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Periodic Smoking Engine


Marsh54Dodge

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Ok everyone I have a perplexing question. I recently acquired a 1954 Dodge C1 B6 truck. After careful research I learned the engine in the truck had been rebuilt at some point and it is NOT the original motor. Research of the block number showed the engine is out of a 1951-52 Dodge car and is a 230 CI. There is a rebuild tag on the side of the block listing how it was bored out and etc.  The tag is a Montgomery Ward tag. It does not have a date so I have no idea when the engine was rebuilt. Now getting to my question. The engine runs great. Starts easy and runs very smooth. No misses or hiccups at all!  The weird thing is it smokes from the draft pipe on occasion. It does not smoke even a little through the exhaust pipe. There will be times I drive the truck and there is almost no smoke at all from the draft pipe, but in the same trip it will all of a sudden start spewing a smokescreen of whitish blue smoke. Like a lot. So bad I feel really bad for the people behind me. Then I can stop at a traffic light or stop sign, pull away, and no smoke at all. Has anyone ever heard of this?  I’ve checked the radiator fluid and it’s good. I’m not losing any. I do lose oil and I will leave small puddles where it is parked. The smoke smells like burning oil, but I suppose that would be expected since it is coming from the crankcase draft tube. Anyone have any ideas or thought?  And by the way. The truck never changes how well it’s running even when smoking or not smoking.  Thanks for any info. 

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47 minutes ago, Jeff Balazs said:

What kind of oil pressure do you see typically ? At Idle and at speed?

Kind of sounds like some sort of blockage or perhaps the oil pressure relief valve is sticking. Is the breather cap functioning?

I am sure others will chime in.

Jeff

Oil pressure is always good. Even at idle or at road speed. At idle it’s about 40 and at RPM it’s about 60. Breather cap seems to be functioning as it should. 

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23 minutes ago, JBNeal said:

Compression check to make sure, but intermittent smoke kinda sounds like oil-fouled steam from condensation in the crankcase...installing a PCV system would eliminate that smoke for good :cool:

I should have added that on the  oil dipstick Above the oil level there is white milky frothy gunk. I know that’s usually a sign of water in the crankcase. 

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can you predict when it happens?  if so - I'm thinking some sort of a vacuum sucking oil from somewhere and not passing it through the combustion cycle.  Charlie Stephenson 

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46 minutes ago, Jeff Balazs said:

This is almost certainly a sign that you have either got a blown head gasket or a crack

I would not go as far as saying that myself.

PO said  "on the  oil dipstick Above the oil level there is white milky frothy gunk"

 

If it was mixed in the oil, then I would say Jeff is correct.

 

If the oil looks good, but there is milk shake above the oil on the stick, Then I say JB is correct with condensation in the crank case.

 

I had a 1993 dodge shadow that had water on the dipstick above the oil level. I changed the oil and it never came back, car sat for some time owner was military and deployed over seas.

 

So that would be my first suggestion, change the oil and see if it comes back ... Or I wonder what else could cause this, is it possible a head bolt i a water jacket leaking? I dunno

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On 2/24/2020 at 6:58 PM, Marsh54Dodge said:

I should have added that on the  oil dipstick Above the oil level there is white milky frothy gunk. I know that’s usually a sign of water in the crankcase. 

 


That is certainly a sign of condensation build up in the crankcase. An oil change might help, but a good hour long drive, or more, should build and maintain enough heat to vaporize all of the condensation and drive most of it out.

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