is it blow by? burning oil

rusty_sojah · 11-15-2019, 09:33 PM

i am not sure if i am experiencing blow by or what. car is a 2011 with only 36k and the turbos still feel strong. according to my cobb ap thing my boost still ranges from -8 and more to 18-19 psi max boost (no change). i still hit 700 tq's like always but on occasion now i will pull up to a light and a cloud of smoke immediately comes out when i stop. it is pretty rare but starting to happen more frequently like once a week or every few days.

i do not have an oil catch can and am not sure if this will help or not. what can I check aside from say pulling the turbos off? is there anything small i can check myself or what is recommended to narrow down the causes? are scrubbers or detergents a bad idea? is this something that walnut blasting the intake valves can help with or is it something in the cylinders or what?

not much oil at all is missing which is a good thing, but the occasional smelly cloud of blueish smoke is very concerning and annoying. i also can't tell what circumstances if any that i'm doing are causing it. i mean i boost every chance i get on a nice straight away and this hasn't changed, but recently i had vrsf high flow inlets installed and am only running 1 of my stock DV's. also had the oil changed and am not sure if the bmw indy shop used a cheaper thinner oil than the liqui molly i previously had in there. i wonder if thinner cheaper oil could be causing the slightly higher oil temps and occasional cloud of burned smoky oil???

thanks for the recommendations.

rusty_sojah · 11-15-2019, 09:47 PM

Stock turbos btw. High flow catted cobb dp's with secondary cats replaced with high flow resonators. In casr this helps the situation at all.

Chris@VargasTurboTech · 11-15-2019, 11:53 PM

Thinner oil will absolutely lead to more consumption, and it is possible a catch can will help but from the symptoms it's more probable you have a PCV issue, the wrong oil, the turbos are going out, or if the smoke isn't 100% oil, possibly injector issues.

Chris

rusty_sojah · 11-16-2019, 01:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris@VargasTurboTech

Thinner oil will absolutely lead to more consumption, and it is possible a catch can will help but from the symptoms it's more probable you have a PCV issue, the wrong oil, the turbos are going out, or if the smoke isn't 100% oil, possibly injector issues.

Chris

Thanks Chris. I know injectors are costly so what would you recommend first? I'm thinking another full oil change back to some good liqui moly, change out the pcv and install an OCC all at the same time???

As for the pcv, stock or what you recommend if not stock? I appreciate the feedback everyone elsr I've talked to is like "turbo rebuild". Like that is an easy cheap option, so I'm glad to hear some intelligent alternatives.

hellokitty · 11-16-2019, 02:41 AM

Same thing happened to me. Check for a valve cover gasket leak. I just bought a new valve cover with gasket and the issue went away.

My mileage was similar to yours. The plastic/rubber just gets old and brittle over time and breaks down.

Chris@VargasTurboTech · 11-16-2019, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rusty_sojah

Thanks Chris. I know injectors are costly so what would you recommend first? I'm thinking another full oil change back to some good liqui moly, change out the pcv and install an OCC all at the same time???

As for the pcv, stock or what you recommend if not stock? I appreciate the feedback everyone elsr I've talked to is like "turbo rebuild". Like that is an easy cheap option, so I'm glad to hear some intelligent alternatives.

Well looking is free so start there. Inspect everything, including valve cover. Don't confuse spilled oil on the vc for leaks; the truth is told by how clean the spilled vs. leaked oil is.

After that it's a probability vs cost decision for you. An oil change isn't much money and if you need to do it anyway... give it a go. Then you delve into some basic pcv options and finally into turbos. We're not vendors here anymore so out of respect for forum guidelines, I need to be careful about too many recommendations after that point, but you have enough info to start sniffing around and come up with a plan.

Best,
Chris

rusty_sojah · 11-16-2019, 12:51 PM

Thanks guys.

The VCG was just replaced 2 weeks ago. I had done it myself with a knowledgeable buddy last year but i think i overtightened it and one corner was still leaking a little so 2 weeks ago i had it done again.. i now no longer see a single leak for once.

