trans_am_man

iTrader: (1)

Hi Everyone,

New guy here, my name is Jason.Sorry for the post so soon. New to LS1Tech but this is my second trans am and 4th F-body. I just purchased a 2000 Trans am with 73k on the Odometer, and about 2500 on the rebuilt ls1. I didnt know much while buying it but the seller was what seemed to be "honest and helpful" but may have screwed me or i might just be paranoid. When he started the car i noticed a little white smoke (both when cold and warm).He said that it is going to burn a little more oil the first 3000-5000 miles because the rings have to seat. but from my reading the rings usually seat within the first 100 or so miles. the cars oil pressure is good and is currently running mobile 1 synthetic. It isn't lacking power and starts right up everytime. he said the first 1000 miles he ran regular Valvoline and changed it twice. He also said the smoke has to do with the tune on the car. Mods are Hooker LT headers, no cats, ORY, muffler. LS6 intake, EGR/AIR delete, SLP lid, 90mm throttle body.

so my question is, should my rings have seated by now? how can i check if they have or haven't?

zamora7

iTrader: (4)

Rebuilt ls1 at 73k, hmmm, they must have beat the **** out that engine.

redbird555

iTrader: (14)

Could be a leaky head gasket i suppose, are you getting a lot of bubbles in the radiator with the cap off and thermo open, or is it overheating? A much more likely scenario is that its condensed water in the exhaust fro the lack of cats mine smokes whit on startup but goes away after a while.

trans_am_man

iTrader: (1)

He said the engine was fine but he was gonna make it a stroker, decided not to and just upgraded the stock pistons and rods

trans_am_man

iTrader: (1)

Temp is always right below 210, haven't checked radiator with cap off. My exhaust tips are fairly dry other than normal heat condensation. im not burning coolant, and not having any water or anything out the exhaust.. thank you for the input

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

White smoke is water. It's either condensation burning off, or it's coolant. Oil does not make white smoke.

Now, that's not to say that the white smoke is abnormal. Depending on weather conditions and engine/exhaust temp white smoke can be perfectly normal. Sounds like it is in your case, if you don't have any coolant loss going on.

trans_am_man

iTrader: (1)

To add,
I talked to the previous owner and again he said it takes 3-5k for them to seat, said to run just cheap quakerstate non synthetic in it for a little and that will help. now that i have changed the oil and filter, it smokes more, during every start cold and warm and anytime i press on the gas from idle, both taking off in gear and in neutral. Could it be smoking more because it is a cheap non syn and it burns faster. why is it burning in the first place. it preforms fine but i dont want any problems and i lost my job so im thinking of just selling it. any replies would help. Also can my 2000 T56 tranny run mobil 1 synthetic atf? ive read the paper blocker rings will get messed up but hear a million different storys. thanks again

RedHotG8

iTrader: (1)

If it's not using much oil between oil changes or losing any coolant the engine is fine.

trans_am_man

iTrader: (1)

coolant is fine, oil goes down just a bit every 1000 miles or so but not as much as i though for how often it smokes

RedHotG8

iTrader: (1)

All motors use a little oil, if you don't have to add oil between oil changes the motor is ok. As it was said earlier though, white smoke is water vapor not oil. Oil produces blue smoke when it burns.

01ssreda4

iTrader: (96)

No car I have ever owned has smoked. So no, I would say its abnormal and due to the rebuild quality.

omarrakeen

iTrader: (2)

i think its in your head. when u said cold and hot, how hot is it? how cold is it where u live? did you check your tranny oil? that could be leaking, you could be burning that when it comes in contact with the exhaust pipes hopefully!

tonytone4143

this doesnt sound good at all..

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

If it's warm outside (you list CA as your location, so I can only assume it's still warm there since it's warm in Chicago), you should not be seeing any color smoke when the exhaust, engine, and outside temps are all warm.

If the smoke is white, the type/brand/weight of oil has nothing to do with it. As we've mentioned several times in this thread, white smoke = water, not oil.

Have you checked the plugs?

01ssreda4

iTrader: (96)

Rings are fucked IMO.

trans_am_man

iTrader: (1)

thanks for all the replies guys,
yes it is white smoke not blue, it comes directly from the tail pipes so its not a drip onto my exhaust, havent checked the tranny fluid cuz its a pain so im just gonna change it. the temp outside now is usually around 80 or so and it will still do smoke when started cold and at operating temp (right below 210) no noise and still put down near 360rwhp when dyno'd? i spoke with the previous owner and he said he called the shop who installed it and both a mechanic and the owner said the car was fine and my just smoke a little. What i dont understand is why did it start smoking more after putting cheap oil and the smoke is not blue, its white? but with synthetic is does not smoke nearly as much?

RedHotG8

iTrader: (1)

ALL motors emit white smoke at startup, it's from the condensation that collects in the exhaust system being vaporized as the warm exhaust gasses hit it. And it can happen no matter what the outside temp is. I think you're overreacting about this, as I said earlier if the car doesn't use an excessive amount of oil or the coolant level doesn't go down, then your motor is fine.

trans_am_man

iTrader: (1)

got a bit of a curve ball guys, i took some videos to post up on youtube, i watch the videos and the smoke looks blue against the mat finish on the back. i'll add a link once it finishes uploading. if it is blue, this would explain why it smokes more with non synthetic right?

Head Hunter

iTrader: (14)

Have you bothered to take it to a mechanic? I'd think you could get the previous owner to tell you who did the rebuild and take it to them

Kevin01Z28

iTrader: (8)

I wouldn't be talking to him. It probably takes less than 20 or 30 miles for the rings to seat after a rebuild. Thats metal on metal, doesn't take long for new rings to take the cross hatches off the cylinders and be seated. Sounds like whoever rebuilt your engine didn't know how to hone the cylinders or something...