[Cubieman]

I bought a high mileage 2007 E92 w/ a 90k swapped motor and it's started to smoke (white) almost all the time, accel, decal, idle, does not matter, this thing smokes. The car has all the standard FBO's and has new OE turbos. It also has a Vargas pcv valve fwiw, the O-ring on the pcv valve is nicked up but something tells me that is the least of my concerns.

I cleaned the catch can and what you see in the can is after 50 miles of mild city driving. There is some nice milkshake oil and about a tablespoon of water. I can see a burnt spot between the block/head between cylinders 2 and 3 that also appears to have oil/coolant creeping out of the same spot.

I did a compression test and got ~140 across all cylinders, 138 was the lowest. We tried a leakdown but everytime we introduced even 30psi into cylinder 1 at TDC it would immediately push down the cylinder/turn the crank, I have never experienced that before.

I got myself into a mess but have the winter to rebuild/replace the engine, any thoughts would be appreciated. I am about to do the first oil change, but it's so bad I wonder if that would even be worthwhile, it will very likely be drained again very soon, FCP oil though.

EDIT 12/7: I drained the oil today and it is not milky like the oil in the catch/around the filler cap.

[iqraceworks]

Does the white smoke coming out of the exhaust smell like coolant? Have you checked to make sure you don't have any leaking injectors? HG issues on the N54's are rare.....really rare. If the compression test shows equal across all cylinders...I'm guessing you have something else going on that's not related to the HG.

[Cubieman]

Originally Posted by iqraceworks

Does the white smoke coming out of the exhaust smell like coolant? Have you checked to make sure you don't have any leaking injectors? HG issues on the N54's are rare.....really rare. If the compression test shows equal across all cylinders...I'm guessing you have something else going on that's not related to the HG.

The white smoke smells oily most definitely, I have not checked for leaking injectors, I'll have to do that, I know the PO replaced the injectors with index 11's, and from all of the reading I've done on here you can ruin the head if those aren't installed correctly.

I unfortunately do not have a very great understanding of this engine yet but am pleased to hear it may be something other than a HG. I'll see what the crankcase oil looks like hopefully this weekend. I see the tell-tale signs on water/oil mixing everywhere else I've looked though.

[iqraceworks]

If it smells like oil....it's most likely an issue with the turbos. What brand are the OE turbos? Who installed them? Or were they on the motor when you got it?

[Cubieman]

Originally Posted by iqraceworks

If it smells like oil....it's most likely an issue with the turbos. What brand are the OE turbos? Who installed them? Or were they on the motor when you got it?

The turbos are Dorman brand, I shouldn't have said OE, I think window regulator when I think Dorman, not turbos.

They were on the motor when I bought the vehicle freshly installed by the previous owner whom I belive to have a mechanical aptitude, but things do happen.

[iqraceworks]

Originally Posted by Cubieman

The turbos are Dorman brand, I shouldn't have said OE, I think window regulator when I think Dorman, not turbos.

They were on the motor when I bought the vehicle freshly installed by the previous owner whom I belive to have a mechanical aptitude, but things do happen.

I'm betting it's leaking turbo seals.....it's very common on these cars.

[Cubieman]

Originally Posted by iqraceworks

I'm betting it's leaking turbo seals.....it's very common on these cars.

Got it, thanks for your help, I am just learning as my experience lies with NA engines, specifically S54 when it comes to BMW.

Is there anything else I can do to confirm that this is indeed the case? Also what are your thoughts on the oil that appears to have coolant in it? Whenever the vehicle is run for a short period of time I can remove the filler cap and I'll see milky oil around the edges of the filler cap's sealing surface.

I will report back after changing the oil, if the oil in the pan is milky as well and doesn't smell of fuel I would think there is coolant creeping in somehow. The smoke and milky oil may be two completely unrelated issues that both need addressing.

[iqraceworks]

Spend a few hours online researching the N54 and known problems, issues, and fixes.

These cars are fun....but they have a most of problems, aren't the most reliable, and you really need to know your way around working on them...or you are going to hate owning an N54 powered 335i

[Cubieman]

Originally Posted by iqraceworks

Spend a few hours online researching the N54 and known problems, issues, and fixes.

These cars are fun....but they have a most of problems, aren't the most reliable, and you really need to know your way around working on them...or you are going to hate owning an N54 powered 335i

Will do, thank you for your help! Worst case I may get an LS1, I know I know. I am a purist on my E46 M3 so this car I brought just to go fast/have fun.

[N54_e90]

It still shouldn't be milky like that, and that much oil in 50 miles of driving? I would do compression test..... does it misfire?

EDIT: Just saw you did compression, maybe Oil Filter Housing Gasket?

[Cubieman]

Originally Posted by krazythedon

It still shouldn't be milky like that, and that much oil in 50 miles of driving? I would do compression test..... does it misfire?

EDIT: Just saw you did compression, maybe Oil Filter Housing Gasket?

Oil filter housing gasket seems to be in good order, will do you oil change this weekend and see what that yields, I'll bet I see that milky oil in the pan.

Car drives fine, no codes/misfires etc. It just smokes and reeks of oil from both ends.

[lookalikehuuh]

Can you post a picture of the "burnt" spot between the head and the block? You say there is coolant escaping from that "burnt" spot as well right?

Also Dorman makes some real junk, I always assume that all Dorman parts are already defective from the start so likely the turbos are bad since they are Dorman trash. TBH I have no idea how a company that makes such junk parts is still in business.

[Cubieman]

Originally Posted by lookalikehuuh

Can you post a picture of the "burnt" spot between the head and the block? You say there is coolant escaping from that "burnt" spot as well right?

