Civic VTI - Black smoke

[Phuong1987]

My car is blowing black smoke, what can i do to fix this problem

[Chi]

Take it to a mechanic.

[SiReal]

check your oil levels firstly. ur rings/seals might be rooted in which case the above applies to have them replaced. Rather than burning petrol, ur also burning oil.

[bennjamin]

blows black smoke in upper RPMs ? this is normal ~ running rich to protect the engine.

[EuroDude]

Change the oil, use slightly thicker oil to minimize the cylinder<->piston clearances
Clean the throttle body
Adjust the tappets
Reset the ECU

But ultimately u may need to get the engine reconditioned

[Phuong1987]

20 50w?
Adjust the tappet?

[Phuong1987]

ring seals?

[EG5[KRT]]

ur piston rings could be cracked...

valve stem seals could b not sealing properly...

mayb too much carbon on ur valves...

cat converter is stuffed...

[Samo]

black smoke is just excess fuel ...
its running rich ... just get a ecu ... atleast a vafc and get it tuned

[SiReal]

ummm...so would that mean almost 1/20 other cars on the road should invest in an aftermarket ECU and VAFC as well?

silly answer.

[Samo]

black smoke is just excess fuel ...
its running rich ... just get a ecu ... atleast a vafc and get it tuned

if hes done engine mods to the car its a good idea to invest in a ecu to tune the thing.... i did recommend ATLEASE a vafc as a cheaper alturnative... not "a aftermaket ecu and a vafc" read properly

[EuroDude]

20 50w?
Adjust the tappet?

If the recommended oil is 10w40, try 10w50 (10w = thickness when cold, 50w = thickness when hot)

The Tappets run off the CAM's and lift the fuel+air valves. Their clearances need to be adjusted about every 40,000km. If you dont adjust them, they can muddle up the fuel+air mixture and cause power-curve problems and bad efficiency. Here's a DIY: http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/showthread.php?t=15443
(or you can get a mech to do it for you, it only takes 1 hour or so)

A dirty Throttle Body can suffocate your engine and may cause the engine to run rich (too much fuel), plus a Throttle Body clean will dump Carby Cleaner into the valves and clean the carbon off those as well. For instance my Civic was starting to give out a bit of smelly smoke and idled too high, after I cleaned the throttle body, the smoke went away and the exhaust smelt cleaner. Here's a DIY: http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/showthread.php?t=35488
(this is a simpler job so anyone can do this themselves)

After you do that, reset the ECU so it can re-learn how to run your engine efficiently. (just remove the "BACKUP" Fuse for a minute)

[SiReal]

black smoke is just excess fuel ...
its running rich ... just get a ecu ... atleast a vafc and get it tuned

so your saying he doesnt have an ECU from factory already?

i did read properly and trust me, if i managed to pick up your little rushed line the first time i read it, others would too.

when making an analysis, you dont jump straight to the ultimate solution. You make suggestions based on elimination in a bottom-up approach. thats all. Nor do you assume his problem is caused by one issue ONLY.

you also NEVER presume anything unless it is stated. he wouldve listed more if he modifed his engine.

all i'm trying to do is clean up misinformation - there is too much of it already.

anywya, i'm not trying to argue with you. its great to see ppl participate but in recent times there have been too many rushed and incorrect information being posted. It doesnt help anyone.

peace :)

[Samo]

it does have a factory ecu of cos .. i couldve made it more clearly by stating programable ecu foe ppl who cannot understand it

and for ur misinformation .... burning oil is a bluish smoke

[SiReal]

very good smartypants :)

[aaronng]

If it is blowing black smoke, then start from the simplest parts first that can cause black smoke (fuel not burnt properly or running rich).

Causes:
- Spark inadequate (spark plugs fouled/failed, spark plug leads worn out, partial corrosion in dizzy)
- Bad mixing of fuel and air (dirty injectors)
- ECU putting in more fuel than required (MAP sensor, O2 sensor stuffed)

Fixes:
- Remove your spark plugs to inspect. Compare to: http://www.spark-plugs.co.uk/pages/technical/diagnosis.htm
- Replace your leads with another to test or just replace it anyway.
- Remove your injectors and get them ultrasound-cleaned. Or if you have no choice, use a bottle of injector cleaner (doesn't work that well though).
- Check your O2 sensor (exchange with someone else to test). A failed O2 sensor can cause the ECU to add in more fuel to compensate for the fake high O2 rating.

[mocchi]

hey i got the same problem too.. but sometimes its spewing white smoke.
would it have the same cause and fixes with the black smoke problem?

thx.

am i hijacking? same problem lo

[aaronng]

hey i got the same problem too.. but sometimes its spewing white smoke.
would it have the same cause and fixes with the black smoke problem?

thx.

am i hijacking? same problem lo

White smoke is condensation (happens on cold days). Does it happen on hot days as well? If it does, that means you're leaking coolant into your combustion chamber.. maybe a worn headgasket.

[EuroDude]

White Smoke can also mean too much oil is in the engine.

[aaronng]

White Smoke can also mean too much oil is in the engine.

"Too much oil" smoke is blue. Not white.

[EuroDude]

"Too much oil" smoke is blue. Not white.

It was definetely white when I filled 8L into my engine ;) Didnt look blue at all.

[mrwillz]

lite blue?

[Phuong1987]

thankz for the info,
gonna service the car and see what happens

[aaronng]

It was definetely white when I filled 8L into my engine ;) Didnt look blue at all.

Haha, like mrwillz said, light blue. Anyway, when you have too much light blue smoke, it will turn white. Even too much grey smoke looks white.

[EuroDude]

Haha, like mrwillz said, light blue. Anyway, when you have too much light blue smoke, it will turn white. Even too much grey smoke looks white.

lol u may be right - all I could see behind me was a huge white cloud coming out of my exhaust :p