I bought my truck in may down in Modesto Ca where i live usually stay to bring up to Humboldt County.

yesterday the truck started just blowing clouds of white smoke out of the tail pipe about 10 feet high did it for about 10 mins till i turned it off i also noticed water leaking out of the pipe.

so today i turned it on again and the smoke persisted but in smaller quantaties and actually stopped after about 5 mins. i go to turn it on again tonight and sure enough the check engine light is now on and the smoke continues.

i hope its not a head gasket because college aint cheap and cash is low. ima take it to napa tomorrow to check the code because ive only seen napas out here in Arcata,CA. A bigger problem is since ive only been living here for about 3 months i havent really met any mechanics so far so if any of you live near Arcata any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated to where i could find a good mechanic.

i have a 94pick up ext cab 3.0 4wd.thanks for the help in advance wish me luck

 

white plumes of smoke, in a warm climate, 3vze. What else could it be besides the HG?

You dont need NAPA to check the codes. Jumper TE1 and E1 in the diagnosis terminal next to the fuse box under the hood with a paper clip. turn the ignition to "ON" but dont start it. count the flashes the CEL throws. theres your code. Post the results and we'll help

 

x2^^.

Sounds like a head gasket prob...check your fluids, oil and coolant, and see if they are normal color. Then check the check engine light and see what code is reads.

There will be a pause between the numbers.

 

Don't get your hopes up, because that doesn't sound like anything than other than a hg...

 

another vote for headgasket.
CEL is probably O2 sensor related, probably sub-O2. them are codes 27 & 28, IIRC.

 

well i tried the paper clip on the diagnosis but it didnt do anything so i drove off tho napa and they didint have it. so on my way back my engine gets completly messd up tons of white smoke coming out of the tail pie no power to the gas pedal gameover its a HG .

while i waited to be towed back to school i talked to a few people one of which told me of his mechanic who did his HG for 800 bucks total and did the whole bottom end as well as the timing belf and water pump. that sounds like a fair deal to me and im proably gonna call em up soon.

but i dunno how much of a price difference it would be to put a 3.4 in i guess its time to do some research any input is greatly appreciated thanks again

 

is this the whole HG? sry fo such a newb question but the price seems dirt cheap.
http://humboldt.craigslist.org/pts/1418705453.html
http://humboldt.craigslist.org/pts/1418705453.html

 

that is the headgasket or one of them anyways. you'll need quite a few more gaskets than just that though. And i wouldnt suggest using a felpro kit. go with oem.