599 - white smoke from the engine bay anyone?

Yes, seen to on mine and friends, smells like burning wax, have seen t just after coming to rest as well. Never been able to trace it but as the car has not caught fire I'm guessing it's nothing serious!

 

How hot was it? white smoke sounds look steaming coolant, to me.

 

Had the same on mine. Oil leak from the cam cover.

 

Could this have been caused by over filling the oil tank? I have heard that over filling the oil tank on 599s is common.

 

Lets assume people are not stupid, they can tell the difference between steam and smoke so coolant it is not. Also, oil smoke is called blue smoke where i come from, and oil on a hot manifold does not smell like burning wax but has a very sweet smell.

The described smell and "city drive" sounds like a clutch thing, but then again one should expect people to know what clutch smoke smells like. Smoking clutch on 599 F1 during hill start is a known issue.

 

A lot of assuming and expecting... The OP actually did not say anything about smell of wax. Coolant would have a sweet smell, oil burning on the manifold would smell like Xmas pork Some people may refer steam as smoke if not being able to discern from their vantage point... So... anything is possible Unless you assume and expect...

 

Oil on the manifold has the sweetest smell and not at all like pork. Thats total nonsense, Yes anything is possible, except your pork oil manifold, the only possibility there is that your wife is the worst cook in the world, with a solid margin.

 

My car did this and it was two unrelated things. The first thing was a slight slight radiator leak. The second was old leaves which got into the engine bay and would smoke a little bit until exhausted. Bottom line- its hard to tell from a chat room so I would take a cautious approach and have it looked at by an expert.

 

Hi Oliver,
Ive just come across your post as i have just bought a 2009 599. It has only done this once, started car in the garage, waited till revs settled then backed her out, so about 3 to 4 mins running from cold. As i was just about to switch her off i noticed a little white smoke, not steam etc coming out of the drivers side bonnet vent, it only lasted for a mere 3 or 4 seconds then gone. It has never done it whilst driving, or after stopping when being driven. Just had a look around the cam covers with a torch but its bloody hard to see right to the back under the air intake etc, as i would presume it would be oil being burnt off, thus oil leaking from the cam covers?
Just wondered if you went deeper into the problem my friend?

 

common problem, I have had the cam cover gaskets changed twice in 10 years. while you are at it, change the small coolant hoses.