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cars blowing white smoke on first startup help!

10K views 29 replies 9 participants last post by  pwrWAGON  
#1 ·
Ok so I'm running a torqued performance stage 2 map with k&n short ram, my other mods include injen catted dp, and I am running the right map, but my car was running like crap for a bit so I check the oil and I'm about 2.5 quarts low, so I add oil and the motor smooths out a bit, but this morning I start the car and a cloud of white smoke comes from the exhaust, so I'm wondering is it burning oil? Bc my oil was low and the car never normally eats oil, car has 15k on it as of now, any ideas?

i'm going to add the info from the thread i made on NASIOC that has the full story of what happened with my car

hey guys so i have an 09 wrx with 15k on it, mods include injen catted downpipe, ultimate racing catback, cobb ap stage 2 ots map, i decided to add a k&n short ram intake and pick up a torqued performance stage 2+ map for that specific intake, i downloaded the access race tuner software so i could load my map, but i accidently loaded the stock mapping into the car, i drove around for about a day and realized something was wrong bc the car would throw a CEL for the boost solenoid being maxed out at 17psi meanwhile with the OTS map i could hit 18 without any issues, so i spoke to the tuner and he walked me through how i should load the map properly, so did that and the car started to run fine


i noticed though that the car would start up funny and "spark" weird when i turned it over, it wouldn't turn as much it would "spark" like once and then start up as if it were rushed and then a cloud of white smoke comes out, so i'm thinking either bad ringland, head gasket, fouled spark plug etc.


now the only reason y i feel that my story is different is because after the car idle's for a bit and warms up it runs fine, has plenty of power still pulls hard doesnt sound funny or anything, which is why i'm not thinking it's a bad ringland but maybe a bad head gasket? but it runs really smooth which is odd, also prior to it blowing smoke i checked the oil and the dipstick was bone dry, so i ended up having to put 2 quarts, then this morning i check the oil and the dipstick is drenched so i'm like wtf? the car is going for an oil change tomorrow so that the excess oil is out of there and i'm going to rip out the intake and go back to the cobb map, jw if anyone has any ideas? sorry for the long post, it's going to be going to subaru shortly as well thanks! i'm a sad banana at this point
 
#3 ·
Well it was low on coolant for a bit which I thought was weird bc from what subaru told me they are fill for life and he asked if I were leaking and I didn't see any, I park in the same spot at home everyday and would've noticed some on the ground, and I just checked my oil now and apparently I didn't need oil bc now the dipstick is drenched, and when I start it a huge cloud of white smoke comes out again, if I rev it up too a lot of smoke comes out also
 
#6 ·
You said this car has only 15K miles on it. Is it still under warranty? If I were you I would take all my mods off and take that car to a Subaru dealership right away.

What you are describing sounds like a serious problem that needs immediate attention. For instance, you say that the oil dipstick is now drenched. Is that coolant in your oil? This could further support the blown head-gasket theory. In any case, these are serious symptoms and I don't know what you expect here. Drain your oil and see if it is thinned out by coolant. If so, we know there's a problem to address. Driving around with seriously degraded oil will just ruin the rest of your engine. The loss of compression you might be experiencing could cause startup problems and poor performance. However, I would not operate that vehicle again until I had a better idea of what's going on.

Good luck!
 
#7 ·
Well the dipstick is now drenched bc apparently I wasn't low on oil, I added two quarts last night bc the dipstick was coming up dry as a bone and then today it was like flooded, idk my motor is acting funny, but the poor spark I think maybe my plugs fouled up but it only happens when I start it up after its been sitting for a bit it does the white cloud and then sounds funny for a bit but once its warmed up it drives like a champ
 
#11 ·
Alright well I took the intake off and switched the map back to the cobb ots map, and the car is running way better, not pushing white smoke and "sparks" fine I'm at subaru right now getting an oil change hopefully its just that the map I'll keep posting as things go on
 
#12 ·
Damn that's rough, I hope that works out for u, I took it to subaru for an oil change and we started the paperwork for an oil consumption test, we are going to run the test and see how everything goes, if it eats oil over the next 3k they are going to bring the case to SOA and see what they can do about it, from what I figured its bad piston ringlands so who knows subaru is being cool about it and hopefully going to take of everything for me
 
#13 ·
be careful i had a na 2.5 and it would act up then be fine then act up then be fine, ended up being a head gasket and because i was trying to figure out what was wrong and the motor was acting like a jackle and hide i blew the bottom end so drive it gingerly and watch that temp gauge pull over immideatly if it goes up and call a tow don't try and limp it home
 
#14 ·
Thanks for the heads up, usually I know when a head gasket is completely blown it'll push out a cloud of white smoke under throttle, but mine would do it upon first start in the morning

But I have an update, its not blowing white smoke anymore upon first start up but it does start funny still and smells weird :( so I'll see how it goes
 
#15 ·
I was blowing whitish blue smoke at every start, it was pretty bad. Power was dereasing over time and after resetting the ECU max boost was fine until the next start, then after 4K RPMs the boost would taper down to 9psi max. Oil consumption was about 1qt every 1000 miles.

Went through hell and back with the dealership, they wanted 3000miles worth of oil consumption tests to prove to SOA for an engine warranty (this would be my third engine). Finally, the did a compression test to find I had two cylinders at 50 PSI. Showed my subie friends and they said 120 PSI is normal, meaning I was driving for three months on this !@#$ed engine.

