Question
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Followup To
Question -
after the wind blew real hard in new orleans last year, I waited in line for an hour to buy a tank of gas that was being pumped out of the little hole that i,ve only seen the big fuel truck pump gas into at the gas station. It was the very bottem of the barrel gas. since that fill up I,ve had my fuel injectors removed and cleaned twice by two different mechanics,also I had a new fuel filter put on the car. The car ran fine for a month after the second service. Yesterday I had less than a quater tank of gas when I filled up. I drove 2 miles after the fill up. The car ran fine. The next morning I started the car and blue smoke came from the exhaust and it barely stayed running. Is it time to get new fuel injectors. and did the mechanic really replace my fuel filter. He said he had to remove the tank to get to it.
Answer -
Hi Connie,
You didn't mention the year, model and engine that is in your car. So write back via the comments section in "Thank and rate response" section.
Blue smoke is caused by oil burning in the combustion chamber which typically is not related to dirty fuel which would rather produce unburned gas (black smoke). So I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that this has anything to do with the earlier experience. There may be a fault code stored in the engine computer that will tell us something about your problem You might be able to get the readout yourself if the car is '97 or earlier. So let me know.
Roland
Roland,
thanks for your quick response, it is a 1998 sebring convertible 4cyl 2.4l the blue smoke only came out for about 15 seconds. Then it just ran bad.
AnswerHi Connie,
Blue smoke when you first start an engine after a cooldown overnight, etc. usually is due to the drain down of oil around the valve stems into the combustion chambers due to some wear of the valve stem seals. I wouldn't be concerned about that until the oil consumption becomes significant or you get a lot of blue smoke when you decelerate from cruising speed for a good distance and then step on the gas and see a big blue cloud. That would mean the seals are really shot.
So the question is why the bad running? I would begin by looking at the exhaust gas recirculation valve that is located just below the oil filler cap. It is located in the pipe that runs from the exhaust manifold to the intake manifold. Notice that it has a valve body and a round vacuum operated actuator that is separated by a saddle-like spacer inside of which is a metal rod with a slot (valve stem). Take the blade of a screwdriver and insert it into the slot and lever the stem back and forth to make sure that it moves freely. Squirt some WD-40 or other spray solvent on the stem to where it enters the valve body to make sure that it moves freely. Then try and start the engine and see if it runs better.
If it doesn't then I would suggest going to Autozone or other parts store where they might do a free readout of the fault codes that might be stored in the engine computer. Get the code numbers and write back with a report on them, and any suggestions you received from the person who did the readout. I can verify and give you more specific ideas as to what to do to solve the bad running.
Roland
