Oil from exhaust... maybe...?
Discussion
Hi all,
Driving back up to Norfolk the other night I came across a fellow Chim driver and pulled up alongside for a quick chat and exchanged some exhaust noise. All good fun but when I pulled in front and blasted up ahead, the driver said that he had got what looked like spots of oil on his windscreen. Now this would be bad news I know, but how likely is this and how serious is the problem?
Things to consider are:
-My car is fully decatted and as such, likes to throw lots of carbon out of the exhaust, especially since I was on a really rich map at the time as it tends to produce flames which usually pleases a few people.. (Emerald so I switched back shortly after).
-Whilst on the rich map, I put my hand over the exhaust at idle (just after startup) and I got a big black circle on my hand from the carbon and condensation in there. I had a close look at it though and it didn't appear to have any oil in it. Once warm and on the normal map though, putting my hand over the exhaust gives pretty much none of the black crap at idle.
-Then when I reached Norfolk and switched the car off, I ran my finger round the inside of the exhaust pipe to check for any oil residue and found none.
-I've yet to check the oil but I did an oil change at the weekend and put the usual Valvoline VR1 20/50 racing stuff in. I'll check the level tonight to make sure it hasn't lost any but it usually consumes around a litre per 1k miles when driving with a fair bit of spirit most of the time.
-When I did change the oil, it was very black (can't remember what colour it's meant to be but it had done 5/6k miles with a couple of top ups)
So given all of this, is it likely that any oil has come out of the exhaust or could it have been the driver behind mistaking oil for the usual decat crap on a rich fuel map? The heads have been off when the cam was changed around a 18 months ago so the gaskets should all be in good nick.
Short of checking the oil and coolant for any signs of foul play, is there anything else I should check?
Thanks,
Nick
Edit: One thing I was going to try tonight as well was getting someone to hold a piece of paper behind the exhaust when I rev it up to check for any oil spots etc
Driving back up to Norfolk the other night I came across a fellow Chim driver and pulled up alongside for a quick chat and exchanged some exhaust noise. All good fun but when I pulled in front and blasted up ahead, the driver said that he had got what looked like spots of oil on his windscreen. Now this would be bad news I know, but how likely is this and how serious is the problem?
Things to consider are:
-My car is fully decatted and as such, likes to throw lots of carbon out of the exhaust, especially since I was on a really rich map at the time as it tends to produce flames which usually pleases a few people.. (Emerald so I switched back shortly after).
-Whilst on the rich map, I put my hand over the exhaust at idle (just after startup) and I got a big black circle on my hand from the carbon and condensation in there. I had a close look at it though and it didn't appear to have any oil in it. Once warm and on the normal map though, putting my hand over the exhaust gives pretty much none of the black crap at idle.
-Then when I reached Norfolk and switched the car off, I ran my finger round the inside of the exhaust pipe to check for any oil residue and found none.
-I've yet to check the oil but I did an oil change at the weekend and put the usual Valvoline VR1 20/50 racing stuff in. I'll check the level tonight to make sure it hasn't lost any but it usually consumes around a litre per 1k miles when driving with a fair bit of spirit most of the time.
-When I did change the oil, it was very black (can't remember what colour it's meant to be but it had done 5/6k miles with a couple of top ups)
So given all of this, is it likely that any oil has come out of the exhaust or could it have been the driver behind mistaking oil for the usual decat crap on a rich fuel map? The heads have been off when the cam was changed around a 18 months ago so the gaskets should all be in good nick.
Short of checking the oil and coolant for any signs of foul play, is there anything else I should check?
Thanks,
Nick
Edit: One thing I was going to try tonight as well was getting someone to hold a piece of paper behind the exhaust when I rev it up to check for any oil spots etc
Edited by thenick on Tuesday 15th July 14:50
Mine does this a bit when its stationary and I rev it so I guess it would do the same when going at full tilt down the road. It's just spots that come out and when it was on the roaling road I noticed the odd poof of black smoke too. When I first saw it I was a little startled but a few things that make me sleep better are:
1) The engine was rebuilt at Power about 4000 miles ago and recently had a custom map done on their rolling road - Dom told me it was a strong engine given the figures it was producing.
2) It drinks about a litre every 1000 miles unless I'm on a hoon when it can take a dipstick over a day's driving so I always keep an eye on it, though I do tend to drive it as PW intended - this is how you should drive them I reckon, otherwise why bother... (bring on the flaming
) As long as it's not using too much oil then I wouldn't worry too much.
3) Thinking back to when I bought mine, Fernies had a wooden board that they put behind the cars in the showroom to save them having to redecorate every 3 weeks - oil must be part of that.
1) The engine was rebuilt at Power about 4000 miles ago and recently had a custom map done on their rolling road - Dom told me it was a strong engine given the figures it was producing.
2) It drinks about a litre every 1000 miles unless I'm on a hoon when it can take a dipstick over a day's driving so I always keep an eye on it, though I do tend to drive it as PW intended - this is how you should drive them I reckon, otherwise why bother... (bring on the flaming
) As long as it's not using too much oil then I wouldn't worry too much.3) Thinking back to when I bought mine, Fernies had a wooden board that they put behind the cars in the showroom to save them having to redecorate every 3 weeks - oil must be part of that.
sorry could not resist Suggest you check the oil level on a regular basis. If you are losing lots of oil then maybe you have a problem, but if this was a fast run I'd suspect both deposits from the exhaust and crap from the road.
I have experienced raw diesel being thrown out of an exhaust pipe, but not 4-stroke engine oil (which tends to burn blue), so I would suspect you dont have an expensive problem
I have experienced raw diesel being thrown out of an exhaust pipe, but not 4-stroke engine oil (which tends to burn blue), so I would suspect you dont have an expensive problem
2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:
chrispitman said:
Would it not be smookey if it was spitting out oil.
Not necessarily. Mobil 1, for instance does not smoke if you burn three litres every 1,000 miles.(
I know from experience!)
That Daddy said:
2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:
chrispitman said:
Would it not be smookey if it was spitting out oil.
Not necessarily. Mobil 1, for instance does not smoke if you burn three litres every 1,000 miles.(
I know from experience!)Yeah on the rich map I get that brownish smoke out the back when on full throttle which I've seen on a few rich tiv's before, resulting in peppering the car behind in little black dots (had it done to me by a mates pre-cat as well). I think I was just being a bit wary after reading your replies and after reving it onto a bit of paper earlier on the normal map, I got an absolutely clean sheet of paper and next to no oil gone or discoloured so all is good. I've been told I've got a strong engine as well and it's only done a few k miles since a top end rebuild so it should be fine. Just wanted to check as I'm putting it on the track on Monday and so want to make sure it's running in top condition.
Thanks though, another successful use of pistonheads!
Thanks though, another successful use of pistonheads!
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