I little history....

7k miles - Spun Rod Bearing , Long Block Replacement, same turbo.
30k - Turbo went bye bye, Replaced Turbo, dealer didnt even change the black oil (I had to when I got home)
30k-37k (current) - Battling warranty on the engine since the car still felt bad after the turbo replacement, oil consumption test, dye on the oil for random leaks.

37k - Replaced Short block, new turbo, machined heads, valve adjustment, and other random parts on the head that broke during the teardown.

Now the car runs fine after taking it back for another oil leak a day after I first picked it up. Oil was leaking from the separator plate...meaning another clutch disassembly. All good now.

Point was to share with you my "white smoke" story. A duration of 5 months.
 
#16 ·
appreciate the story, gives me an idea of what i might be getting into, my and my dealer are doing the same 3k oil consumption test, i'm about to just request a compression test bc thats the best idea i'd say and the quickest, bc i doubt there are going to change the rings, it's probably cheaper for them to just rip the motor out and swap it, bc of warranty work, it'll be less time to do the motor, but the car starting acting a little smoother today, over the past 3 days has stopped blowing white smoke upon first start of the day, but stills idles funny and sounds weird, also can hit max boost either so i'll see, i'm going on a little roadtrip next weekend i'll end up putting about 600 miles on give or take which will bring me to my 1k interval, when i bring it back for them to check the level i'm gonna ask them to do a compression test
 
#17 ·
Most likely they won't do a compression test upon request b/c that would require SOA to pay for work that hasn't been diagnosed yet. Oh yeah, forgot to say, it was my rings. At first they machined the heads and slapped them back on, did another compression test to conclude for sure it was the block. Which makes me believe that my heads have been machined more than once, and I know there is a limit.
In more detail, the car would not smoke every single start. It was pretty random, but seemed as if the longer it sits, the greater chance of it smoking. Also, did they seal your dipstick as part of the test? I noticed since I bought my car, two different dealerships I have had my oil changed overfills the oil 1/4 to 3/4 of an inch over the full mark when checked cold. So, when they check you oil, they might say, oh, its only 1/2 quart low, that is normal. WRONG!
 
#18 ·
yea i called my dealer and told them about it being a little lower than it should, they were the ones that told me to check it everday and keep an eye on it so they didnt seal the dipstick, the car isn't blowing any smoke currently but it's still starting funny and running horribly, so i guess i'm going to have to wait the interval then which kinds of sucks bc thats going to take long to put the miles on but oh well, i'm thinking it's the rings as well, i'm suprised they actually did any type of machining work, from what i knew it is a lot cheaper on their part just to swap the motor and send the old one out bc a lot of the technicians aren't trained to do machining work
 
#20 ·
update on my car guys, i got it back from the dealer saturday turns out the rear main seal went, it was leaking oil so he had it for about 3 days which isn't terrible but i was looking under the hood and i think he forgot something lol cuz there is one of those open ended hose clamps and well no hose there, i was looking at pictures of stock motors and something should be there, and i also have a boost leak, could be from the hose missing or the gasket for the bpv again bc it makes the same sound it used to when i had a boost leak from there a few months ago, im gonna call them tomorrow and bring it to them
 
#21 ·
i think its time to find a dealer with a better mechanic to work on your car.
 
#24 ·
alright well i spoke to subaru, SOA gave them the ok to do the valve's and the o-rings, i'm going there tuesday to pick up a loaner, me and the dealer are going to call SOA and explain my story and i'm gonna try and convince them to give me a new motor, they say that majority of the time, when they fix the rings and such people are usually back within a month and end up getting a new motor anyways so i'm hoping we can convince them to skip the delay and go straight for the motor
 
#25 ·
alright so went to subaru today, picked up my bawlin azz 08 legacy 2.5 in that cranberry red on black cloth, gotta say i'm falling in love with the car it rides nice and smooth lol

anyways to the good stuff, subaru says i have cracked pistons....no bueno, they are going to change the pistons, o-rings and possibly have to do a valve job, they aren't 100% sure on those yet, majority of the parts are already ordered but one piston is on backorder which sucks, the service manager said he'll try to get my car back to me by WBM, or else i'm taking the loaner up there or gonna steal his car and drive it up there bc he's going there too so i'll be able to rip on him if i dont have it back, but as soon as i get it back i'll drive it for a bit to make sure everything is good and then get a protune, i want my intake back and then i'm done with motor for a while, i'm not dealing with having the car being down it sucks
 
#28 ·
alright guys i got the car back from subaru, they replaced all 4 pistons and rings and had the head machined, when i first got it back the car felt terrible but after it started to break in, it started to feel awesome! i had it tuned the other day and it made 296/316 on an airboy dyno (car was street tuned) and it pulls like and animal, but its a little too much power for the car and the clutch is acting up a little so i'm going to have it detuned but as far as the motor goes it runs amazingly
 
#29 ·
Wow... how many miles on the motor prior to dyno time?
Since the engine wasn't pre-broken in out of the factory and filled with motor oil, they might have used break-in lube and not motor oil. This oil should be changed out at 500-1000 miles with real motor oil, then another break in of 1k miles at least.