Here's the deal... This morning when I started my ITR I heard a funny clanking noise that seemed to come from the valve train. The noise lasted about 2 seconds and went away; I have not heard it since then. The scary thing is that I got a large puff of blue-black smoke out of my exhaust. I turned the engine off and restarted. Everything sounded normal this time and no smoke. I revved it up to around 5K and got another smoke puff but smaller than the first. I've not seen any more smoke after that second puff. I checked compression and got : 230/235/235/235 for each cylinder. Should I worry about that #1 cyl ?? I have a Spoon 2-ply head gasket that I installed about a year ago. I'm hoping this is a matter of adjusting my valves but I'd like to hear what you think ... BTW: My car has only 22k miles and the only mods are the Spoon gasket, AEM IceBox, AEM pulleys, Mugen thermostat and radiator cap, and AEM sprockets at 0,0.


[Modified by iperez, 7:16 PM 3/11/2003]

 

Blue/Black smoke is unburnt fuel.
The compression numbers are excellent, I would not be worried about cyl #1 at all. 5psi difference is no biggie when the numbers are so high.

I don't know what it is, but I wouldn't be too worried. Was it really cold? Have you done a valve adjustment lately?

 

Nope ... I haven't had a valve job since I got the car which will be 2 years old this coming May. I am taking the car in for the scheduled oil change at the dealership this Friday and I will have the valve job done. Also, considering that this is "unburnt fuel", maybe I need new spark plugs. I have a set of "Bosch +2" plugs that I installed almost a year ago. They were very black when I checked the compression and maybe they are shot. Maybe its time to get a set of Iridiums.

 

Have you checked the oil level? Sometimes when the car starts up, and you're low on oil, the valve train can make some clattering noise till the oil pressure builds up...

 

Get stock plugs.

 

I was always told Black smoke was unburnt fuel and Blue smoke was oil...

 

Yeah, that's why I'm going for spark plugs AND valve job. Is it possible that oil is getting in the cylinders through a valve ?? What I'm getting at is that if the valves on my #1 cylinder are not sealing properly and are leaking oil into the cylinder, that would explain the small difference in compression for the #1 cyl ... Does this make sense to you guys ??

 

My bad. You are right.

 

damn that doenst' sound good
hope you can fix it

 

Yeah, I know ... not nice !! The car is still under warranty and hopefully the dealer will take care of the problem. They are fairly lenient about warranty service down here over simple mods like pulleys and intakes on the car. I'm just concerned about the Spoon head gasket. I would really like to make 110% sure that the problem has nothing to do with the head gasket before I take the car in for service. I know that's one mod that the dealer will not approve and I don't want them finding out. As long as they don't have to pull the head off the engine I should be fine

 

n/m


[Modified by Haunt, 4:10 PM 3/11/2003]

 

AFAIK, a blown headgasket emits white smoke. Also, I would not be overly concerned with the 5psi difference on the first cylinder. If you had 160-225-225-225, that would be a different story. Take it in, see what they say....

 

You should be aware that with a thin headgasket your cam timing will be retarded ~1.5 degrees.

 

spend the extra money for the stock NGK's...

Did you drive the car hard right before you shut it off last night? Mine has done this about twice before.

 

Check for loose or broken brackets under your hood.

For example, the one on top of the valve cover that holds the PS hose. Stuff like this comes loose pretty easily and can make some scary noises. It's the first thing I check for when I hear strange sounds coming from under the hood.