so i've recently completed the mission of adding a turbo to a non-turbo car, a 2000 ford focus 2.0 L zetec. normally id be ecstatic about completing the feat presented, however im blowing white smoke out the tailpipe. it was dark and difficult to tell if there was a blue tint.
-To start the car has only seen idle, maybe 2500 once or twice while trying to position the car to a spot with wifi. (I'm trying to tune it and the tuner wanted to set up a datalog file)
-the smoke doesnt happen on start up, it takes at least 30 seconds before any comes out and probably 1-2 minutes before a LOT starts to come out. like smoke screen style.
-it has sat for 3 months, during an ice-y winter in a humid-ish area
i have a few theories but im open to any suggestions.. or ways to verify these theories.
-i blew up my head gasket/motor/head?
-turbo oil drain is not large enough? td05-14b being drained with AN-10 fittings
-turbo needs a properly sized oil restrictor?
-water vapor? its an LOL suggestion, let the laughs ensue at this one but im just trying to keep all options open.... i did find a significant amount of what appeared to be normal old H2O just below the tailpipe, i took some pics below.
thanks in advance for looking
What does the exhaust smell like?
burnt chemicals, never had a car that burned oil or coolant. couldnt tell ya based on smell
That looks like possible head gasket. Is the coolant low?
Bad turbo seal ?
You need to determine which is causing the smoke, oil or coolant before looking for a fix.
so i looked up how to test bad head gasket, no idea how that'd happen since it ran like a champ before it was parked... i digress, i looked up how to test a bad head gasket and only two i can do on the fly. i checked under the oil cap for 'mayo' and let the car run/smoke while checking for bubbles in the coolant system. uploading stuff now, ill add them here in a minute.
trying my hardest to figure it out, part of the reason im here.
edit-1: here is the bottom of the oil cap
My guess is condensation in the exhaust. Drive it a bit, either it will clear up (condensation) or it won't (stuff's broke). Whenever I have had an oil-in-the-exhaust issue on a turbo car like blown turbo seals or restricted return, it smelled like a poorly running lawnmower and fogged more than James Bond smokescreen.
If you are worried about head gasket, if the oil is good, letting it come up to operating temp and a spin around the block won't really hurt anything. Would do some good to get it heated up.
Best easy check for a blown headgasket is to pull the spark plugs out, the cylinder(s) getting coolant in it will have a plug that looks like new and a steam cleaned cylinder, exhaust will also smell sweet.
I suspect this is turbo oil feed related though like other have covered, bad seals or too much oil feed like you said.
at one point i did let it idle for long enough that it did get up to operating temperature, i can do it again tomorrow as well. hesitant to drive it since it hasn't really been tuned past idle, crappy SCT products never work properly and i couldn't datalog since the PC and software woudln't communicate.
this is a video showing no bubbles while cold, dont think it matters too much if there is a bad head gasket. correct me if im wrong. it DOES smoke like a Bond smokescreen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1HSDOT1nyE
ill go check the spark plugs now, ill check all 4. really worried, this car is my baby...
If it is antifreeze it will smell sweet like antifreeze. If you don't have that smell then it is a good chance it is turbo related. It could also be running way to rich. That will give you a white/grey smoke as well. What are your AFRs??
In reply to dean1484:
usually ~16 often low as ~13 have seen 9 on the gauge
did read that oil covered spark plug =/= end of the world. i DO feel a little better but dont want to claim out of the water yet.
Was this a known good motor? What's the history on the turbo? What's the compression on the cylinders? At this point, I'm going with bad turbo.
Either oil or fuel or both but those plugs are not what you see when you get a head gasket leak
motor was my daily for over 5 years. It WAS solid as a rock; could drive up to two hours away, autocross and drive back and it wouldn't even blink.
turbo history is unknown, bought it used as part of a kit. had to supply some of my own charge piping, oil drain and that was about it iirc. oh and gauges
compression is unknown, but it still purrs just fine...
so i was reading this: http://turbolabofamerica.com/causes-turbo-blow-leak-burn-oil-find/
and my concerns are with #1, kinda #3 and #7
1) i used one of these drain adapters on a td05-14b turbo. it says its ok but what do i know?
3) i didnt overfill the pan according to OEM specs, but the turbo DOES sit low in the car, this pic might put things into perspective
7) im using 5w-20 since that is what ive literally only ever put in this car. do i need a 10w-30?
Is there oil in the air inlet tube after the turbo?
A head gasket can leak into the combustion chamber and not the oil passages. My 22RE chugged gallons of water for months and the oil made no milkshake. But I cleaned/ replaced the #4 spark plug weekly. That's not happening in your pictures.
Yes but one of those spark plugs is covered in oil.
Not sure if you noticed that yet?
I'll check for oil in the inlet tubes
Could he be pressurizing the crankcase and forcing oil by the valve seals? or at very least the addition of the turbo is causing issues with the PCV system?
If you completely bypass the turbo with the wast gate so you are running no boost does it still smoke?
Looking at your plugs, definitely not burning coolant. They look waaay rich, so either the tune is way off and you're dumping in too much fuel, or you're getting oil into the cylinders from somewhere. Do you have a wastegate on the turbo?
Can't see your oil return in those pics. Is it a straight shot to the pan? No dips in the line?
