smoking....
Turbo Mini Forums

every so often usually when sitting in traffic, smoke comes out the back of the bonnet area and sometimes into the car, when i've looked in the engine bay and it seems to be coming from the back of the engine area, maybe the exhaust/turbo joint.
it also chucks a fair bit out when pulling away, but only the initial pull away, then it all clears and runs as normal.
anyone any ideas what could be causing this?

““A turbo: exhaust gasses go into the turbocharger and spin it, witchcraft happens and you go faster.”” - Jeremy Clarkson

knackered turbo oil seal, knackered stem seals, clogged breathers,

variety of things really can cause this. elimintation is the key

the turbo seal and the stem seal had crossed my mind, never thought of the breathers!
i will check them tomorrow..

““A turbo: exhaust gasses go into the turbocharger and spin it, witchcraft happens and you go faster.”” - Jeremy Clarkson

Does this happen while moving? or if you remove the bonnet? Might just be something melting or catching on fire in the engine bay when you're standing on the spot in traffic...

Also could be grease or oil burning off the manifolds if you've worked on the car lately...

has the car been stood for a while? If it is a new build and has done alot of stop/start you may have fuel contamination in your oil. Check the dipstick and give it a sniff. Petrol will thin the oil so it will go past the seals easier than fresh oil.

Speedster turbo under construction

no, it gets used nearly every day, it only happens every now and then, dont think it happened at all today? weird!

““A turbo: exhaust gasses go into the turbocharger and spin it, witchcraft happens and you go faster.”” - Jeremy Clarkson