87 Engine oil leak & hose blowing white smoke under car

[SteVB]

i just bought a 87 nova (corolla) with 116k miles, and there are a million oil leaks under the hood, so i know i need to take it to a car wash & clean the engine to see where the leaks are coming from. the main problem is the engine`s smoking, i know, its from the oil all over it, but theres also a little hose hanging under the car right next to the converter thats blowing white smoke & oil directly onto the converter. I mean it blows ALOT of smoke too, like an embarrasing smokescreen. anyone know what`s causing this or how to fix it/ where this hose goes? THANKS!

[Brian R.]

Check the vacuum diagram glued under your hood. Find the hose on the diagram by locating the end that is attached to the engine. Attach the other end to where it is supposed to be attached and see what happens.

Check your oil. See if the oil has a normal appearance or is it milky/cloudy brown or some unnatural color. If the oil doesn't appear light brown and clear, you probably have a serious engine problem.

From what you've said, I would guess that you have alot of blow-by from bad compression rings in one or more cylinders. The hose you are seeing blow out smoke is your PCV valve hose and was removed because you just had too much blow-by and you were fouling spark plugs. Your leaks are the result of high internal engine pressure caused by this blow-by.

Another possibility is that you have a leaking head gasket. What you are seeing then is the PCV valve hose blowing antifreeze/oil vapor out from an antifreeze leak into one of your cylinders - probably the one that you talked about.

(Of course, this is hypothetical and internet troubleshooting isn't worth a damn sometimes, so don't take my guess as gospel)

Bring it to a mechanic you trust and get an informed opinion. Not seeing the car is a huge disadvantage to actually giving you advice on this problem. If nothing else, move that hose away from your cat. converter. It is really hot and may cause a fire from these gases.