Q 02 Q45 white smoke at startup

[robausti]

Has anyone had an issue starting their Q and having white smoke appear? It does it for not even a minute smoke clears and the car will run normal. I have an 02 with 66k on the dash, outside temps where low 80's. Anyone have any input on this one? Thanks!

[Skibane]

Yep, it's something that gets reported fairly often. The 02 Qs in particular had an issue with excessive oil leakage past the piston rings, some of which was visible immediately after a cold start. The problem may be more noticeable if the crankcase is overfilled, or if the engine was run at high RPM shortly before shutdown the previous day.

[Q45tech]

The internal volume of the exhaust system is so large excessive moisture condenses inside overnight and blows out as white smoke for a minute or two until the exhaust system warms up.

[robausti]

Any downsides to this issue...shortened engine life? huge repair bill?

[Skibane]

As with any engine with excessive oil consumption, it is most definitely an issue if you don't regularly check the oil level...