White Smoke

[brock_boot134]

Hey everyone,

I got my car (83' 380 sec) a year ago now and have been noticing a huge decrease in power over the months. The car has a very rough idle no matter if it is warm or cold. To describe it i would say that it just sounds like its sorta choking its self, then i will rev up a little then down..ect. I can feel the shaking of it while sitting at lights and so on.
Ive also noticed that there is a white smoke/steam, i think its smoke and not water since i have been checking the water and it has staid level. The smoke smells like fuel so im pretty sure its not a water problem. I also have been getting continuly worse fule milage. My assumption is that i have one, maybe two, cylinders with no compression and this is causeing all the problems. How can i be sure and what should i do? Any suggestions would be welcome. Thanks!!

[zcc]

Are you sure that it's white not blue smoke? I hope to find it white not blue.

[brock_boot134]

No its definatly white. No doubt..unless my eye sight has failed me, in which case i might not even own a Benz....

[david s poole]

check your trans fluid and make sure that the modulator diaphram is not broken which will allow the engine to suck the trans fluid into the intake and burn it.

[t walgamuth]

A compression test would be helpful too.

But do what David said first.

Tom W

[brock_boot134]

I'll do them both but im fairly certian i dont have a problem with loosing any fluids but gasoline... I just have a sick feeling i need new piston rings. I need to put in a new lower ball joint and rear springs so maybe i should just take out the engine while im at it.

[davidlnrd]

Originally Posted by david s poole

check your trans fluid and make sure that the modulator diaphram is not broken which will allow the engine to suck the trans fluid into the intake and burn it.

Dude I think you may have my answer! Tell me your thoughts please. I am an American with one of like 2 560SEL'S on the Island I live on in the Philippines. Yesterday I had the oil and filter changed. The transmission was also 2 litres low so they topped it off. Today, the next day, my 560SEL is blowing huge amounts of white smoke. There is no effect in power just lots of white smoke. I am worried about head gasket or valve guide seals but your comment makes me wonder since white smoke started immediately after adding 2 liters fluid to trans. What are you thoughts? Any assistance greatly appreciated. Davidlnrd@gmail.com also I do not see modulator "diaphram" listed on parts for 1987 560SEL is it bushing, cap, seal, or valve? Thanks

[Benz300]

is it losing engine coolant ? if it is it could be head gasket related.

[davidlnrd]

Originally Posted by Benz300

is it losing engine coolant ? if it is it could be head gasket related.

Thanks for your input. It is not loosing coolent but it is using transmission fluid and oil. There are never oil or transmission fluid spots under the car though.
???

[Benz300]

OK, how much oil and trans fluid are you losing ?
meaning are you using a quart every week etc for oil and trans ?
for beginners, to isolate the head gasket problem, go to any auto store or walmart. pick up a bottle each.
I've tested all the products and this company did the trick to stop the leaks.
http://www.barsproducts.com/T20L.htm

http://www.barsproducts.com/E10L.htm

use it for a week and then post your updates. Good luck and I hope this will do it. worse case is going to be what your'e already looking to do . which is repairing. but this might prevent costly repairs. worth a shot.

[davidlnrd]

Thanks for the help. I think it is a bad diaphram [transmission modulator]. I will look in to the stop leak as well. After the shop added two liters of ATF the car smoked like crazy for a day and then it just plain stopped. I check the ATF and it is a half liter or so low again. The trans doesnt seem to slip until it is a couple liters low. Is it possible the trans was over filled and thi caused thye smoke or is it most likely the modulator? Also can toy tell me where the modulator is located or even a diagram and what the steps are to replace? As I said I am in the Philippines and I dont have the confidence to do it myself but I do have a great mechanic as a neighbor but he works on local toyotas and nissans mainly. He is a little intimidated by the Benz. I think will instructions though he could easily change the transmission modulator. Thanks again.
David

[jrags0951]

I too had monsterous amounts of smoke coming out of my 92 300D. It made no sense. There was no oil in the coolant overflow. No foamy mess on the oil dip stick. I wasn't using oil or water. I did need to add about a quart of transmision fluid every two weeks. The smoke seemed to come only at highway speeds when trying to merge onto the interstate. Then the smoke coming out was so dense, I almost couldn't see the car behind me. When I let off the gas, the smoke cleared up. (ok, I never could tell if it was white, blue, or black. It could have been purple....I was only concerned with the quantity!)

So thinking I've blown a head gasket and not really wanting to attempt it myself, I took it to my mechanic I use for the hard stuff. He quickly told me I had a blown modulator gasket and the engine was sucking out the tranny fluid. It doesn't burn very well so the cause of the smoke was unmasked. So instead of a blown head gasket or a trashed turbo or a crack in the block it was a simple modulator. What should have given me the clue it was none of those was that the smoke was intermittent. Constant smoke would have suggested the other was the problem.
As a side note, my tranny was giving me really hard shifts between 1st and 2nd gear. No more!
Jrags0951@hotmail.com

[thevtechater]

may be you guys should check on the condition of your ignition wires, you know the one that connects the coils into the spark plugs.
i had a bad one in mine and it caused me low fuel mileage+rough idle