Smoke to start with has increased over the past few days. I thought it might be the oil but that hasnt changed and theres always PLENTY of oil on the dip stick.

The smoke is a slight blue colour but mostly white. It doesnt smell like burning oil however.

I checked the water, this was a heart breaker black oily substance on the top of it. And quite low.

No Mayo - I dont know if you get mayo on diesels?

The only obvious thing is that oil comes from the oil cap. The breather is fine however. There is a pipe for the turbo at the front of the engine. This pipe has a ring clip that is screwed securly between the metal and rubber pipe. But oil is still being forced out of there as I can see a splattering of oil on the fan guard and that is the only logical place that itd come from.
Anyway, This oild that comes from the oil cap on top of the engine then drains down and sits on a join with a water pipe that goes to the radiator.

It also seems faster too for some reason.

So today I thought, well ill see if a dose of Redex will help, as it has in the past. It hasnt I drove around for about 25 miles, red lining it several times on fast roads and it still smokes.

It also has trouble starting on a cold start too. Some times on a warm start it feels lumpy at the best of times until a few mins afterwards.
Where on earth do I begin to diagnose this problem?
Oh for those of you that dont know I have a 2.5TD 24V BMW 3 series. M51 engine.

I can make a video maybe at some point.

I havnt noticed a massive drop in fuel economy either. So I dont think its running rich.

Should I just go an buy a volvo?

Blame Knighty for selling you a lemon

Quote from: MaldonadoBlame Knighty for selling you a lemon

LOL

I just went and replaced my front wheel as I had a punture. I was alos looking at this Volvo

Looks alright. My car plan is to buy a truck when I buy my first house, then get something cheap for a track day car to be SORNd - maybe a Saxo VTS or Peugeot GTi... One day!

I dont have that much money to spend on a new car. Id have to take finance and with my credit rating itd be crappy deal I could get.

And Id want somthing like This BMW too but Id need to save up for that.

But maybe a 330 coupe with less miles on, although that looks in ok condition.

have you changed the fuel filter yet ? (since last time I drove it)


it was ages ago now.... but it was definitely going way too slow


how many miles has it done now ?  must be 170k+ ?

could well be time have the injectors reconditioned


edit... actually could be the HG after it overheated on you a few times when the fan wasnt working ?

no expert but if oil and crap is getting into the coolant header tank the head is probably cracked

Or just the head gasket gone

id have thought if it were that simple the dipstick would have been covered in mayo, either way though its not great news

Quote from: knightyhave you changed the fuel filter yet ? (since last time I drove it)


it was ages ago now.... but it was definitely going way too slow


how many miles has it done now ?  must be 170k+ ?

could well be time have the injectors reconditioned


edit... actually could be the HG after it overheated on you a few times when the fan wasnt working ?

Yep, fuel and oil filter and oil changed last month in a service. Oh and coolant changed too. Its up to ~166K now

What ways is there to check the HG?

Does redex actually clean the injectors?

theres not really a sure fire way to check the HG without moving the head...

you can pressurise the coolant system and check for a pressure drop, but that doesnt guarantee thats its the HG

can do a compression test, but that doesnt guarantee it either...

if the coolant has just been changed, and it has oil in it already.... then it defiantly sounds like the HG to me...

theres no coolant/oil heat exchanger etc.. so the only way for it to get in there is past the HG

sniffer test is the way to do it.

You can buy the gear yourself.

Depending on where it;s gone you wont necessarily get any mayo.

Whats the heater working like ? Where does the temperature needle go ?

yeah id say a sniffer test and compression test, if it passes both of those your probably ok

Quote from: Marksniffer test is the way to do it.

You can buy the gear yourself.

Depending on where it;s gone you wont necessarily get any mayo.

Whats the heater working like ? Where does the temperature needle go ?

Heater is working as normal.

Temp guage has never worked, unless it gets REALLY hot, which it has last summer in traffic and the fan wasnt working properly.

What is this sniffer test? I have read on google its about measuring leaks but how does it do that?
Where could I buy one? Local motor factors? and how do I use it?
Would it be cheaper to get a garage to do it if they already have the tool?

Could this help?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ENGINE-CYLINDER-HEAD-COMBUSTION-LEAK-BLOCK-TESTER_W0QQitemZ360228507427QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Diagnostic_Tools_Equipment?hash=item53df4acf23

Or should I buy:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BMW-E36-325tds-td-M51-Cylinder-Head-INC-INJECTORS_W0QQitemZ150406993021QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM?hash=item2304f4947d