Burning Oil....

[JtathBSC400]

I bought this car (95 SC400 112K) November of last year. I purchased the car w/112k and had it inspected by a local Lexus Dealership. A few days after I bought it I found that it was smoking (light blue smoke) after start ups. The Dealership did an oil change and I pretty sure that the broker that I bought the car from had a smoke less oil in the motor.

Im at a loss with this car and I dont know if I should go forward and fix it or sell it. So far Ive had the timing belt and water pump replaced (they blew two weeks after I got the car) that was 1200.00 I paid 8k for the car and over all the car is almost spot less, clean interior, and almost dent and scratch less exterior, brand new BFGoodrich tires, and other wise drives fine.

It seems that it only smokes on start ups. I had my girlfrend drive behind me and she never saw any smoke.

I called around to various shops and was quoted from 2100.00 for a used motor from Japan, to 300-8k from Lexus. The motor shop that I called said that its almost impossible to rebuild the Lexus motors and most of the rebuilds are not successful. He advised to buy a new motor from Lexus or go with one of his used motors. Lexus said that a new motor would be in the range of 8k. They advised that they have never replaced a 4l yet and they are solid motors. He said that the smoke may be from "oil jelling" blocking oil galleys and passeges. He said that he wanted to have a tech remove a valve cover and look at the top of the head and oil passages and scope the inside of the cylinder out with optics. He said that they could remove and rebuild the heads and it would be approximately 3k.

What should I do?

[lenore]

Do a leak down test, have it done by a mechanic, that will tell you if it is rings or just the valve stem seals. The valve stem seals would be a lot less expensive to have replaced.

[JtathBSC400]

Lexus said that they would do a compression test after they scoped the cylinder to check for broken rings. He said that neither he or any of the techs that he talked to have ever see the rings go bad. He said that this would be the first that they can even remember doing a head machining and valve job on. The valve guides are included in the head rebuild.

[mwmorph]

why scope when a leakdown takes 30 minutes and requires 0 effort? the average person wanted to they could probably do a leakdown test given the proper equipment and 10 minutes of instruction. A scope out of the cylinder seems like overkill.

In fact a comp test and a leakdown test should be done first, not as a last resort. It would certainly cost less than removing a valve cover and scoping it out considering labor hours.

[JtathBSC400]

Thats what I said for the record, his reply to that was that the valve covers should be removed first..... Big deal, suprise suprise a dealer ship that wants more money.

I dont know what to do, should I cut my losses and sell or try to fix it?

And if I do fix it I dont know who to go to.... The dealer seems to know the vehicles and they are more reputable than a sketchy mom and pop outfit. Who would you take the car to?

[mwmorph]

What I dont understand is why the guys say it's a pita and impossible to rebuild a motor. It's all basically the same. If you take the time labeling it with a dremel and some tape(depends on how many parts you ant to replace or keep) and make sure every part is in a labeled plastc baggie and you cau use your sink and 6 monthsof time, you could probably do it yourself.(may not be legal in any states due to waste disposal laws)

I had a friend rebuild a 989 Porsche 911 motor like that(and yes it stil works), I'm sure the mechanic just dosent wan to put in the labor hours into it(takes a lot of time and he could make more money oing just about anything else)

How much will it be for a motor installed with reasonable miles? you have a decently middle-sorta highish mileage lexus, but it should last to 150-200k miles easily if you take care of it.

how much oil are you losing? if it;'s a very small amount, then it's hardly worth the effort andcan be attribuited to wear ad tear, if its more than a little bit(to the point you have to top off between oil changes) hen maybe a rebuild or replace is necessary.

[JtathBSC400]

The guy that said that it was a pita to rebuild is in the used motor sales. So it might be that hes just tryin to get me to buy one of his used motors. He told me that he has had people that havent had good luck in rebuilding the motor, unknown why. He was offering a used motor straight from Japan that is guarenteed to have less than 40K on it. He said that they have direct contacts in Japan and they only get quality motors. He said that the motor comes with a standard one year warranty, and a three year can be purchased for an additional cost. He stated that they are one of the largest companies in the contry that deal with used motors. His quote was 2183.00 for the motor and the install.

I have maby put on 500 miles on the car since I bought it. Its been sitting for the duration. The only time that the motor smokes is on start ups and its bad, it looks like a train or a disel truck, not to mention how embarrissing it is to have such a nice car smoke like a mitsubishi.

I dont know how well the last owner took care of the car, like I said its near spotless and looks sharp, I just am wondering if the owner only knew how to clean it and not maintain it. So the answer is I dont know how much oil its using.

[jzz30]

how do you look at the rings with a scope?

seems like a buch if lies to me

[monarch]

If the motor has decent power and runs and idles smoothly without missing and the motor is GOOD !!!! Lots of blue smoke at start up is a classic symptom of a bad power steering air control (idle up) valve. A bad valve causes power steering fluid to be sucked into the combustion chamber. On the LS400 the Toyota part number for this valve is 17630-16040 and it costs only about $68 at 1sttoyotaparts.com. I'm not sure if the SC400 uses the same part number. Another sign the valve is bad is that the fluid level in the power steering reservoir drops over a period of days.

[JtathBSC400]

Motor runs fine has good power, kinda slow from the start but once it moves a little it goes. Feels like it misses a little but its been sitting for so long that might be that problem. Ive heard of this valve but I cant find any info on it I have alldata and its not mentioned any where in it. Do you know where I can find more info on the replacement on this part? And maby a definite part number this would make me very happy and if you lived in the area I would buy you a steak dinner if it worked!!

[ko90ls]

pretty sure your valve is the same as the LS version (same pump, engine, etc) don't know how hard it is but the LS forum has TONS of info on this! honestly i don't think the engine is bad, i think the info is bad! too much potential $$$$ at hand. if a rebuilt is needed i mave 1uz-fe overhaul instructions (hopefully not though) :D

Good Luck!

[jzz30]

i think the LS valve is part of the PS pump? maybe not but i think i tried to replace this and i didnt do it because of that on my LS but i did it on my SC

[mehullica]

Let it burn oil, a boroscope would show you cylinder wall scoring due to broken rings. Rare. If anything the smoking is your valve stem seals or idle speed control valve for the p/s.

[JtathBSC400]

I think that your all right about the $$$$. The last time it was at lexus after the tbelt install the tech said that he thought that it was the ps valve that your all talkin about. I just dont understand, why it would only do it when its cold and has been sitting around for a while, and not when the motor is warm? But it has just fine power so I think there is a good possibility that its the valve and not the valve guides or rings. If the rings were shot it would burn all the time right? and it wouldent run as smooth?

[osucool]

So it smokes blue for a minute, an hour? .

Could be, Leaky Bad Fuel injectors leaking over time and presenting this ?Fuel rich? smoke at cold startup?

If I were you

I'd watch the oil levels and see how much (if any) is going away -- put it in the who cares category unless it is using considerable oil, presenting problems with driveablility or power.

Just my humble opinion.

[monarch]

Check the fluid level in your PS reservoir. If the level drops over a period of days / weeks, then you know idle speed control valve for the p/s (toyota part# 17630-16040) needs to be replaced. These valves commonly fail after about 12-16 years.

[JtathBSC400]

chuckit its the ps fluid..... Its down and the pump makes noise so Im doing that first and It only smokes for app. 15seconds.

[jerryrigginson]

so that part can cause the power steering to leak? mine leaks like crazy and it blew a hose so i got that fixed and still leaks and has been for a long time probably years. could this be the cause? doesnt leak onto the alternator though :)