Blue Smoke

[Shawn]

My truck runs great, but at start up it shoots a puff of blue smoke. Should I be worried? What would cause that?

 

[Jims86]

My truck runs great, but at start up it shoots a puff of blue smoke. Should I be worried? What would cause that?

Valve guides/ seals.

 

[RetroC10Sport]

Yep.

 

[Shawn]

Valve guides/ seals.

Just watched a YouTube video on replacing the valve seals. Seems easy enough, just time consuming.

 

[Shawn]

An I wrong in assuming this is easy but time consuming?

 

[Jims86]

An I wrong in assuming this is easy but time consuming?

No, just have to be careful. I dont have an air compressor, so when i do it, I thread some nylon rope into the (spark plug hole)cylinder i am working on, and try to turn the crank by hand to make sure that piston is close to tdc, pressing the rope against the valves, to make sure they dont drop.

 

[Shawn]

Crazy question...could having a 180° stat cause that? After I got the 180° I realized that everyone and their mother says I need a 195°.

 

[Jims86]

Crazy question...could having a 180° stat cause that? After I got the 180° I realized that everyone and their mother says I need a 195°.

Nope. Oil sits in the heads after shutdown, and weeps into the intake and exhaust ports, then burns off when you fire it up again. I would strongly suggest you install a 195 thermostat though, especially up there in Wa.
Cooler thermostats are bad joojoo for EFI, you will run rich all the time.
When it comes to the engine, stay as stock as possible. you can install headers, exhaust, injector spacers....but anything beyond that, is verboten, unless you want to have the chip tuned.
You can have the chip tuned anyway, and it will make a big difference. There is a guy I know in Vancouver, Wa that will tune the truck with his laptop, while you drive in real world conditions...possible mpg gains, especially in your truck. 20 mpg is possible, Imhave seen as good as 23 in a Long bed 2wd.

 

[Shawn]

Nope. Oil sits in the heads after shutdown, and weeps into the intake and exhaust ports, then burns off when you fire it up again. I would strongly suggest you install a 195 thermostat though, especially up there in Wa.

Thanks. Yeah, I'll be switching out my thermostat again soon for the 195°.

I'm hoping to see my neighbor tomorrow and ask if he's got a valve spring compressor, etc. If not, I'll be buying one from Harbor Freight.

Anyone know what valve seals I should be buying? What else should I be looking at when replacing the seals? I figure if I'm going to do this I want to test the overall health of my engine. What test should I be running and what tools do I need to do them?

 

[crazy4offroad]

Really depends if your heads are made for umbrella style or o-ring style valve seals. As for testing the overall health, you should get a vacuum gauge and a compression tester. Those 2 tools can tell you a lot about an engine. We have a thread here about things you can learn with a vac gauge...
http://www.gmsquarebody.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1570

 

[Jims86]

Definately Valve cover gaskets, enough brakleen to properly clean the inside of the valve covers, and if you can, some new rocker arm nuts...they have been known to wear out, and back off.
Do yourself a favor, and look at some youtube videos, just to see what you are up against.
When you takenthe rockers off, get a piece of cardboard, the length and width of the valve cover. Lay the rockers and their fulcrums out in the exaxct order that you take them out on thatbcardboard, away from your work area, so they dont get mixed up.

 

[Jims86]

Really depends if your heads are made for umbrella style or o-ring style valve seals. As for testing the overall health, you should get a vacuum gauge and a compression tester. Those 2 tools can tell you a lot about an engine. We have a thread here about things you can learn with a vac gauge...
http://www.gmsquarebody.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1570

TBI heads are usually umbrella and o ring on the exhaust, and posi and o ring on the intake.These ar what usually come with a top end kit though. I have a pack of these, but they are blue fel pros.

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[Shawn]

Thanks guys. I'll be looking more into it tomorrow.

My wife's dad is on a business trip until the end of the month and is letting us (my wife) drive his Prius so I can save gas and drive her Corolla. I feel much better having something I can drive to the shop in when I'm working on something.

 

[Jims86]

Thanks guys. I'll be looking more into it tomorrow.

My wife's dad is on a business trip until the end of the month and is letting us (my wife) drive his Prius so I can save gas and drive her Corolla. I feel much better having something I can drive to the shop in when I'm working on something.

No problem....if you have questions, dont hesitate to ask.

 

[Shawn]

No problem....if you have questions, dont hesitate to ask.

Here's for starters: This is what I'd need, correct? (I'm using NAPA because its 5 minutes away).

Valve Cover Gasket Set — http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/CatalogItemDetail.aspx?R=FPGVS50088R_0147251230

Valve Stem Oil Seal Set (Intake) — http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/CatalogItemDetail.aspx?R=FPGSS72527_0147537366

Valve Stem Oil Seal Set (Exhaust) — http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/CatalogItemDetail.aspx?R=FPGSS72526_0164720902

Valve Spring Compressor — http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/CatalogItemDetail.aspx?R=BK_7769189_0006393020