Engine failure- or not - Not Valk related, but technical.

[GJS]

This happened yesterday, I have never seen anything like it.
I thought this crew would at least be able to plausibly speculate.

So I am driving along and notice a ford pickup, a big 350 jacked way up, and it is pumping out blue smoke as if it were designed as a smoke machine. I had to follow it for about a mile. The air was thick with blue smoke.

When we go to a red light just prior to a long hill, I noticed the smoke had subsided, mostly. As soon as we pulled away on the green light, the smoke predictably returned.
Here is where it got weird. I thought as we started up the hill the smoke would get real thick again.
It did not! In fact the exhaust cleared completely but I could see 'squiggly air' coming out. You know how gas fumes look or the air above a hot wood stove. That mirage look.
The squiggly air/mirage look was big. It looked to be a 4-5' across and almost stable.
It was very weird indeed.

Anyway the truck drove on with no more smoke, just the look of a mirage coming out the tail pipe.

So my question is.
WTF was that about?
I've wasted more more than my fair share of motors in past decades, but never seen this happen.

Any thoughts?

Glenn

[SANDMAN5]

We had a Mercury Cougar that did that a few times. Turned out
to be water in the gas. Might not be the same problem, but it was
frustrating. Smoked more on decel and flat ground than going uphill.
My "guess" is that under accel more gas was being pumped and it
was enough to burn/mask the water. YMMV

[Patrick]

Could you hear the monster idle ?? Sounds like an old smoker/diesel..

[WamegoRob]

Did the squiggly air smell like french fries?

[gordonv]

My first thought was diesel. At idle, it wasn't really burning the fuel 100%, but there wasn't a lot of extra fuel, so you had blue.

You didn't say that you had black smoke, and indication of too much fuel not being burned, usually upon acceleraction.

With the modern diesels, you don't get the clouds of black smoke anymore, the manufactures have improved the system to almost no smoke. I drive for the local airport valet parking company, and drive a lot of different vehicles, including diesels, both warm (just dropped off) and cold (customer coming back) and have not noticed ANY smoke coming from any of the modern diesels, either trucks or cars. Of cource, most of the time I would need to be behind to see the most smoke, but I'm the driver, but there are about another 4 jockeys that I do drive behind.

I would think a F350 would be a greater chance of a diesel engine, than a gas one, as that is what people buy them for, a work truck (commercial or towing).

[GJS]

Yes, I think it was a big 4x4 diesel.

Anyway, I have blown several engines over the years and I could have sworn this was a blown piston or head gasket.
There was a lot of very thick Blue/White smoke. I recognize it as burning oil in the cylinders.
The thing that is throwing me is why it stopped. It had been blowing heavy blue smoke for a distance.
If there had been a cop around they would have been pulled over.

I really don't think it was water, there was way too much blue.
There was no black smoke either, even from a dead stop.
I was not close enough to get a wiff of the exhaust fumes but they looked like gas fumes might if heated. But like I said I think it might have been a diesel. Although the only reason I think that is because of the large dual pipe exhaust (exiting rear bottom, passenger side) and the size of the truck.

A friend suggested a stuck valve. That would explain the blue, but not the fuel fumes (assuming that was what I was seeing).

Glenn

[fudgie]

He probally just got on it which made it smoke. I see that here. Highway its fine till you punch it. Our new Chevy ambulances has that urea stuff in it. My valk pipes are more sooty then the chevy diesel is.

[Blackduck]

A diesel misfire (cold engine, stuck valve, dirty injector) will give white/blue smoke and stink like kerosene

[N8171S]

I once had a 78 Ford F250 with a 351 that had a thin spot in the intake manifold.  On a trip it erroded through and started sucking engine oil  through the hole and into the cylinders.  Smoked like a ---------!  Took 18 quarts of oil to get it home about 100 miles.  Replaced the manifold and all was Well.

[wdvalk]

re gen system on late model diesel,it was doin a burn

[Challenger]

Newer vehicles are different now, (electronic)  but I have seen the shift modulation valve diaphragm in the trans get a hole in it and it will suck trans fluid into the intake and burn it. but when you stand on the go pedal, the vac drops off and it quits smoking. Just rambling here, I know that isn't what you were seeing.

[Valker]

re gen system on late model diesel,it was doin a burn

This is the correct answer....

[Tropic traveler]

re gen system on late model diesel,it was doin a burn

+2.
It must have been an '11 or '12 model 6.7 Powerstroke doing the cleansing "burn".
I sell the DEF {diesel exhaust fluid} everyday, it's the latest pollution control thing for diesels. It injects synthetic urea into a big filter/collector type thing at intervals selected by the processor. You have to fill a little DEF tank right next to the fuel fill port. If you don't keep it filled the truck will shut down until you do.
Before all you diesel guys get all wound up saying that "damn Fords what a PITA, I'll never put up with that", it's going to be required on ALL '12 & up diesels big rigs included. Ford just did it a year early due to the completely new 6.7L diesel introduced in 2011.
Look for the DEF to be sold & dispensed right along side of diesel fuel at the larger fuel stations & probably all truck stops very soon. 

[YoungPUP]

Our new mack trash trucks smoke like hell when cold and then right at the start of regen. When they go into regen the get Stupid hot exhaust temps in the muffler/dpf filter to burn off all the bad crap. The smoke is a whitish color, and stinks with a hot acidy smell.

[sugerbear]

maybe he "chiped" it, and was messin with the program.

[Patrick]

My initial thought was a 6.0 Ford smoker with a bad turbo.. This engine has had its share of issues..

[gordonv]

I had a Volvo 740 Turbo car, sometimes would smoke like a chimney at idle, at a light I would have to shut the engine off sometimes. Driving, no problem. So one thought was also about a gas engine turbo going bad.

Just drove behind one of those shuttle buses for the hotels here around the airport, and while accelerating away from a light he also had the white w/ light blue smoke in it, for like 2 sec, then cleaned right up. Figured that this was normal, and I don't see it happening too often. I also live in the same area, and see these buses every day.

Nice to know it may be that new urea thing they have, and what it does. I've seen it on the Powerblock TV, but not in use.

[MP]

maybe he "chiped" it, and was messin with the program.

This well might be the problem.  If OEM, will not smoke unless motor bad.  However, with after market chips, turbos, bigger injectors, etc, they will smoke at various points in rpm and power outputs.

MP

[GJS]

Our new mack trash trucks smoke like hell when cold and then right at the start of regen. When they go into regen the get Stupid hot exhaust temps in the muffler/dpf filter to burn off all the bad crap.

YoungPup, that sounds like it. The mirage effect was likely from the excessive heat.

So that begs the question. WTF is a regen process? What is being regenerated?
I can't believe this is a good thing to have happen in traffic. I'm sure local cops would pull you over.

Cheers,

Glenn