I was wondering if anyone has some insight into a strange smoke issue that began after I took a 500 mile trip with my 300 SDL. On the trip the car ran great and achieved about 24 mpg (not the best but OK) but used one quart of oil. I did discover a lot of oil around the IP originating from the Control Rod Travel Sensor. Probably not a quart worth, so I suspect I burnt at least 2/3 quart. Before the trip I was using about one quart between oil changes (every 3000 miles). The next morning I started her up and after a few minutes a driving noticed large quantities of white smoke smelling of burnt oil leaving the exhaust pipe. After about 5 minutes the smoke cleared and was fine the rest of the day. Each morning this cycle was repeated unless the car sat for less than 10 hours. If I ran the car the night before, no smoke in the morning. But if the car sat for over 10 hours, then lots of smoke the next morning.

I guess I am wondering where to go from here. Is oil seeping into the IP at night or is oil seeping past a broken ring or something? Is there a connection between the oil leak at the Control Rod Travel Sensor and this smoke after sitting? The entire top half of the engine was replaced about 10,000 miles ago. No problems until now. I am not sure where to begin troubleshooting. The car starts easily on the first or second rotation, runs smoothly, and accelerates great. However, the smoke is sufficiently heavy during that initial five minutes that it is currently un-drivable.

I appreciate any help you can offer.

Hal Scripka
300 SDL - 176,000
190D - 308,000

Are you sure the smoke is white? Oil usually produces a blue smoke. Check your radiator to see if the water has gone down.

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1977 300D Lost coolant while someone else was driving
1983 300D Can't run without oil
1985 300SD (gone but not forgotten)
1990 300TE 4matic Sold
1991 Yamaha Venture
1975 Kawsaki 250 triple
1974 Honda 200CL
1951 8N Ford
2008 Wildfire 650C

Yes, the smoke is white and the cooling system is holding fine. The smoke smells like burnt oil.

i am wondering if there is oil or fuel somehow accumulating in the intake while the car is sitting. this doesnt sound like valve stem seals to me. they are useually a relatively short puff of blue on startup.,... now if there was oil somehow accumulating in the valve cover it would do something like that but if that were the case i suspect other bad things would be happening too.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

t walgamuth

"Oil accumulating in the valve cover" is something I hadn't considered. I do get what seems to be a lot of oil entering the breather tube. I disconnected it once and ran a few miles. It splattered oil everywhere. I suspect I have a lot of blow-by, but there doesn't seem to be a lot of pressure when I remove the oil cap. Would this condition cause oil to accumulate in the valve cover, and then seep into combustion areas over night?

I don't think that's oil you're burning, I've never seen oil that burns white, sounds more like antifreeze that is some how entering the combustion chambers, if the top half of the engine was replaced 10k miles ago then there might have been a problem when the head was installed that got manifested with the extended 500 mile trip where the engine is turning 2700 to 3000 rpm's for a long period of time, perhaps as long as 4 hours at a time before you stop for a break. Its a lot different than driving 1/2 to work or a few miles to the mall. Maybe the torque sequence was wrong or the head was warped slightly.

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87 300d Turbo 241K with original #14 head (blue)
87 300d Turbo 198K will run great again someday (silver)
84 300sd sold ( buyer drove it to Paraguay )

I agree that white smoke usually means antifreeze. But I am familiar with the smell of antifreeze in the exhaust as this was the reason for the new top end. This smoke is different and does not have the smell of antifreeze and it seems concurent with my increased oil consumption. Also, my coolant level has been rock steady during and after the trip (over 1000 miles). I am somewhat perplexed.

i am guessing that this is a 603 engine?

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Yes. It is a 1987 300 SDL. 603 engine. Put a new -22 head on it this year.