Blowing white smoke

[campbeam]

I clean the PCV valve using degreaser in a spray can. I fill the valve with the degreaser and let it sit for a few minutes. Give it a shake and repeat a number of times. Next time I think I will just soak it in petrol in a small container and shake it a few times.

I am a great believer in preventative maintenance and I am totally guilty of over-servicing my vehicles. If your engine oil is a dark golden colour or even black, my recommendation  is to do an engine flush then an oil and filter cartridge change. Something else I do is clean the oil filter cartridge by soaking it in petrol in a small container, shaking it then let it air dry. This is just an interim measure before being replaced at 5000 km intervals.

Positive Crankcase Understanding.doc

[campbeam]

Recently completed my annual interstate trip of approx. 4500 kms in 2 weeks. Unpleasantly surprised/embarassed when my 2006 Aurion output a significant white smoke screen when doing an overtaking on the open highway. Quick temporary solution was to unbolt the PCV valve from the valve cover and plug the bolt hole with a rolled up piece of Chux material.

Part of the trip preparation was an oil change with full synthetic 5W-30 and a new oil filter cartridge. Last Sunday, I undid the oil filter cartridge housing to check the condition of the filter cartridge. Very surprised at how much oil sludge particles were in the housing and the filter cartridge. This was the most sludge particles ever over the last 2 years that I have been de-sludging the engine with regular oil and filter cartridge changes rather than removing and cleaning the oil channels in the valve cover.

It appears to me that full synthetic oil is more effective at de-sludging an engine than semi-synthetic and mineral based engine oils.

[ZZT86]

Brand new oils are at their most potent at cleaning right at the beginning & some have stronger detergents than others. It's a real PITA but I would rather disassemble the heads & sump & give it a real good wash. So much work though.

[campbeam]

Certainly expected that the combination of new oil and a few consecutive days of travelling 800kms on open highway would give the engine a good internal clean. It was surprising because I thought that I had already thoroughly de-sludged the engine and there has been no white smoke on start up for many months.

Definitely agree that the preferred option is the removal of the front valve cover for a thorough clean and the sump removed if you want to check the oil pick up screen is not blocked.

For my own hard-headed reasons of not wanting to disturb the engine, I deliberately chose the option of multiple oil and filter cartridge changes.

[nswnotill]

On 11/12/2018 at 10:23 PM, campbeam said:

For my own hard-headed reasons of not wanting to disturb the engine, I deliberately chose the option of multiple oil and filter cartridge changes.

Ashley,

How many K's on the odo? My 2008 model has been serviced by reliable mechanics every 10,000 Km (oil + filter) and now has 220,000 km. on the odo. No sign of any white smoke yet.

[ZZT86]

Sludge is only an issue if the car in Q is not serviced by the book and/or is neglected. Oils of the Semi Synthetic or Full Synthetic variety is best as it's less inclined to sludge up. If you service by the book then your engine's innards is likely to look like new & have nothing to worry about.

[Aurion ZR6]

12 year old, 2006 model, oil change oil every 5000 km's with Full Synthetic, because I only drive that much in 1 year or less.
82000 km's on the clock and still run like new.

[campbeam]

On 11/15/2018 at 12:06 PM, nswnotill said:

Ashley,

How many K's on the odo? My 2008 model has been serviced by reliable mechanics every 10,000 Km (oil + filter) and now has 220,000 km. on the odo. No sign of any white smoke yet.

Now close to 205,000 km. I bought my 2006 Aurion at 166,000 km, blowing white smoke on start up so I got it a very good price. Service history was quite suspect especially as it was being done by a Ford dealership as per some servicing agreement.

Supercheap have a 3 day deal on Shell Helix Ultra engine oil 5W-40 5 litre for $29.89 [limit of 2] so very tempted even though I could wait for the next tempting deal.

[campbeam]

After 2 years and some refining of my oil change overkill method, I have finally stumbled upon the solution/fix for this blowing white smoke issue.

As mentioned in other posts, the underlying cause is the accumulation of oil sludge in the baffles of the valve cover. The oil is not able to drain quick enough and gets sucked up via the PCV system into the intake.

One option is to remove the front valve cover and thoroughly clean these oil baffles. Instead of doing this, I have been refilling the engine via the PCV opening re-using the warm engine oil then repeating the process with diesel before using a cheap motor oil to flush the engine then add the new engine oil. I have done this process for about 2 oil changes and this appears to have thoroughly cleaned those baffles so there is no longer any pick up of oil into the PCV system and intake.

On the PCV hose leading to the intake, I have fitted an inline filter which has a clear glass section. There no longer any collection of oil droplets onto this glass. I can further confirm this by checking the oil catch can which I have not yet done.