My Starting Situation (Moisture)

That sounds like normal choke start with a bit of condensation in the exhaust. Up here in Canada, the exhaust will blow white for a long while when the outside temperature drops.

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail >

Jack-Jack did pass the time by typing:

Like Mike says, it's water vapor in the exhaust system. One of the products from an internal combustion engine is water vapor (steam), that gets held in the whole exhaust system and eventually condenses. Some mufflers even have a small weep hole to let the water out so they don't rust. No matter what you do there will always be some water trapped in the system.

I blasted the inside of the tailpipe one time and that shot water up and into the Gibson muffler. Boy howdy did I have a nice cloud following me most of the day. :)

Welcome to winter.

That's normal. Stop worrying about it.

When you shut the engine down, the heated exhaust parts cool and suck in outside air that condenses and forms a small amount of water. When you start the engine the next day, the water drips out.

Thank you Captain Besidethepoint.

Don't forget the water that is formed by the burning of Gasoline.

Oxygen + Hydrocarbons (gasoline) = H20 + Hal

While it _could_ be as catastrophic as you suggest, but the "problem" usually isn't a problem at all. Condensation forms inside the exhaust pipe, and blows out on start-up. No big deal.

What in Hell are you talking about, hot enough to be sent out unseen?

He said he sees the exhaust dripping when he first starts the motor. This is a common occurance, especially in cars that get driven home and parked outside at night, then started again in the morning. My cars don't have this problem because my garage is clean enough that I can get both cars into the garage to sleep. My Jeep drips on occasion because it effectively sleeps outside ...

LOL! Two southern California (where cold means taking a windbreaker to the beach) residents talking about cold starts is funny. Try 15 below

- anything will blow visible vapor until all the parts warm up, even in Colorado. At 20 below, most cars never warm up enough to stop the vapor trail unless you get on a freeway for a considrable time. Let it get a little colder and you can actually get enough frost on the plugs to prevent starting if you screw up and don't catch it the first time it tries to fire. I've had a couple of line chiefs, shall we say, forcefully educate me in that respect as they pulled the plugs out of a/c engines to thaw and dry them.

I always through the idea of 55 tons of Abrams M1 tank sliding sideways downhill in the winter on its rubber blocked treads exciting.

But the OP wasn't complaining ov visible vapor, he is reporting water drops. Moisture in the the tail pipe is common, that's all I said. Water flows out upon start up, this is no big deal.

If it is a big deal, then the water will flow out at other times as well, and tempurature control problems will accompany what ever water issues mught be noticed.

20 below? Was that a spring thaw, or have you confused that with real cold? If it is above 40 below, consider it springtime.

Will Honea proclaimed: