I have a 1998 Montero (full size 3.5L) with 136K. I am getting blue smoke under hard acceleration or when I rev it hard in neutral. No smoke on start up or after prolonged idle. I know generally with this motor smoke equals valve guide seals, but I am not sure if my symptoms indicate that. Any ideal would be appreciated. Thanks
guide seals or something else
- Thread starter agerb
- Start date
off-roader
Expedition Leader
How long do you let it idle when you're checking for smoke?
I idle it for ~5 minutes then rev the engine to say 3k for a sec and then check for smoke.
It takes lots of patience (IMHO) to wait that long but if you do, you can be certain if it's smoking or not. Technically it shouldn't smoke no matter how long you let it idle. If it still doesn't smoke then it may be your rings since it only smokes when you gas it / accelerate.
Do you know the vehicle history? Preventive maintenance, engine repairs, etc?
I idle it for ~5 minutes then rev the engine to say 3k for a sec and then check for smoke.
It takes lots of patience (IMHO) to wait that long but if you do, you can be certain if it's smoking or not. Technically it shouldn't smoke no matter how long you let it idle. If it still doesn't smoke then it may be your rings since it only smokes when you gas it / accelerate.
Do you know the vehicle history? Preventive maintenance, engine repairs, etc?
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scrubber3
Not really here
I was actually thinking this exact same thing.
Cleand
Adventurer
It sounds like we are in the same boat. I have a 1998 (full sized 3.5ltr) with 137k on the clock. Your smoke sounds pretty consistant, while mine is on and off. My issue started just as I was getting it smogged. Needless to say I did not pass. I am wondering if Sea Foam will help? I know you can use it to clean the rings.
I'm 4 months out of inspection because I know mine wont pass smog (TX). I'm just worried that I may have to replace the rings and have the cylinders honed....
I did get a slightly more viscous oil this time and it seems to be smoking less.
From what I understand though, if your rings are bad enough to cause the vehicle to smoke that there will be a significant performance loss due to lack of compression. So I am still optimistic that it is only the valve stem seals.
I did get a slightly more viscous oil this time and it seems to be smoking less.
From what I understand though, if your rings are bad enough to cause the vehicle to smoke that there will be a significant performance loss due to lack of compression. So I am still optimistic that it is only the valve stem seals.
PirateMcGee
Expedition Leader
might try some restore (little metal can sold in auto stores), my buddy just used some on his evo and it stopped his oil burning issues....worth a shot I suppose
Putting gunk into my engine other than oil is a scary proposition...
dirtyboots
Observer
The smoke issue appears to be rings. Hopefully I am sooo wrong, that would be a bummer. In my experience any additive products in the crankcase do not solve the problem. I would advise avoiding any products other than oil in the crankcase. Just my experience with alot of different engines, makes, and models, running a compression check, then moving forward from there is the best solution to engine smoke issues.
Cleand
Adventurer
I know some people who ended up with more problems after the use of engine restore. I am going to Sea Foam and report back. I know it wont fix the problem, but it should help in the short term.
So I should take solace in the fact that I had nearly perfect compression in all cylinders then? So it shouldn't be the rings in mine, right?
off-roader
Expedition Leader
the smoking? how do you figure that? From my understanding it helps clear out gunk in your engine. That probably won't cure the smoking though. In fact if you intake it via your intake manifold vacuum lines to further enhance the engine cleansing it will smoke even worse until it's completely burnt out/gone.
If you continue to suspect it's not the valves then the rings are the only thing left. If so, then I recommend doing a leak down test to verify if it's the rings since you can't get it to smoke after an extended idle.
At this point I'm still putting my money on the valve guide seals since you haven't indicated any power loss or poor engine running conditions which would point back to the rings.:ylsmoke:
What vacuum line?