Exhaust Smoke

[prostar190]

I was hoping for some advice from some Donzi Owners. I picked up a 2005 Donzi 28 ZXO about 3 weeks ago. The engine is a 496 mag has about 130 hours on it. The last few weekends, I noticed some smoke coming from the back of the boat when I started it and when shifting between forward neutral and reverse, especially this past weekend when the weather was in the 50's. The smoke seemed to go away once you get under way.

My first thought was the engine might be burning oil so I checked the oil, but it seems to be fine and is in the OK range according to the dip stick. Is this type of smoke common with Donzis or boats like it? This is my first boat of this caliber, so I am unsure what to expect. Any advice/explanations would be greatly appreciated as they would put my mind at ease. Thanks for your help.

TC

[mrfixxall]

I was hoping for some advice from some Donzi Owners. I picked up a 2005 Donzi 28 ZXO about 3 weeks ago. The engine is a 496 mag has about 130 hours on it. The last few weekends, I noticed some smoke coming from the back of the boat when I started it and when shifting between forward neutral and reverse, especially this past weekend when the weather was in the 50's. The smoke seemed to go away once you get under way.

My first thought was the engine might be burning oil so I checked the oil, but it seems to be fine and is in the OK range according to the dip stick. Is this type of smoke common with Donzis or boats like it? This is my first boat of this caliber, so I am unsure what to expect. Any advice/explanations would be greatly appreciated as they would put my mind at ease. Thanks for your help.

TC

most will have white smoke in the colder weather..nature of the beast! if it gets excessive in in the warmer weather then i would change the impeller,or just in cast you dont know when the last time it was changed i would go ahead and do it now..this way you wont spoil your weekend when it brakes..

[silverghost]

Do you think this is water vapor or steam ?
How is your engine's water temp ?

What color is the smoke ?
Does it have any unusual odor ?

[prostar190]

The smoke appears to be white in color...I think it might be water vapor/steam just because it was so cold?

As far as the odor, there are obviously gas fumes when you start the engine, but I don't think they are necessarily related to the steam coming from the exhaust. Thanks for the responses/advice.

TC

[silverghost]

I suspect you are correct .
Usually it's just cold weather/water vapor white mist condensation "smoke".

You can usually smell oil if it is in fact burning.
It's smell differs from normal exhaust .

Leaking & hardened/cracked valve stem seals can cause some blue oil smoke on initial start-up.
Also stuck piston rings can cause oil smoke.

My guess is you have really nothing to worry about.

[axelkloehn]

this is normal, change impeller if you wanna be sure like fixx recommended

[VetteLT193]

Like already said... That's normal

Post up some pics of your boat! how do you like it? I have a 2008 ZXO with the twin 6.2's. how does it run with the single 496?

[prostar190]

Love the boat so far. It is in great shape for a 2005. The 496 is plenty of power to get the boat on plane and it tops out around 60 mph. I would have preferred two engines but zxo's are tough to come by and beggars can't be choosers! I will post pics as soon as I get some. Thanks again for the advice!

[VetteLT193]

Love the boat so far. It is in great shape for a 2005. The 496 is plenty of power to get the boat on plane and it tops out around 60 mph. I would have preferred two engines but zxo's are tough to come by and beggars can't be choosers! I will post pics as soon as I get some. Thanks again for the advice!

That's great. don't be a stranger around here, it's lonely being a zxo owner just kidding... this forum is a wealth of knowledge and a great community. hope to meet you one day at a Donzi run!!!