98 V70 R Smoking while idling

tomcatvf84 · Post by **tomcatvf84** » 26 May 2014, 09:26

Hi guys, I'm trying to sort the smoking problem my car has. It's a 98 V70R Manual 2wd. When I bought the car it was smoking badly all the time, it's since had the turbo rebuilt,balanced and pressure tested, it's apparently had the PCV replaced as it all looks fairly new and there's no smoke out the dipstick at idle. The car now runs great while driving but if it's left idling for anything over a minute or two then upon driving off there is a cloud of blue smoke out of the exhaust.

I've spoken to various people and been told that it could be several different things.

PCV is still blocked/partially blocked (I dont know who did this so it's possible)

Turbo is leaking oil past its seals (wouldn't it do this at more than just idle?)

Valve stem seals (doesnt smoke at all when I first start it up in a morning... Unless I leave it idling)

'O' rings in the sump.. This is a new one on me but a friend told me yesterday that if the PCV is left to get too badly clogged then it can blow the 'O' rings in the sump.. is this true?

I need to work out what the likely cause to this is before throwing more money at it, getting the turbo rebuilt has cut down on the majority of the smoking but I need to get this last bit sorted. Car has been de cat'd has a new intercooler fitted so there is no chance of remaining oil in the system still being burned off, this is an on going thing so oil is still getting into the exhaust from somewhere.

Any help appreciated guys.

Bluevanacd2005 · Post by **Bluevanacd2005** » 26 May 2014, 09:44

Where did you get the turbo rebuilt?

I would also check the compression if you can... Just to make sure the bottom end is OK.

Spenser

Post by **erikv11** » 26 May 2014, 10:06

Sounds exactly like leaky valve stem seals. You can test the PCV using a glove on the dipstick and/or on the oil fill tube.

The sump o-rings go out with time, not with PCV neglect. I suspect there was some confusion there about the rear main seal, which is at risk with a clogged PCV. The symptom for worn out sump o-rings (indeed something you should watch out for) is a noisy top end, especially at startup.

tomcatvf84 · Post by **tomcatvf84** » 26 May 2014, 10:06

Oh yeah, I forgot to say. Compression checks out bang on exactly in the middle of where it should be.

tomcatvf84 · Post by **tomcatvf84** » 26 May 2014, 10:18

Right.. So it's definaltey not the 'O' rings then, could the PCV still being partially blocked cause smoking like this?.. If I leave the car idling long enough the cloud of blue smoke can get pretty bad. I would have thought that if it where the valve stems that it would smoke just at start up first thing in a morning?.. Really dont fancy taking the head off to do the valve stems.

Post by **misha** » 26 May 2014, 16:33

tomcatvf84 wrote:..I would have thought that if it where the valve stems that it would smoke just at start up first thing in a morning?...

Nope...it will make a cloud of blue smoke as soon as you hit the gas pedal after idling.After the engine ejects that blue cloud and as soon as it clears from the exhaust,you can rev the engine up to the limiter and there will be no blue smoke at all.Let it idle again,and blue smoke will also re-appear.

About valve stem seals replacement...you don't need to pull the head for the job.It can be done successfully with the head on the car,with appropriate knowledge an tools.

Also,you can consider a higher viscosity oil.Since you have an "R" you can switch to 10w-60,5w-50 or 15w-50 oil from Castrol,Mobil 1,Total...your choice.This can reduce if not completelly stop that blue smoke and oil burning you have.

What oil viscosity you currently use?

tomcatvf84 · Post by **tomcatvf84** » 27 May 2014, 03:16

Yeah I know the seals can be done with the head on, it's just managing to get hold of all the appropriate tools,lol.. I'm currently using 10 40's Semi Synthetic.

Post by **rspi** » 27 May 2014, 03:30

My guess would be valve stem seals. I have done them a few times this year with heads off. I could not imagine doing them with the head on.

The owners manual recommends that you not let the car sit and idle. I think they knew these would smoke easily. The manual also warns against running oil thicker than 10W-40.

I found a few bad valves when I did the head jobs so if you pull the head it will be a good time to check the valves.

Post by **erikv11** » 27 May 2014, 06:46

You can pull the head for the valve stem seals but another option is to just let it smoke. Eventually it will burn a valve, may happen in 1 month or may be another 5 years. Once the valve burns you still aren't stranded anywhere; drive it home and pull the head.

I would probably fix it sooner than later but just throwing options out there. You can also try a "high mileage" oil.

tomcatvf84 · Post by **tomcatvf84** » 28 May 2014, 03:32

Yeah I'd rather not leave it smoking, it's embarrasing more than anything else.