I'm gonna do PCV and OCC 1st and go from there. Will keep you guys posted and really appreciate the feedback.

-update-

Just ordered the ECS OCC kit and VTT PCV for 272$ free shipping. If this fixes my issue i will consider this an early christmas miracle.

11-15-2019, 09:33 PM	#1
rusty_sojah Lieutenant 91 Rep 527 Posts Drives: 440 Join Date: May 2013 Location: Oki/JP iTrader: (0)	is it blow by? burning oil i am not sure if i am experiencing blow by or what. car is a 2011 with only 36k and the turbos still feel strong. according to my cobb ap thing my boost still ranges from -8 and more to 18-19 psi max boost (no change). i still hit 700 tq's like always but on occasion now i will pull up to a light and a cloud of smoke immediately comes out when i stop. it is pretty rare but starting to happen more frequently like once a week or every few days. i do not have an oil catch can and am not sure if this will help or not. what can I check aside from say pulling the turbos off? is there anything small i can check myself or what is recommended to narrow down the causes? are scrubbers or detergents a bad idea? is this something that walnut blasting the intake valves can help with or is it something in the cylinders or what? not much oil at all is missing which is a good thing, but the occasional smelly cloud of blueish smoke is very concerning and annoying. i also can't tell what circumstances if any that i'm doing are causing it. i mean i boost every chance i get on a nice straight away and this hasn't changed, but recently i had vrsf high flow inlets installed and am only running 1 of my stock DV's. also had the oil changed and am not sure if the bmw indy shop used a cheaper thinner oil than the liqui molly i previously had in there. i wonder if thinner cheaper oil could be causing the slightly higher oil temps and occasional cloud of burned smoky oil??? thanks for the recommendations. __________________
	Appreciate 0 Tweet Quote

11-15-2019, 09:47 PM	#2
rusty_sojah Lieutenant 91 Rep 527 Posts Drives: 440 Join Date: May 2013 Location: Oki/JP iTrader: (0)	Stock turbos btw. High flow catted cobb dp's with secondary cats replaced with high flow resonators. In casr this helps the situation at all. __________________
	Appreciate 0 Quote

11-15-2019, 11:53 PM	#3
Chris@VargasTurboTech Lieutenant Colonel 1957 Rep 1,533 Posts Drives: All Things TurboCharged Join Date: May 2016 Location: Bay Area iTrader: (0)	Thinner oil will absolutely lead to more consumption, and it is possible a catch can will help but from the symptoms it's more probable you have a PCV issue, the wrong oil, the turbos are going out, or if the smoke isn't 100% oil, possibly injector issues. Chris
	Appreciate 1 rusty_sojah90.50 Quote

11-16-2019, 02:41 AM	#5
hellokitty Brigadier General 2962 Rep 3,734 Posts Drives: '17 M3 ZCP DCT Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Southern California iTrader: (2)	Same thing happened to me. Check for a valve cover gasket leak. I just bought a new valve cover with gasket and the issue went away. My mileage was similar to yours. The plastic/rubber just gets old and brittle over time and breaks down.
	Appreciate 1 Chris@VargasTurboTech1956.50 Quote

11-16-2019, 12:51 PM	#7
rusty_sojah Lieutenant 91 Rep 527 Posts Drives: 440 Join Date: May 2013 Location: Oki/JP iTrader: (0)	Thanks guys. The VCG was just replaced 2 weeks ago. I had done it myself with a knowledgeable buddy last year but i think i overtightened it and one corner was still leaking a little so 2 weeks ago i had it done again.. i now no longer see a single leak for once. I'm gonna do PCV and OCC 1st and go from there. Will keep you guys posted and really appreciate the feedback. -update- Just ordered the ECS OCC kit and VTT PCV for 272$ free shipping. If this fixes my issue i will consider this an early christmas miracle. __________________ Last edited by rusty_sojah; 11-16-2019 at 01:13 PM..
	Appreciate 1 Chris@VargasTurboTech1956.50 Quote