Also Dorman makes some real junk, I always assume that all Dorman parts are already defective from the start so likely the turbos are bad since they are Dorman trash. TBH I have no idea how a company that makes such junk parts is still in business.

I included a photo bad photo of the burnt spot up top in the original post as I can't figure out how to attach images in subsequent posts. It was difficult to get decent lighting/focus with the intake on. After each drive there is black "goo" kind of seeping from that area (aka oil/water).

I would imagine there is a HG failure scenario that still maintains even cylinder compression but still allows oil/water to mix, correct?

[lookalikehuuh]

Originally Posted by Cubieman

I included a photo bad photo of the burnt spot up top in the original post as I can't figure out how to attach images in subsequent posts. It was difficult to get decent lighting/focus with the intake on. After each drive there is black "goo" kind of seeping from that area (aka oil/water).

I would imagine there is a HG failure scenario that still maintains even cylinder compression but still allows oil/water to mix, correct?

Yes that scenario is definitely possible, unfortunately the picture is really difficult to see where the burnt spot on the block is.

[Cubieman]

So the oil in the pan is not milky, nor in the oil filter housing, I shot a few pictures and put them in my original post.

The PO did not put hose clamps on the catch can, could this somehow have anything to do with the milky oil? Sucking moisture from the atmosphere?(grasping at straws)

The vehicle is smoking so badly now I don't even want to drive it, fairly thick white smoke all the time.

Again the car came with a swapped 90k engine, I have found metal bits in the oil filter which can be seen in yet another thread I made recently, hopefully from the last engine. My first N54 experience isn't going so well, LS swap would be nice IF I would have payed roller prices which I did not.

Sorry for the newb questions here guys, just not used to this vehicle and non-NA vehicles in general. Although this issue may have nothing to do with the turbos.

[Dave92N54]

CarAbuser is one of the more knowledgeable people on this forum and I have to agree, those metal bits don't look too terribly concerning, for the moment. May be worth doing a compression test though.

I could absolutely see loose catch can lines causing the milky substance you see. I apologize if you already stated but is this a high side or low side catch can? If high, it could also be the case if the heater is not plugged in, as this warms up the vapors passing into the catch can. My low side often looks milky now that it's cold out and my oil doesn't get to 220+ as often.

As for smoke, issues with the pcv system or turbos can absolutely cause tons and tons of smoke. I'm going to guess you're not driving the car? If not, go ahead and just pull the down pipes. If it's smoking as badly as you say, if they are the cause, you'll likely see a very wet exhaust side of the turbo.

If you don't wish to do this, I would still recommend inspecting your valve cover carefully, removing the catch can in favor of a stock flapper valve and PCV valve.

[Cubieman]

Originally Posted by Dave92N54

CarAbuser is one of the more knowledgeable people on this forum and I have to agree, those metal bits don't look too terribly concerning, for the moment. May be worth doing a compression test though.

I could absolutely see loose catch can lines causing the milky substance you see. I apologize if you already stated but is this a high side or low side catch can? If high, it could also be the case if the heater is not plugged in, as this warms up the vapors passing into the catch can. My low side often looks milky now that it's cold out and my oil doesn't get to 220+ as often.

As for smoke, issues with the pcv system or turbos can absolutely cause tons and tons of smoke. I'm going to guess you're not driving the car? If not, go ahead and just pull the down pipes. If it's smoking as badly as you say, if they are the cause, you'll likely see a very wet exhaust side of the turbo.

If you don't wish to do this, I would still recommend inspecting your valve cover carefully, removing the catch can in favor of a stock flapper valve and PCV valve.

Thanks for the information.

A compression test yielded 140psi across all cylinders +/- 2 psi, cylinder 6 did need to be cranked about 5x longer to achieve the 140 psi.

The catch can is on the high side and the PO installed a Vargas PCV, I'll have to familiarize myself with the PCV system on this vehicle a bit more. The valve cover appears dry, however it hard to tell. I was under the vehicle last night and what appear to be the turbo drain lines have oil around the flange/bolts where they mate to the newly installed Dorman turbos.

Maybe the PO slapped on these dormans and didn't do something correctly as far as new gaskets etc.

I'll have to pull the DP's and check for oil this weekend.

[Dave92N54]

Originally Posted by Cubieman

Thanks for the information.

A compression test yielded 140psi across all cylinders +/- 2 psi, cylinder 6 did need to be cranked about 5x longer to achieve the 140 psi.

The catch can is on the high side and the PO installed a Vargas PCV, I'll have to familiarize myself with the PCV system on this vehicle a bit more. The valve cover appears dry, however it hard to tell. I was under the vehicle last night and what appear to be the turbo drain lines have oil around the flange/bolts where they mate to the newly installed Dorman turbos.

Maybe the PO slapped on these dormans and didn't do something correctly as far as new gaskets etc.

I'll have to pull the DP's and check for oil this weekend.

140 is a little on the lower side but that may just be your equipment, since it's consistent I wouldn't worry there. With the catch can being on the high side, i'd verify your heater is plugged in. I'd also pull the VTT PCV valve as well, verify the O-ring is in good shape and that the valve isn't stuck. I'd also check the PCV cap for any cracks at this point.

Other than this, if it's not coolant, piston rings, or PCV/valve cover it pretty much needs to be turbos unless the valve stems are toast (unlikely). Verifying the valve cover can be hard though, as it can internally clog and cause issues.

[ab987]

FWIW my 96k motor has had soot around the head gasket since I bought it at 72k and I have no powertrain issues. My buddy's 130k car has it too. So that seems to be somewhat of a normality on our cars.