white smoke question..04.5 guys..

[BC3]

My 04. 5 will blow white/blueish smoke at startup for about three seconds... I'd say around a 2 to 3ft plume.



I took a video of it at startup. . just cant post it.





The reason I ask is that I get around 11. 5mpg to 12 around town (hand calculated) and I hear that similiar truck owners say 14 to 16.



Its been to a reputable dealer now 3 times. . all tsb's done and computer updates... 3. 73 auto with 60psi tires and stanadyne. Only does it in the am.



normal or not? One aftermarket dealer said it shouldnt do it and recommended no aftermarket parts till its resolved.



Problem? Old Dealer says nothing he can do. . refuses to do any other checks because it hasnt thrown any codes.



Resolve? for now. . wish me luck with the newest 5 star dealer

 

[doppx006]

I would say it is normal. THe mileage I think is a little low. My truck does the blue smoke thing at start up even in the summer but it is not consistant. About a year ago it would do it even if I ran down the highway for a couple of hours if I would let it idle it would lightly smoke I thought that was weird but It stopped that soon after. I think alot of it had to do with running valvo synthetic because everyone I have talked to says they burn about a quart of oil for every thousand miles for the first 10K or so.

 

[JRD]

Have your local dealer do an injector test. My vote is a leaky injector(s).

 

[LArnold]

bc3-i saw a bullitin from dodge to "fix" white smoke/mpg increase. i got my truck "flashed" for no money @the dealer. it helped mine,and seems to be getting better mpg. ---LA

 

[Adam]

Mine did it too

So I got the reflash for smoke/poor mileage. Mileage went up from 14-ish to 15ish, and the smoke went away for about 3 weeks, then it was back. Only in the morning, and only after sitting longer than six hours. My mileage also dropped back to the mid-14s. Dealer said there was nothing to do as the reflash was already entered. They also said 14-15 is expected for any diesel 4x4 truck. That made me laugh out loud (oops) and he asked me what was funny so I told him my '02 HO got 19. 5 around town and 22 unloaded at 70mph on the highway. Anyway, miracle of miracles, at the 16K mile mark it's like a someone flipped a switch. The smoke is gone and my mileage is in the high 19s. I also noticed my air filter gauge is showing half yellow, and I'm due for an oil and fuel filter change, but I'm afraid to touch anything lest my mileage return to crap. All I can suggest is trying a different dealer and convince them to run the injector kill test. Maybe you'll get lucky, or maybe the truck will sort itself out with a few more miles. Good luck!

 

[Huskerman]

BC3,



I would definately have the injectors tested at a minimum. Also, check your oil level. I had the same thing. Anytime my truck sat for any lenght of time, a nice blue smoke cloud when I started it. This happened even at the end of the work day when it was 100+ degrees outside.



When I checked my oil, it was an inch over-full. My engine was dumping diesel into the crank case. In my case it wasn't the injectors it was either the head or head gasket (dealer replaced both). Got the truck back yesterday and so far not dumping fuel into the oil.



Shawn

 

[RKerner]

My 04. 5 will blow white/blueish smoke at startup for about three seconds... I'd say around a 2 to 3ft plume.



Only does it in the am.



normal or not? One aftermarket dealer said it shouldnt do it and recommended no aftermarket parts till its resolved.



Problem? Old Dealer says nothing he can do. . refuses to do any other checks because it hasnt thrown any codes.



Resolve? for now. . wish me luck with the newest 5 star dealer

What is your daily round trip? If it is short, like 5 miles or less to work, then that can be an issue. My truck would run rough on startup, have extended crank time and blow white smoke if it didn't start within 2 seconds if I just drove 5 miles at a time. I had the flash thing but I was using Valvoline injector cleaner once a month and I don't have the smoke issue anymore. I think the 04. 5 injectors are prone to fouling close to the tips and affecting spray patterns. Like the other guy said, after 20K on mine, it started to get better mileage and starting issues are basically none. Oh, I also added about 8 miles to each end of my commute to get the oil fully warm to reduce moisture accumulation inside the engine. YMMV

 

[BC3]

My commute is generally short, but I use the truck all day... and it does get up to full op temp by the time i get to work.



I considered doing an oil reading, but I wanted the dealer to put forth a little more effort instead of pushing me off. At this point the phone just rang and I'll know what this new dealership/service mngr has to say.



The tsb 18-037-04 "seemed" to work. . but it wasnt long before the numbers dropped ... almost at the same rate as prices rose at the pump.



My morning "cloud" is a bit blue. . and it does blow black pretty good if I get on it pulling a decent hill.



**are there "new and improved" injectors in the 05's?

 

[BC3]

well. . the news?



New dealer service manager started it up... and heard diesel knock right away. .



They did inector kill test. . found #2 is culprit. . talked to Star and ordered part.



He says will have to retest to make sure all else is ok.



These guys are definitely communicate better and are willing to do a mechanical diagnosis instead of relying on a computer to "throw a code"



I knew something wasnt right

 

[JRD]

Well Im glad we were able to help you out and get you into the right direction. Good luck on getting it fixed and keep us posted.

 

[BC3]

My ultimate goal is to hang with the "we get 16 to 17mpg" guys. .



why not right? I mean, the money I spent on my Dodge was just as green. . and I need to start saving money at $3/gallon lol



Thanks again. bc3