Need Help ASAP

[lepp1892]

Please see the thread below... I am planning on taking my truck to school on thursday and I need Help as soon as possible.

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35441

Thanks

 

[lepp1892]

It seems that it might also be burning coolant too... I think it might be a head gasket but normally in a blown head gasket doesn't the oil get milky... Also it really only smokes when it is idling or when I get off the gas.

 

[Sunk]

Well the head gasket could be leaking to somewhere other than the crankcase, but that wouldn't make the truck smoke. It could be a combination of these or the HG leaking somewhere else.

Did you maybe put way too much oil in it like I did once and forever kick myself for?

 

[dgndngrngr]

ya you would be able to see it in the oil when you changed it. another check is put a towel or something like that at the tailpipe for a second and smell it to see if you smell coolant. if it warms up and your exhaust is still white smoke then its coolant related (heads or gasket) if its blue smoke its oil

 

[lepp1892]

well i put in 5 quarts.... the dipstick shows like it is a little high but not a lot... i almost think not all the oil drained out when i did the oil change because i put it in a old washer fluid bottle and its only about 3/4 full... i know some oil stays in the filter tho...

 

[dgndngrngr]

try draining some oil and see what happens if the smoke clears or not. being a 4.0 I doubt its cracked heads. its probably burning off the excess oil or its bogging down probably not good either way.

 

[lepp1892]

ya you would be able to see it in the oil when you changed it. another check is put a towel or something like that at the tailpipe for a second and smell it to see if you smell coolant. if it warms up and your exhaust is still white smoke then its coolant related (heads or gasket) if its blue smoke its oil

the exhaust smells slightly like coolant and its white after its been running for a bit... but at start up its blowing blueish smoke...

 

[Sunk]

4.0s still crack heads, but not as often as 2.9s.

 

[dgndngrngr]

how does the overflow reservoir look for the radiator? is it lower than before?

 

[lepp1892]

I have noticed that when i shut the truck off i can here it relieving pressure into the overflow... which i never noticed before...

 

[dgndngrngr]

have you had to do any work on the cooling system yet (water pump or thermostat). like sunk said it could be head gasket or cracked head. but if your oil doesnt look milky, even on the dipstick, it could be just the gasket or maybe its starting to leak. the oil thing is a separate issue i think. did you add anything like seafoam or anything like that to the intake? that would burn some stuff off too including some blue smoke

 

[lepp1892]

Ya... Im starting to think i blew a head gasket... i cleaned the throttle body after a changed the oil... so that explains the blue smoke...

 

[dgndngrngr]

next thing you can check is take a plug out one at a time and do a compression test with a tester just to see how bad it really is. that will tell you for sure if you have a gasket leak or not

 

[lepp1892]

I'm pretty sure i blew a head gasket... i figure the blue smoke i was getting was from me cleaning the throttle body and it was just burning off all the carbon the broke loose because the blue smoke has stopped and now its basically straight white smoke... and it seems like i have some coolant in the oil...

 

[Sunk]

Yeah sounds a good chance of a blown HG. You can check the levels of your coolant and oil to be sure. If the coolant keeps dropping, and the oil keeps rising then it's not too hard to see what happening...