About a year and a half ago I bought a 96 Tacoma 3.4L with 92K miles from a lady whose husband had a stroke and couldn't drive it any more. I asked if there were any problems and she said it used a little oil but didn't know how much. When I cranked it for a test drive, it didn't smoke at all. I liked it so I bought it on a Saturday. Three days later I drove it to work to show it off and when I cranked it again, blueish white smoke rolled out the tailpipe almost covering the truck in a cloud. That evening I told the lady I bought it from that it had problems. She said she would help me fix it. I should have asked for my money back right then and there but I liked the truck.

I've found that it only smokes when you first crank it after a 20 mile or more drive and it has cooled off and set for several hours. I drive 22 miles to work and it usually smokes when I leave home and when I leave work. If I crank it an hour or two after driving it 20 miles, it usually won't smoke. It doesn't smoke going down the road or idling. On rare occasions, it won't smoke at all after a long trip. Sounds like valve stem seals and/or guides but the Toyota mechanic I talked to said it needed the rings replaced also and that the catalytic converter was burning the smoke when it got hot.

Since then, the lady says she can't afford to help me with the repair cost, and I can't trade it as is, so I'm stuck with it. It now has 110K miles and it's getting worse. Does it just need a valve job or a complete rebuild? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Tom

 

You might try replacing the PCV valve and see if that helps before resorting to more expensive diagnostics.

 

I forgot to mention that I tried that first. I also forgot to mention that the air filter is soaked in oil about 1/3 of the way up where oil has run down the air intake tube. Don't think this is normal, is it?

Thanks,
Tom

 

No, not at all normal. Seems to me someone else had a similar problem not too long ago.
......might try a search and see what comes up (I don't remember if it ever got resolved or not).

 

If there's enough oil in the tube to soak the filter, then there's a LOT of blowback through the PCV, it's the only place it could come from short of backing up all the way through the intake manifold, plenum, throttle body and then out.

If the PCV is working correctly and letting this much oil through, then there's a TON of oil up in the top of the engine.

Pull the tube and peek into the TB - what's it look like? Post pics if you can.

 

I had a '97 Camry that began doing that after I changed to synthetic oil at about 35,000 miles. The dealer said it was leakage past the valve stem seals, probably due to the synthetic oil being more viscous than an equivalent dino and that it wouldn't hurt anything unless it got a lot worse. Seems that it would allow some seapage into the cylinders after the car sat overnite. My wife changed back to dino oil and the problem went away after awhile.

 

viscosity should not be different enough if rated the same. could try a more viscous oil to try this theory. but his is only a temporary solution.

2nd for the stem seals. i would replace the PCV valve first as its cheaper and easier to do.

 

I'm running Pennzoil 5w30 which is what the owners manual calls for. I may try some STP or some other kind of oil treatment. I've heard that when people use that kind of stuff, they usually find it in a glob in the bottom of the oil pan.

Tom

 

It seems the guides and seals may be worn allowing oil to seep by while sitting all day and then blows out a cloud of smoke when cranked. The seals sit in a puddle of oil at all times. I guess I could pull the valve covers off and see if one puddle has leaked down more than the rest after letting it sit overnight. Does this sound logical?

Tom