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White smoke out of tailpipe started today

n8in8or

n8in8or

I never met a project I didn’t like
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Today during my lunch I walked up to my truck when it was running and thought I saw some white smoke...but a car just drove away so I thought it was from them (I chuckled to myself, what a loser)....then I kept watching my side view mirror as I was driving back to work and I kept seeing which smoke....it's from me!! It's still running fine. An hour later I started it to see what would happen and at first there was no smoke so I thought it was maybe a fluke of some sort, but as I let it run the smoke reappeared.

I do already have some air-in-fuel issues because when the truck sits for about 24 hours it misses and stumbles for a bit as it works the air out of the system...and if it sits for 2+ days it takes a long time for it to light. I have most of the parts to totally redo my fuel system, but I won't have the last bit until later next week. Tonight I'm going to try a clear tube on the return line to see if I can see air bubbles.

My THEORY is that it's the seal on the exhaust side of the turbo. My thought is that it is leaking oil there and it doesn't start smoking until the exhaust/turbo is warm enough to make it smoke. That's just my theory so far.

Here is a video so you can see for yourself. This is after it's been sitting for 2 hours at 30F. Please weigh in and I'll report back any additional findings.

 
Ok guys good tip on using the old nose, I'll do that. I wasn't sure if the exhaust would smell different if it was burning engine oil or diesel fuel...so I'll be sure to pay attention to that. It isn't coolant though, as I definitely didn't smell that smell. The video is a little deceiving since it was a cold start and it's cold out because there definitely is vapor in there too.

Last night, as I was looking for the return line so I could hook a hose up to it I found that I had left 2 clamps off when I hooked the return line back up while doing my lifter repair recently. D'OH! It was wet all around one of the connections so it has been leaking there for sure. So I didn't mess with the clear hose - I figured if I did find air it would/could just be a false reading due to the loose clamps. So I put the clamps back and called that, that. I figured I would just monitor it for a few days and see what happens. When I got to work this morning there was definitely a fine cloud of smoke hanging around me so it hasn't cleared up yet. I'll be sure to put a nose on it and see what I can smell.

Thanks for the tips guys.
 
Ok, I just drove it home and let it idle for about five minutes in the garage with the door open. There was a nice cloud hanging there and.....it definitely smelled like engine oil, not diesel, huzzah! So given that, is it safe to assume turbo seal? If it's turbo seal is there any guess as to how long it will hang on before it totally blows out? Will it totally blow out? I was already planning on doing an HX40WII later this winter with tax money...and especially with Christmas coming I'd still like to stay with that plan....but I also don't want to have it all of a sudden let go and have a huge smoky mess on my hands.

As always, thoughts are appreciated, thanks!
 
You could be pumping it through a toasty cdr. Pull the inlet to the turbo from the air filter and see how much oil is going in there first. If so vent to air a couple days and see if smoking is gone.

If the air intake is dry, and oil is coming out exhaust then you need to know if it's from the turbo or from exhaust manifolds (internal engine).

You have to open it up to see if it at the turbo. Dry before and wet after tells you turbo. Always a roll of the dice how long it "lasts", sometimes there's no warning it just starts pumping oil instantly with turbo seal.
 
Thanks for the thoughts Will. I pulled the tube last night to check the turbo shaft (it does have some play - not enough where the wheel is crashing into the casting, but definitely some play) and it didn't look extra oily. I think I'll pull it anyway and just see if it makes a difference.

Yeah I was trying to think of how I would do the pre and post turbo oil determination... I was thinking that I would try running the engine with the crossover pipe removed so I could see if the smoke came out of the manifold or not. I also like your idea of pulling the turbo and seeing if it's wet before and after or not too.
 
Ok, I ran the truck with a bypassed CDR for a couple weeks and the smoke didn't clear up. Then I rebuilt the turbo....still smokey. From my lifter adventure earlier this fall I know I have head crack issues, but I'm not really excited about putting new heads on a 97 block based on what I've been reading on them and durability. Plus I suspect an oil consumption problem to be more in the short block area than in the heads anyway. Also, I'm going to be using the Tahoe to tow a travel trailer this coming year and I want to know that I'm not going to break down on the road. So a new engine it is.

For peace of mind I'm going to go the Optimizer route and while I have the engine out do some other upgrades since it will be easier while it's out. I've been gathering ideas from other posts (forumitis!) and have an idea on the direction I want to go. I sure didn't want to be doing an engine this year, especially since it wasn't in the budget, but it is what it is I guess. I am excited though as the truck should be everything I hope it can be finally!

Stay tuned for an engine build thread!
 
GEP sells the Optimizer as well as their P-400. Price is lower than the 400 by a couple thousand...something to consider if it is in the budget and/or you have time to save up some funds to offset sudden death syndrome of the wallet.
 
A new Optimizer is a bit high for the money I'll have available to spend, and if I remember correctly, I think that engine Leroy had was a little high for me as well because he had put the Total Seal rings in it....and while it would be a good piece I think it's a bit much for me.

I'm comfortable going with an engine from Ted's budget-wise, but I have found a new engine a couple hours away from me for about the same price as a Ted's engine shipped to me; it's hard to tell what it is in the pictures that are posted so I'm asking for more pictures so I can confirm that it is an Optimizer and not Chinese/other before I drive all the way over there to get it. My fingers are crossed that it's an Optimizer.
 
n8in8or said:
A new Optimizer is a bit high for the money I'll have available to spend, and if I remember correctly, I think that engine Leroy had was a little high for me as well because he had put the Total Seal rings in it....and while it would be a good piece I think it's a bit much for me.

I'm comfortable going with an engine from Ted's budget-wise, but I have found a new engine a couple hours away from me for about the same price as a Ted's engine shipped to me; it's hard to tell what it is in the pictures that are posted so I'm asking for more pictures so I can confirm that it is an Optimizer and not Chinese/other before I drive all the way over there to get it. My fingers are crossed that it's an Optimizer.
Click to expand...

So, what are you thinking about Nate? One of Teds military surplus 6.5"s. I know thats what I'm after! :D While I would love to think my refreshed 6.5 will hold up well, I know I'm pushing it far beyond what it was designed for, so a more sturdy foundation would be nice. :)

Matt
 
Hi Matt, yeah I'll likely go with an engine from Ted's, it just made sense once I weighed all my options....though if that new engine I found does end up being an Optimizer then that's the route I'll go for sure.

I posted a new, long-winded :rolleyes: thread detailing what I'm hoping to do...more detes over there

Nate
 
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