White smoke after driving for a long distance...

[rsgooch]

I just returned from Bribie Island and I had a problem I have never seen before with my Nav. I have 2012 Spanish built Navara St with the YD2.5 lire 4 cylinder engine. I have recently installed EGR blanking plate and catch can. I have been drivein between my home and work about 26km one way for the last 3 weeks no problem. I went to Bribie Island from my home which is about 175-200km and I did not have any problem the car ran great. When I got to Bribie and stopped at a McDonald's drive thru came out put my foot on the accelerator and a big cloud of white smoke came out the back. Small trail of white smoke the entire time I drove to camp another 25KM of beach driving. I turned off the Nav and started cloud of white smoke. Tried starting truck later no smoke. Went for a drive the next day really push hard no smoke at all. Packed up today drove back home around 200KM no smoke stopped at another drive thru no smoke while idling put my foot on accelerator and big cloud of white smoke we are talking very big very thick white smoke. Got home turned off unpacked Nav, no smoke. This truck has only 50000ks on it. I am very good about maintenance it is due for a oil change this week. Has anyone had this problem. This has never happened to me before and I would like to get to the bottom of this. Any help pointing me in the right direction. I don't think the EGR or the catch can would give me this problem. I want to do more trips and longer trips but I can't go like this.

Any Help would be appreciated!,
Rueben

 

[Old.Tony]

Hi Rueben!

It sounds like a DPF burn, or maybe an allergy to fast food. You're right about the EGR & catch can mods, they won't cause white smoke, which is unburnt diesel (raw fuel). It'll stink like diesel too.

If you don't have a DPF (or even if you do) it could be an injector issue, and it'd be worth running some injector cleaner through as a first step, or some Liqui-Moly Diesel Purge as a second step. Clean the MAFS just to be sure, although when faulty, the MAFS usually results in black smoke - as does an ailing turbocharger. That's also a possibility, but if the car doesn't feel down on power when it happens (you haven't said that you'd observed any power loss) I'd probably give the turbo a miss and focus on the injectors.

 

[tweak'e]

i suspect your catch can might be far to restrictive and it pressurizing the sump causing oil to go out the turbo.

have you the model that has the DPF? (only the auto's have it).

the other is turbo failure.

 

[kernels]

Yep, may be worth ensuring that the catch can inlet/outlet isn't full, thereby 100% restricting the increase in pressure getting out of the engine block.

May also be worth looking at the PCV value for the same reason, I would expect you would be able to suck air through it (with the engine not running !)

It would make sense that if the line is restricted, then long consistent driving will gradually build up pressure in the engine.

Not 100% sure how that leads to unburnt diesel though.

 

[tweak'e]

It would make sense that if the line is restricted, then long consistent driving will gradually build up pressure in the engine.

Not 100% sure how that leads to unburnt diesel though.

oil evaporating in the exhaust gives white smoke.

 

[rsgooch]

I am using a Forefront technologies catch can and they have fairly large inlet and outlets port 1" so I don't think it is restrictive since the hose that was there was a smaller and I had to use reducer to get from the PCV to the hose going into the catch can. I will try putting everything back together and try a long drive this weekend. It is weird that it only seems to happen over distance. I am having it serviced on Wed so I will ask the guys to run some injector cleaner through it. At no time did I feel the engine was rough and the power fall off. The catch can has only been on the truck for 2 weeks if it is full already I am so glad I put one in. I will check it.

'I am pretty sure the 2012 D40 did not have DPF. I was under the impression that Nissan did away with them in 2010.

Thanks for the suggestions guys I will look at each one and see if I it resolves it. If you have anything else to add please do not hesitate to let me know.

Thanks!
Rueben

 

[DieselTuner]

A catch can should not fill up in 2 weeks, something must be wrong with the engine. I wouldnt even see 50-100ml in 10,000k's on vehicles I service with good catch cans.

When a dpf completely fails and starts to disintegrate they do puff out alot of white smoke.

Even inside the exhaust you can see a white powdery residue coats the system.

The king cabs still have DPF on them through out the years and there has been sporadic vehicles released with them for no real reason.

 

[kernels]

Two fairly easy ways to tell if you have a dpf

1. Does it have the dpf light on the dash
2. Get underneath and have a look at the exhaust

 

[Old.Tony]

DPF will be under the passenger side, but Rueben, just look at your dash, it's easier!

I thought the things were done away with when the 140kW engine was introduced too (2010), but who knows.

I had thought of things like a collapsing air intake (between the turbo and the air filter) but if that happened you'd notice a sudden drop in power - it'd be fairly unmistakeable.

 

[Connaught]

automatic has em (dpf), manuals don't

white smoke can also be steam, smell it next time, if its sweet smelling its coolant, if its deiselly smelling its fuel. and oil could be bluey grey (depending on your point of view)

over rich fuel mixture would be black, this would also happens when a turbo packs up and stops turning, you would also notice no power and limited revs, at least that what the penta inline 6's on the boat did when its turbo siezed, she had lotsa black smoke

 

[rsgooch]

Well after further investigation I think I know what the problem was. I went on a long trip today and I noticed a small trail of white smoke on accelerating after stopping at the light after getting off the motorway at the end of the trip. I immediately went home and checked the hoses of the catch can to see if they were collapsed or hard from pressurization. i also notice a new engine noise I don't remember hearing before. That noise turned out to be the wait for it. the lid on the catch can was not closed properly so it was basically just sitting on top not actually screwed on vibrating against the side of the vehicle. I closed it and tried several high revs and the with smoke has gone. I think it was the extra air being sucked in from the lid of the catch can that was causing all the problems. I will monitor and let you guys know if the problem has gone away.

Thanks for all the feedback and ideas!
Rueben

 

[Old.Tony]

That's a new one - one that I'd never expected. It does mean two things:

1) Your car wasn't being fed the exhaust gas from the blowby so it would have been burning cleaner

2) Your car was drawing in unfiltered air. Wouldn't be the larger share of the total air volume, but it would have been a fair amount.

Another one to stick in the old nugget!

 

[tweak'e]

probably due to extra air coming in that wasn't going through the MAF. it must have screwed up the injection timing.

 

[Black_Outlaw]

but WHY when it was hot.. And not all the time?

And surely the amount of air being dragged in is negligible compared to the intake flow.

White smoke is UNBURNT fuel.. Would not MORE air = MORE BURN??

 

[tweak'e]

assuming non-dpf, only way to get unburnt fuel would be to run very retarded injection timing.
the maf controls fueling and as it was reading incorrect the fueling would have been incorrect.
however i'm surprised such a small amount upset would make it go so far out.

don't forget the breather pipe has no restriction ie no air filter etc so it would be drawing max air through that little pipe.

why only when it was hot? probably due to ecu maps.

 

[Old.Tony]

I didn't think of the effect on the MAFS. Naturally, the MAFS would be reading way low, and would fuel it for that - although the boost pressure would be high (low air flow when throttle increases ought to cause the actuator to spool the turbo up more). The increase in suction would draw a lot of air through that hose - and unrestricted by a filter, path of least resistance would be there. I'm surprised it didn't shriek like a banshee.

Randomness - fairly easy to explain. Turbocharger sucks, the catch can lid is sorta in place, it sucks down the lid and clamps it in place = normal operation. Hit the speed humps in McDummer (designed to make you spill your drinks so you have to buy more) and the can lid flies off (also because there's not a lot of suction at that time, the turbo ought to be quiet). As you leave, the lid's open, your drinks are bloody everywhere inside and you're dealing back a shitload of white smoke at the mongrels.

Umm Rueben ... just leave it like that mate, it's operating perfectly!