blue smoke: Rings or Turbo (please be turbo)!!!

[bmadd2402]

I have blue smoke on decel (engine braking). happens mostly after some hard driving/when the motor is hot. I rebuilt the head recently (last 1000 miles) with new valve seals, competition valve job, port polish, gasket matching, etc. installed used turbo at that time which had a little freeplay (possibly out of spec, didn't measure). pulls good vaccuum at idle and decel, new pcv venting to atmos w/ filter, great compression. no plug fouling. havent done a leakdown test yet. GOD I hope its the turbo. is there a real way to tell? will the outlet be oily and the turbine inlet not be? next step is pull the turbo, and do a leakdown test. I hope the guy didn't screw up the headwork. any ideas? Thanks guys!

[Gavin Johnson]

does it smoke at idle as well? check for oil in the ic lines, when mine went it smoked on decel and idle but not under boost, also did the turbo have in and out shaft play or just side to side? mine moved in and out about half an inch

[BoostFab]

White smoke: White smoke is caused by water and or antifreeze entering the cylinder, and the engine trying to burn it with the fuel.

Blue Smoke: Blue smoke is caused by engine oil entering the cylinder area and being burned along with the fuel air mixture. In turbo car, it could be your turbo seal is bad.

Black Smoke: Black smoke is caused by excess fuel that has entered the cylinder area and cannot be burned completely; running rich.

check the turbo: pull the hot pipe and down pipe and see if there are oil inside.

[bmadd2402]

I'm sorry, i should have specified... I am burning oil, as indicated by the blue smoke and smell. if it is the turbine side, there will be oily residue? I would think it would have burnt off. I was trying to say I think it is either turbo or seals. I guess it could be not replacing valve seats and guides?

[Neejay]

Mine is doing the EXACT same thing, symptoms and all.

I did a compression test and all 6 cylinders were 155+. When my engine was first started, there was a lot of oil leakage between the turbo outlet and elbow.

I'd say your turbo seal is shot.

EDIT: And yeah, my turbo inlet has no oil residue.

[zerodameaon]

check that filter on the PCV. if it plugs you will burn oil as the crank case over pressurizes and oil goes past the rings. someone correct me if im wrong.

[S14-NEO]

eh, check the obvious first guys.... all you have to do is drop your downpipe and look behind the exaust turbine blades to see if there is oil creeping into the exaust housing the fromt eh center section of the turbo..its a pretty easy thing to do.once the downpipe is out of the way, use a mirror and aim a flashlight thru the mirror into the back of the exaust housing .