The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop White Smoke

Hey guys, I'm not much of a mechanic... I know your basic tune up list, and that's about it. (and I'm talking on modern engines!)

Today I started up my 57 big bolt.. and there was a bit of white smoke at start up, which didn't worry me. But when I put down the accelerator a bit it started coming out a decent bit thicker ;-P and would die if I gave it too much.

After I shut off, I went to check my oil levels and couldn't find any sort of dip stick... Do the s6's not have one? the closest thing I could find to it was the actuall oil cap itself. I opened it up, and it looked pretty dry, I couldn't see a pool of oil anywhere... Is this how it should be?? There was also a bit of white smoke coming out of this opening!!

What do you guys think I'm looking at here?

I apologize for my ignorance in advance, I tried looking it up before posting a topic on it, but these older engines seem to be untouched in youtube and etc.

here's a picture of what I'm talking about just in case my words have done nothing but confuse ;-P

picture

The dipstick should be in a tube about halfway between the distributor and the starter, on the passenger's side of the engine. If ythe tube is there, but the stick is missing, just use any type of stiff wire to probe the tube and see if there's any evidence of oil in the engine. I can give you a ballpark guess about the right dipstick length by measuring one from one of the engines I've got in storage.

Your engine looks like a 1954-62 model, either 235 or 261 cubic inch.
Jerry

Thank you Hotrod, gotta say one thing I love about these things is that I was acutally able to get into the engine bay, stand on the frame and sit on the fender... how can you beat that!?!?

I found it! the handle had been broken off and what was left of it was completely covered in grime and oil! (talk about some good camouflage!)

It was right on the "add oil" and was the color of the coal chunks I have layin around my house

Gonna change the oil, with what I'm thinkin 10w30?

Would this be enough to rid the white smoke? or am I lookin at somethin worse??

How would I go about finding what engine I have in this bad boy? I tried glancing for some serial numbers or something on the block, but was having no luck through all the road grime. Are these stamped/printed somewhere specifically?

mine was right behind the distributor on the passenger side. there should be a small lip there and thats where it would be stamped

The engine was originally designed for straight 30 weight oil in weather above freezing, and 20 weight or thinner in winter. You'll get lots of opinions about which gee-whiz special oil it needs now, and opinions are like - - - -uh- - - - -"noses". Everybody's got one, and some of them smell really bad!

I prefer 15W-40 diesel-rated oil because it has some additives that automotive-type oils don't have anymore. I use it in all my vehicles, from a Massey-Ferguson tractor to several lawn mowers, and all my cars and trucks. Buying it in 5-gallon pails at a good price from the local farmers' co-op is one reason, plus it makes oil changing very simple. I don't like a multi-weight oil with a 10 weight or thinner minimum rating in a stovebolt engine, but that's just my opinion.

Your white smoke could be condensed water in an exhaust system that's been sitting unused for years, or brake fluid pulled through the intake manifold from a bad brake booster, or moisture from the cooling system getting into the combustion chambers from a blown head gasket or a cracked cylinder head. If the oil in the crankcase isn't a milky color, run the engine for a few minutes to see if the exhaust smoke clears up. As long as it doesn't overheat or make any nasty noises, a little smoke won't hurt anything but the mosquitoes!
Jerry

Jerry always has a creative way of explaining things. lol

If you started an unknown engine without checking the oil I would imagine you didn't bother to replace the old fuel either. It would be a good idea to, to avoid stuck valves.

You could have a leaking head gasket into the combustion chamber, are you losing coolant? Pull the the plugs and look for a burnt "white" coloring on it. Coolant in the combustion chambers would yield white smoke from the exhaust, as well as a "sweet" smell due to the antifreeze being burned off. You may also experience loss of power and coolant loss depending on the severity of the head gaskets condition. Another thing you can do is have it checked on a scope, by a mechanic, for really HIGH hydrocarbon emissions.

I will sleep easy tonight my man! Thank you so much for all the info! Now I can head to the auto store as a man with a plan

Never thought to check because
1. The guy I got it from was a total Saint of cars, little did I know when I went to check it out after finding it on Craigslist, I would be spending the entire day at his place checking out all his projects from his out-of-home restoration shop... So the excitement of starting it up was over thrown my concern of doubt in his skill.
2. He filled er' up from almost empty to full for his delivery trip a handful of days ago

I REEAALLLYYYY hope this is not it, I don't even want to imagine if its a cracked head? but I will have a big ol' checklist to go through tomorrow! Rock on! (really excited to see the condition of the spark plugs now! IF there isn't a "burnt white", does that mean the coolant leak is out the window?

I was so concerned about the smoke itself, that I can't say I noticed much of a smell of it *face palm*

I looked up a few articles/posts on how to check the radiator's fluid level, but couldn't find a real "precise" answer... How can I tell it's level? Is it safe to over fill since it can drain off itself?

Perhaps leaking valve guides?

if you can get it to smoke bad enough, you never have to worry about tailgaters. That's the experience I had, but now after about a year of good oil, the rings are apparently unsticking (healing, you could say) and people aren't so cautious about approaching me....