam12 offered some good advice, too. Since you don't have any coolant, the smoke is almost certainly oil. Coolant smoke is usually white. Oil smoke is also white, but it has a slight bluish tinge to it. It also smells different from coolant smoke, and it feels different if you put your hand in it then rub your fingers together.

If you get bluish white smoke out the exhaust, piston rings are a likely problem. That's a big job to fix, but it only needs to be fixed if the smoke bothers you or if you're losing a lot of oil, or if you have other problems, like low compression.

If you commonly see a puff of bluish white smoke on startup, that's a classic sign of valve stem seals getting old and cracking. That's again nothing to worry about unless the smoke bothers you or you're losing a lot of oil.

I wouldn't jump to either conclusion yet. Just ride it for a few weeks. If you decide to rebuild your engine, you can do that in the winter when there's too much ice for safe riding.

We like happy endings. If you haven't done it yet, change your oil and filter today.
Curt

[rashuno]

Thanks alot for the info . Ill give it a couple weeks like you said . Hopefully its okay but I guess only time will tell. I hope I dont have to do any engine work, but If I do Ill take your advice and do it in the winter time. Thanks again =)

[ZX-2R]

It is common when a bike sets that long for it to take time to quit smoking... add an ounce of either marvel mystery oil or just some 2 stroke oil to your gas tank to lubricate the top end of your motor...it will also get the valve seals lubed up faster, do this for the rest of the summer, as it won't hurt your bike at all. Change the oil and oil filter and use 100% synthetic oil. change or clean your airfilter and make sure that you wash it clean (be careful not to rip it and then re-oil it as per instructions.) Check the chain for stretching and check the sprockets for any wear. When you get back from a ride, immediately while it is warm, lay papers in the drive and spray chain lube on the chain as you rotate the rear tire (NEUTRAL) and let it set or move it to a safe place and put a paper under it agian for it to absorb the lube as it cools off and draws it into the chain. What ever you do check the tires real good for weather cracks. IF they show any sign of cracks REPLACE them or you will find yourself in the hospital wondering how you got there...this is serious even if you are riding slow...

[Curt]

Yeah, do that stuff, too.

[rashuno]

Okay. That sounds like a plan =) I dont want to get hurt so Ill check the tires real good. Its good to have good info especially since Im a newbie at bikes . thanks =)