Smoke from bonnet - Webasto unit?

R

rmtaylo2

Member
Hi all,

Noticed smoke coming from under the bonnet recently, which I naively thought was lack of oil in the engine (it does seem to use a lot of oil but thats another thing)

Full of oil and smoky again this morning, and lots of posts on here seem to indicate it is the webasto heater unit.

My questions is - how much smoke is 'normal'? As what was pouring out this morning didnt seem right. The smoke is grey and smells of burning oil (I tihnk...) The unit is also very loud all the time, very noticeable after the car is turned off.

Any ideas?

Y Reg 1.4 Diesel by the way

Thanks
 
dan_b said:
What's the temperature outside when you see the smoke?
Click to expand...

About 2 Deg C this morning, thinking back it has been during the cold snap. The loud running noise (like a fan) does seem to be all the time though, regardless of ambient temp.
 
I'm no expert on the Webasto, but it is designed to come on when the ambient temperature falls to "pretty cold".
Not sure about the noise or indeed whether the amount of smoke you're seeing is typical or normal. I'm sure the forum will help you though!
 
The Webasto sounds like a tame jet engine - a high pitched whine - we used to nickname it Concorde. The exhaust exits under the front bumper on (iirc) the offside. The efflux should not be real smoke but will show as a whitish condensate 'smoke' and will have that characteristic 'diesel in the morning' smell.
All normal at anything less than 6C unless you turn it off. It will also cut in if heating is required on a long motorway cruise and the ambient temperature is low (less than 6c) as the diesel motor is thermodynamically efficient and gives out very little waste heat.
 
Excess use of oil in VAG engines is invariably due to 'careful running in' which paradoxically doesn't and leaves the machining finish on the bores which then allows oil past the rings and gets burnt.
VAG diesels should be ragged from new (once thoroughly warm of course - never, ever from cold). Drive it like you stole it. The engine then uses oil during the initial period and then turns off like a tap after 3 to 5k miles as a result of the bores and rings wearing together to form a smooth, perfect seal. Some people have experienced oil burning problems beacuse the oil was changed early. This too prevents proper bedding in.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top