New 2.5si Sport - Blue Smoke!

[srhutch]

Picked up my 2.5si Sports a couple of weeks ago, and has 950 miles on the clock now.

Today like some other days buy not all, when I started the car a cloud of blue smoke was emitted from the exhaust.

Do you think this is something to worry about or is it that too much oil has been put in (Electronic gauge shows "OK") or is it the engine still isn’t run in (so to speak) or a combination of the two.

Also the left hand front headlight seems to suffer from condensation, now this could be due to the fact the car has been standing for a few months without use (Pre Registered). Seem to happen after washing. Is this a common problem? I haven’t checked to make sure the covers are on properly, keep meaning to.

TYIA

Steve

[inTgr8r]

It's fairly common to have the dealer overfill an oil change, but not usually from the factory.
That'd be the 1st thing to check.

If oil's OK.... then there is definitely something else wrong.
At >900 on the ODO all the mfg oils should be burned off.

Do you know if you're blowing smoke while driving?
...you may have to get someone to follow you to check.

[fire-n-ice]

I just spoke to my tenant who rents the shop behind my house. He is retired from BMW and is one of a handful of certified Z8 mechanics. He said if the car has been sitting for a long time ie; cranked and moved from time to time, that they will do that. And that blue smoke is indicative of raw fuel in the line. He also said that if you're regularly driving it and it is blowing out blue smoke, that one of your injectors might be leaking.
I hope this helps, and good luck.
Fire

[srhutch]

I have just spoken to my local dealer (not where i bought the car from) who would like me to give it a few more miles.

I have also said I will try and determine exactly when it happens. I think thats from Tuesday to Friday it will be OK but left over the weekend I think the problem will show.

I hope its something simple like a leaky injector, as I dont want the dealer to have to disamantle my engine for something like a piston ring.

[Samiad]

I had some smoke pour out of the exhaust of my 2.5si the other day, and my car had been left undriven for about a week, so perhaps that matches up with the above. It was only the once and I wasn't concerned.

I also noticed a slight odour for the first 1000 miles caused by the mechanical components bedding in. All completely fine now (4000 miles in)

[zee42]

blue smoke is usually a sign of oil not fuel....I have let my 30i set for as long as 3 months without starting and never had any smoke at startup or any other time.....if it were mine.i would get it checked

[fire-n-ice]

I would see if the problem goes away. Gray smoke is usually indicative of burned off oil, remembering that color is subjective when it comes to this stuff. My car has sat for as long as two weeks and I don't have that problem either. It could be nothing, it could be something. Just keep an eye on it and let us know please if anything comes up.

[srhutch]

Update.

Car booked in at dealer due to smoke on Thursday and Friday.

I think I have established a pattern, and that is it happens after the car is started following a previous short journey when the car is cold.

So this morning I started the car no smoke (as expected). Turned engine off, and went back an hour later and as can be seen from the links there was smoke. It appears to be white and not blue so could be injector related.

I just hope the dealer finds the problem.

http://www.b18srh.eclipse.co.uk/internet_dvd.mpg

http://www.b18srh.eclipse.co.uk/internet_high.mpg

(If someone can advise a better way to attach these videos please let me know, otherwise I think you will need to save locally to run.)

Also noticed a puddle of water in my garage from the middle of the car around the bulk head area, cant think that it linked, guessing more to do with air con, but will mention when I drop at dealer.

[fire-n-ice]

bummer, your vids wouldn't come up for me. H20 sounds like A/C to me also. Like I said, color is subjective and can vary from person to person. I am interested in knowing what your dealer finds, please post.

[Ski]

Originally Posted by srhutch

Update.

Car booked in at dealer due to smoke on Thursday and Friday.

I think I have established a pattern, and that is it happens after the car is started following a previous short journey when the car is cold.

So this morning I started the car no smoke (as expected). Turned engine off, and went back an hour later and as can be seen from the links there was smoke. It appears to be white and not blue so could be injector related.

I just hope the dealer finds the problem.

http://www.b18srh.eclipse.co.uk/internet_dvd.mpg

http://www.b18srh.eclipse.co.uk/internet_high.mpg

(If someone can advise a better way to attach these videos please let me know, otherwise I think you will need to save locally to run.)

Also noticed a puddle of water in my garage from the middle of the car around the bulk head area, cant think that it linked, guessing more to do with air con, but will mention when I drop at dealer.

Could be condensation by the looks from your vid but I doubt it cause of your puddle..smell the exhaust, see if you detect a sweet flavor..also check radiator for this loss..headgasket is possibly cracked..

[Samiad]

Originally Posted by srhutch

Update.

Car booked in at dealer due to smoke on Thursday and Friday.

I think I have established a pattern, and that is it happens after the car is started following a previous short journey when the car is cold.

Come to think of it, the only time I have seen this on mine is after a small quick journey to my local gym (i.e. it matches your pattern).

I'll see if I can test my 2.5si a bit more today, but the single time I saw it happen, it looked exactly like your video!

[srhutch]

Just checked the radiator/expansion tank and the depth gauge is around 1/2 an inch or 12mm from the top.

Difficult to smell the smoke as I would need one other person to be with me every time I start the car, as I cannot guarantee when it will happen.

Hoping from this it’s not the head gasket; don’t really want the engine stripped on a brand new car.

Next time I find a pool of water in my garage though I plan to have a taste just to see if it's pure water. If it was from the cooling system it would contain antifreeze. I will use a container to catch the water as I know where it falls.

[inTgr8r]

Originally Posted by fire-n-ice

bummer, your vids wouldn't come up for me. H20 sounds like A/C to me also. Like I said, color is subjective and can vary from person to person. I am interested in knowing what your dealer finds, please post.

Right click "save link as"
That will DL it to your computer, then run it.

[inTgr8r]

srhutch - Bump for an update.....
Did you get to the bottom of this???

[ChrisRG]

Did you solve the problem? I have heard the new 2.5 motor is giving some problems.

I have had the blue smoke problem with mine from new (March 2006). I have now done 55,000 kms. The car blows blue/white smoke when started from cold. It will go for weeks without doing it, and then do it every few days. These are big clouds of smoke! Car is used regularly, though it sat unused for 2 months and did not blow smoke when started.

Dealer has replaced the exhaust relief valve and crankcase ventilation valve (I think these are the right names), but the problem has not gone away. More generally, this has not been a good car. I have had over a dozen warranty repairs (relating to airconditioning, seat belt stalk, oil pressure sender switch, window program and window fit, windscreen rubber coming loose, park light failure, squeak from top when down). I have had three E46 325s, and they were all very good. This has been disappointing.