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[kellsonm]

Hey everyone, I'm working on a '94 Capri with 127k miles. I bought it for $300 so I obviously expected issues. Since I have owned it, white smoke comes out of the exhaust when the engine is running. Yesterday, though, on my first decently long drive with it, the smoke went away after about 5 miles. The car was sitting for about two years before I bought it, so perhaps the engine is just burning off sludge or oil residue? I have drained the fuel tank, so all the has in there is new. Any suggestions/ideas? The engine sounds alright and the previous owner has tons of receipts for engine parts, so I'm hoping I can save this engine.
Thanks!

[Rocketman]

Check the oil & coolant for mixing.  A common issue with these is blown headgaskets, as folks let the alternator & water pump belt snap but continue to drive. (If your Battery light comes on, pull over immediately & check the integrity of the belt!)

Have you done a compression test? This will give a reasonable indication of the health of the engine.

White smoke is generally coolant. This could come from a blown head gasket.
The intake manifold gasket, and throttlebody gasket are also points of failure where coolant can enter the engine. They may seep while the car is off. Do you notice any coolant loss?

If it's an oil issue, it could be old or worn valvestem seals, where oil drips down onto the valves while the car is off. The smoke will go away when driving it.

Is is an XR2? There are some failure points with the turbocharger that can cause smoke issues.

[kellsonm]

It's the non-turbo. I will do a closer inspection of the engine coolant soon. I'll also try to stop at Oreilly's tonight to get a compression tester.

[mitch1204]

Ditto on what Rocketman says. White smoke is usually antifreeze/water. Oil is normally blue like with worn rings or valve stem seals. Too much fuel will appear black and too little fuel can give a grey to white appearance. If it was an automatic modulator valve it could even be tranny fluid which burns black smoke.

I would think antifreeze and the head gasket or possibly a cracked head. It could be a hairline crack that pools in the cylinder when sitting and dries up to a trickle when you drive it.

A compression check is in order. Look at your plugs too as you pull them out. You can also smell the smoke. Does it smell like fresh oil or sweet like antifreeze? You can also monitor the coolant reservoir. Is it dropping? Do you see bubbles in the radiator or reservoir with the engine running? Does the oil dip stick show evidence of moisture?

A compression check is a solid test. Look through the receipts and see if he changed the head gasket. They should be done around 100,000. Also check if he changed the timing belt set and water pump. You'll want to change them as you change the head gasket. In case you don't know with any aluminum head job you have to get the head resurfaced. Have the valves checked and reseated if necessary. Also change the valve stem seals. All the gaskets needed come in a head gasket set or you might opt for a full engine gasket set. The manual calls for new head bolts but they are difficult to find. Some of us reused our old bolts with success going to max torque. Just remember their order by poking holes in a shoebox similar to the head pattern. Let us know what you find.

[kellsonm]

Haven't been able to do a compression test yet, but I did drain the coolant and it looks brand new, even though it's been in the car for at least three years.
<a href="http://s1241.photobucket.com/user/KMCubed/media/3491AD72-4229-4BA3-A617-EE868316C0B2.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1241.photobucket.com/albums/gg508/KMCubed/3491AD72-4229-4BA3-A617-EE868316C0B2.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 3491AD72-4229-4BA3-A617-EE868316C0B2.jpg"/></a>

[grantduffield]

Hey Guys -

Can you talk a little more about the intake manifold gasket issue?  I'm getting some wisps of white smoke out of the engine compartment after a drive.  More of a antifreeze smell than an oil smell.  Radiator is full.  Nothing abnormal on the temperature gauge.  I have stopped driving it much because I don't want the thing to go up in flames.   

[chrispoe]

Wisps of smoke from under the hood generally occur when something like the valve cover leaks oil onto the exhaust manifold.

[Rocketman]

Hey Guys -

Can you talk a little more about the intake manifold gasket issue?  I'm getting some wisps of white smoke out of the engine compartment after a drive.  More of a antifreeze smell than an oil smell.  Radiator is full.  Nothing abnormal on the temperature gauge.  I have stopped driving it much because I don't want the thing to go up in flames.

Any area in particular? Have you replaced all the little coolant hoses that are rather problematic?

[mitch1204]

I'm like Chris, to generate smoke you need the high heat from the exhaust manifold or even the catalytic converter which is about under the heater hoses or the little L shaped hose under the distributor running from the hard pipe to the thermostat housing. There is also another small hose beside it running up under the top of the intake. Inspect them hoses good for a crack or pin hole especially near the clamps. While hot and under pressure might give you a better visual while wiggling the hoses.
The little L shaped one got me and another member so check it closely. Overheating is expensive on these engines. One minute a pin hole, the next minute a rupture wondering why your gauge is in the red. I hope you find it early.

[grantduffield]

Thanks guys.  I changed out the valve cover gasket about 7 months ago.  I'm not seeing any leakage there.  It looks like where this is coming from may be in the neighborhood of the manifold.  There is a sensor that is clearly visibly on the manifold and it looks like the smoke is coming from that vicinity.  I have had a manifold related rattle for some time, but no smoke until recently.  again, not tremendous clouds of smoke, just enough to notice and think "I wonder what that means?". 

I appreciate your input/thoughts.   

[kellsonm]

I've been driving my car a bit lately and the smoke seems to have stopped. Here are the results from the compression test:

Cylinder 4:

Cylinder 3:

Cylinder 2:

Cylinder 1:

[Rocketman]

Looks like you've got a pretty healthy engine!

[kellsonm]

Sweet! The car is treating me well so far!
Next up: valve adjustment, is there a thread for that on here?

[mitch1204]

Yeah it still has a lot of miles left. 100-110 I would be concerned. The most important part is the readings are within 10% of each other. Test passed.

[mitch1204]

Sweet! The car is treating me well so far!
Next up: valve adjustment, is there a thread for that on here?

It has hydraulic lifters. No adjustment should be necessary. If you have a head job have the valve seats and valves ground if necessary. The exhaust valves could be partially burnt on them two weak compression readings but that's easily fixed. The shop will check that the valve stem length is within tolerances or they'll replace the valve.

If you do get the head done I would buy a Felpro head gasket set and take the valve stem seals with you. The shop will need them. The camshaft seals you have to do yourself.