You Probably Didn’t Know: 4 Major Reasons Why Water is Coming Out from the Exhaust Pipe of Your Car

Have you noticed that water comes out from your vehicle’s exhaust, and you’ve been wondering what the cause could be? Oftentimes, car owners will realize that water is coming through their vehicle’s exhaust. It can be a strange realization considering exhaust is made only for the vapour coming through the exhaust.

When you realize something like this in your car, what does it mean? Is it a good or bad thing? If you’re wondering why water comes out from your car’s exhaust, then you’ll want to read through the four major reasons why it happens and whether or not it’s a healthy situation.

What’s An Exhaust Pipe?

The exhaust pipe of a vehicle is a vital component of every vehicle with a combustion engine. It helps with emitting exhaust gases produced during the fuel combustion process while driving.

Major Reasons Why Water Comes Out From Your Vehicle’s Exhaust Pipe

If you’ve ever found yourself in a situation like this and you are wondering what the cause (s) could be, then you’ll want to look at these four solid reasons why water comes out from the vehicle’s exhaust pipes.

1. Engine Water Condensation

Apparently, it’s a good reason why this happens. It is a period when your engine goes through the internal combustion process, and various pollutants forms, such as vapor, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide.

As the exhaust gases from the pipe leave the chamber, the carbon dioxide and water mix together. The more the vehicle’s engine cools down, the water condensation in the exhaust becomes visible to those from the outside.

2. Catalytic Converter

This reason is also a good reason. It happens when the exhaust system emits toxic carbon gases, and the catalytic converter is responsible for reducing the size of these gases before they come out from the tailpipe.

Thus happening allows the vehicle to be more environmentally friendly while also reducing the risk of harm to others.  As the catalytic converter works to reduce this, a small amount of water vapour form and drop through the exhaust pipe as a result.

3. Engine Heating

This is another good reason why it happens. However, it mostly happens to car owners living in areas with cold temperatures. The components of an engine require a little bit of time to let the oil circulate through them in order to cool down fully. 

During the cooling period, the moving components of the engine generate a lot of heat within the first few minutes, and the exhaust system will be unusually hot. As a result, water vapour is produced as the heat merges with the cold air. It’s during this time that you’ll see small water dropping from the exhaust pipe. After a while of the engine running, it’ll gradually stop.

4. Faulty Piston

It’s not all good reason when this happens. Other times, it could be that your car has a faulty piston, which causes water to drop through the exhaust pipe. During this time, you’ll know if it’s the piston of the piston’s ring that’s causing the issue, depending on the smoke coming out of the pipe and the water as well.

If it’s completely bad, a burning smell will fill the interior cabin. So, when you notice any strange smell along with smoke and water from your vehicle’s exhaust pipe, know it’s the piston, and it’s time to take it to the mechanic.

Conclusion

Once your car’s exhaust pipe starts leaking water, it could be for any of these four reasons. Before panicking, perform a routine check to verify which it is.