98 Intrepid 2.7 exhaust smoke from exhaust , not only when being started in the morn.

[Speakeasy]

If anyone can help me It would be greatly appreciated!
I have a 98 intrepid 2.7.. For some weird reason my exhaust has been spewing out smoke...not frequently on and off..if this is a problem I want to find out now, just in case it gets worse.

[theFREAKnasty82]

what color is it? If it's blue, you have oil entering your combustion chamber and that is due to worn valve guide seals, that's a common problem on this type of engine. If it's black, you're running rich, i.e. using too much fuel. That can be caused by bad injectors, clogged air filter, etc. If it's white and smells sweet like antifreeze, you have a head gasket failure caused by coolant leaking into the cylinder(s). If it's just a light mist, it could be something small as condensation, which is normal and no real need to panic. Hopefully this helps.

[Speakeasy]

Thanks, that does help a great deal..it narrows it down.. The smoke is white..I've had folks tell me either the head gasket or the condensation thing..it's always good to get more than one opinion..

It's funny I like this car, I haven't really done any upgrades, if you have any recommendations..If it will help me further down the line...ya know..

Thanks again!!

[theFREAKnasty82]

if you are not already using it, I'd suggest you start using synthetic motor oil. But there are a few factors to take into consideration before you use synthetic. First, make sure that you don't have any oil leaks & second, if you have over 100,000 miles, I wouldn't recommend using it because you could have seals that are starting to go bad. The reason why it's so important to know that ahead of time is because synthetic is on average $5 a quart. As far as any other upgrades, you can get a K & N FIPK for around $130 and that'll give you an extra 5 HP. There aren't too many aftermarket chip companies that I know of as of yet, but I'm sure that if there's a big enough demand, that will soon change.

[Speakeasy]

Thanks for the advice, very much informative.This site is off the chain!

[cash2005]

Originally Posted by theFREAKnasty82

if you are not already using it, I'd suggest you start using synthetic motor oil. But there are a few factors to take into consideration before you use synthetic. First, make sure that you don't have any oil leaks & second, if you have over 100,000 miles, I wouldn't recommend using it because you could have seals that are starting to go bad. The reason why it's so important to know that ahead of time is because synthetic is on average $5 a quart. As far as any other upgrades, you can get a K & N FIPK for around $130 and that'll give you an extra 5 HP. There aren't too many aftermarket chip companies that I know of as of yet, but I'm sure that if there's a big enough demand, that will soon change.

I have a 2002 Intrepid with 60K miles. Is this a good time to go for the synthetic oil change and if so what are its advantages? Thanks!

[theFREAKnasty82]

sure, as long as you don't have any oil leaks, you should be ok. I just changed the oil on my '02 Intrepid and I have 69,000 miles on mine and still use synthetic, runs like a charm w/ no leaks and no problems whatsoever. Synthetic is a designed to take higher temps where conventional motor oil would fail. It reduces sludge build-up, friction and heat, the 3 main factors that lead to engine failure. It also doesn't wear out as fast as conventional oil so, theoretically, you can go up to 10,000 miles before you next oil change, but I wouldn't recommend that and never will. The big disadvantage to sythetic is that it's expensive ($4-$5/quart). Last Friday, I changed my oil and spent $35 for oil (5qt.) and filter. Expensive, yes compared to conventional, but it gives your engine added protection compared to conventional. You'll see a lot of marketing nowadays for synthetic blends, those are garbage and from my experience are a complete waste of money. It's either conventional or synthetic, in my opinion, no in-between nonsense.