Can Intake Gasket Cause Smoke? (Explained)

Intake manifold gasket is one of the most important parts of the engine. Intake manifold gasket provides extra layer of protection for the intake manifold. Otherwise, there will be leakage of air and fuel through the intake manifold. 

Today, we are going to discuss and find out whether intake manifold gaskets can cause smoke or not.

Can intake gasket cause smoke?

Intake gasket can cause smoke if it starts leaking. When the coolant starts leaking into the combustion chamber through the faulty intake gasket, it produces white smoke by mixing with the engine oil. A rich air and fuel mixture due to faulty intake gasket also produces smoke.

Let’s look at what types of smoke are caused by intake manifold gaskets for what reasons. 

White smoke:

Intake manifold gaskets can certainly cause white smoke. The reason behind the white smoke can be a leakage of coolant in the intake manifold. You will see white smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe if the coolant has started leaking through the intake manifold gasket. 

Blue smoke:

A leaking intake manifold gasket can produce blue smoke too. If there is a leak of engine oil in the engine, blue smoke can be noticed coming out of the exhaust system. 

Black smoke:

The primary purpose of an intake manifold gasket is to maintain the mixture of air and fuel inside the engine by providing protection for the intake manifold. But the exhaust pipe starts producing black smoke when the ratio of air and fuel mixture becomes too rich. 

It can happen due to an air leak or a fuel leak in the intake manifold gasket.

Gray smoke:

Instead of producing black smoke, an intake manifold gasket can also cause gray smoke due to a leakage in the gasket manifold. The richness of the air and fuel mixture causes the gray smoke coming out of the exhaust. 

Will a bad leaking intake gasket cause white smoke?

It is believed by automobile experts that a bad leaking intake gasket has the tendency to cause white smoke. 

When the coolant starts to run through the intake manifold due to a leakage in the intake manifold gasket, then white smoke can be seen coming out of the exhaust system and intake manifold gasket. 

When the coolant has a chance to get into the engine cylinders through the leak in the intake manifold gasket, the white smoke starts coming out of the engine. A leaking intake manifold gasket has to be repaired or replaced immediately to stop the problem of white smoke. 

The longer you delay the repairing process, the more damage you face.

Will oil in the intake cause white smoke?

Oil in the intake does not cause white smoke according to automobile experts. Rather an oil leakage in the intake manifold causes blue smoke coming out of the exhaust manifold. 

The purpose of the intake manifold is to control the air and fuel mixture in the engine. If engine oil starts leaking into the intake manifold through the intake manifold gasket, then the oil starts burning inside the engine and produces blue smoke out of the exhaust system. 

The oil leak in the intake manifold needs to be fixed immediately to avoid further damage inside the engine. Otherwise, other parts of the engine will also be affected due to the oil leakage in the intake manifold.

Why is smoke coming from my intake manifold gasket?

Sometimes different colors of smoke can be seen coming from the intake manifold gasket due to several reasons. Let’s discuss in detail about some of the reasons why smoke might be coming from your car’s intake manifold gasket.

A coolant leak:

One of the major reasons for smoke coming from the intake manifold gasket is a coolant leak inside the system. The coolant is not supposed to flow through your intake manifold. 

Intake manifolds can not deal with the flow of coolant inside it and can often produce white smoke out of the intake manifold gasket. 

An oil leak:

An oil leak is another reason why smoke might be coming out of your intake manifold gasket. Engine oil can start burning inside the intake manifold when it starts leaking and cause blue smoke out of the intake manifold gasket. 

Faulty air and fuel mixture:

The primary function of an intake manifold is to create ignition inside the engine. The ignition is done with the help of air and fuel mixture. 

But when there is too much fuel or too much air inside the intake manifold due to a leakage, then the engine starts producing black and gray smoke after every ignition. 

That is why you will sometimes see black or gray smoke coming out of the intake manifold gasket. The irregular air and fuel mixture can often be caused by a bad fuel pressure regulator. 

Another reason behind faulty air and fuel mixture is incompetent engine control unit. 

Faulty intake manifold gasket:

Sometimes the intake manifold gasket itself can be the cause of smoke coming out of it. 

When the intake gasket manifold is blown, it fails to provide protection for the intake manifold which damages the operational activities of the intake manifold which causes smoke coming out of the intake manifold gasket. 

What are the symptoms of a leaking intake manifold gasket?

A lot of symptoms will be noticed when the intake manifold gasket starts leaking. Let’s discuss in detail about some of the symptoms. 

Engine starts misfiring:

One of the primary symptoms of a leaking intake manifold gasket is a misfiring engine. When the intake manifold gasket starts leaking air out of the intake manifold, the air and fuel mixture inside the engine cylinders becomes too rich and causes the engine to misfire. 

When your engine starts misfiring, you should get your intake manifold gasket repaired or replaced. 

A decline in engine performance:

The intake manifold gasket can start leaking coolant into the intake manifold. When the coolant and the engine oil mixes together in the engine, the performance of the engine drops significantly due to irregular ignition and loss of oil and coolant. 

An increase in fuel cost:

The quality of the oil also decreases when the coolant starts leaking through the intake manifold gasket. This means you will need to use more fuel than before due to the leakage in the intake manifold gasket. This will increase the overall fuel cost of your car. 

Smoke of different colors:

White, blue, gray or black smoke can be seen coming out of the exhaust pipe or the intake manifold gasket when there is a leak in the intake manifold gasket. 

Unnatural amount of smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe and intake manifold gasket should be considered as a major symptom of a leaking intake manifold gasket.

Drops of coolant:

You will also see drops of coolant underneath and around your car when the intake manifold gasket starts leaking. 

The coolant not only gets into the intake manifold through the leakage in the intake manifold gasket, it can also start leaking out of the car due to a leaking intake manifold gasket. 

How to fix intake gasket causing smoke?

Fixing the intake gasket that is causing smoke might seem like a difficult task if you have no prior experience regarding the matter. However, there are some steps and methods you can follow to accomplish the task. Let’s discuss in detail about some of them. 

Lift the car up:

First of all, you will need to lift your car up before you start the fixing process. A jack and jack stands will be helpful in this step.

Inspect the intake manifold gasket:

Next, you will need to inspect the condition of the intake manifold gasket. If the damages on the intake manifold gasket are unrepairable, then you will need to replace it rather than repair it. However, using a gasket sealer does the job most of the time. 

Replace the intake manifold gasket:

First of all, you will need to remove the bolts of the intake manifold to get to the intake manifold gasket. You will have to use a screwdriver to remove the intake manifold gasket successfully. Removing the intake manifold will require patience and carefulness. 

It is wise to clean the intake manifold with brake cleaner to stop further damage.

You will be required to remove the old faulty intake manifold gasket and fit the new one in place. After you have successfully replaced the intake manifold gasket, you will need to attach the intake manifold onto the gasket once again. 

A new intake manifold gasket will not cause smoke as there will be no air leak or coolant leak in the engine. 

Final Thoughts

A faulty intake manifold gasket can definitely cause smoke inside the engine. The performance of the engine declines when the intake manifold gasket starts leaking coolant or air. The intake manifold fails to perform accurate ignition inside the engine due to a leakage in the intake gasket.