SinisterBirdWS6

iTrader: (3)

91k miles on the LS1.
After racing a buddy of mine, he told me blue smoke was coming from the exhaust so i did a little research and some people suggested valve seals leaking or rings.
So I did a compression test and i got 155 on cylinder 1, and the rest were right around 175-180. I didnt have anything to use to put oil on top of the piston while doing it so no wet test. I did a leakdownish test on cylinder 1 lol just straight air through the hole and it was coming up through the oil cap.

I have been putting a good amount of oil in her, but it seems to use more when i have raced it, but just daily driving it seems like i dont use much at all.
Granted my pcv hose by the valve is leaking some oil on the head, but it should be that much, i still need to figure out how to fix the pcv.
And now, its starting to get cold here in Indiana but my exhaust is smoking white alot even when she is totally warmed up, no cats also.
I have never had to put antifreeze in it, i just looked today and its full, just a little slimey on the plastic dipstick, heard it might be powersteering cause that is overflowing through the cap too(think its too hot).

But just wondering what you guys would do, i would think 91k miles would be too soon for the end of this engine. I have only had the car for 2k miles so i cant really say how the previous owners took care of it, the guy i bought it from seemed like her took good care of it and changed the oil frequently with synthetic. I hate taking my cars to a shop beacuse I usually do all the work on them but I dont know maybe im worrying too much lol

I have been wanting to put a cam in for a while but i dont want to put that much money into the engine if i might have to rebuild it. Im a poor college student trying to save up working in between being a student full time so i dont have endless cash flow to just call up tsp and have them send up a 408 lol but..I figured this is the place to get help with stuff like this, let me know what you would do in my situation

Sorry its so long!

PhoneniX

my first car (94 saturn) has the EXACT same problem down to the compression range. i freaked out too but then i got a can of engine restore from advance and i nolonger see any smoke. im sure its the same as doing an high mileage oil change but i just did with mobil 1 regular synthetic. now that car is no performance race car and i have treated it like one untill i got the ws6. so i cant exactly blame the car. just letting you know what worked as far as stopping burning oil for me

SinisterBirdWS6

iTrader: (3)

Well i might have to try that, At 10 bucks its worth a shot lol. Thanks for your input!

Maybe i should try seafoam with a higher viscosity oil(running mobil 1 syn 5w30)?

Fosnot

iTrader: (15)

I think you'll have to get a whole new PCV hose/system. I think its like 60 bucks from some place like GM Parts Direct or the like(personally, I'd recommend Parts Taxi, they have great service), Part #: 12590632 its described as 'tube', real descripitive I know, but I ordered that when I did my H/C/I swap last winter.

It should be the whole assembly, with the PCV valve and everything.

SinisterBirdWS6

iTrader: (3)

Yeah just the rubber part the surrounds the valve is cracked it sucks i have to probably just buy the whole whole thing, but from what i read the earlier ls1 have a crappy PVC design

SinisterBirdWS6

iTrader: (3)

Was doing more research and found that the 04+ ls6 valley cover helps and most ppl say eliminates oil consumption. Anyone care to share the part number? what else do i need for this swap?

Ryan 97 Ram Air T/A

iTrader: (20)

Here's my opinion.

The LS6 intake/valley cover is a must for the high rpm oil loss. You can eliminate it completely with a good catch can. RevX = good, Saikou Michi dual = better(best in my opinion) Here's a good link that covers the PCV system:
https://ls1tech.com/forums/generatio...ing-ok-21.html

Here's a simple way to make your own PCV valve mount rather than buy one:
http://www.ls1.com/forums/f6/pcv-val...ication-80151/
IMPORTANT NOTES: 1. Don't use the "upgraded" PCV valve, get the original style. The smaller hole is a bandaid for the oil consumption problem. It's way too restrictive. 2. You can make the whole PCV system yourself, but make sure you use good hose that won't collapse under vacuum. Standard fuel line from your local parts store won't work.

I also recommend contacting Blackstone Labs. It's a dirt cheap way to get some ideas for the general smoke and compression #s. They can tell you a lot about what's going on inside and can also make recommendations on changing oil types and viscosity.

senicalj4579

iTrader: (41)

I just dropped about 120 at the stealership around here for a new one. I didnt have time to make one so had to give up the $. The new one is made different. Not saying its better or worse, just different. I would just go find the fittings and just use some rubber hose if I was you. I would have saved about 100 doing that

smws6ta

iTrader: (5)

With the LS6 VCT mod, if you have a LS1 block 97-01 you will need to notch a half inch off the block under the VCT for clearance of the pcv tube. It can be a little scary to do but if you treat it like a sterile surgical environment you should be ok. When I did mine I completely covered the valley to prevent metal shavings falling onto the cam or in the block, I covered everything except the site I had to notch and I had a buddy hold a shop vac while I was cutting to help suck up the shavings. If you don't treat it as such you'll be doing a complete tear down in order to flush them out.


I also have a catch can and I can testify that my oil consumption has dropped off a cliff.

I was adding a qt every 1500-1800 miles and now I go oil change to oil change with out adding, even after going to the track 3-4 times between changes.

The other benefit to the LS6 VCT is it is cheaper then the pcv to replace.

SinisterBirdWS6

iTrader: (3)

Sorry to bring it back from the dead...but i just wanted to follow up on this for future searchers...
I put the 04+ valley on the car when i swapped intakes and it has helped oil consumption alot. I changed the oil right after i did this to get any shavings that might have been missed out and i haven't had to add any oil yet so I recommend this over an actual pcv valve, very clean setup. I haven't made up my mind if i want to do a catch can or not but im happy with it so far.
And as far as the exhaust the white smoke is condensation, might just be because its a really long system with no cats, i dont know, but now that its starting to warm up here it isnt bad at all just till it warms up.
Thanks for the help, and hopefully this helps someone.