Whenever I start my car, white smoke comes from the exhaust. After it idles for a few seconds the smoke quits. It has been doing this for quite a while and I can't seem to find the problem. There is an aftermarket exhaust on the car but I am not sure what is causing my car to do that. Any ideas?

 

next time you start it & it smokes, walk back & see what the smoke smells like, if it smells like oil burning then odds are its the valve stem seals. when they get worn oil starts leaking past them after the motor is turned off & gets on the valves & into the cylinders & you get that smoke at start-up after the motor has been off for some time.
its a common problem on motors with some miles on them.

the valve stem seals can be replaced with the right tools without pulling anything other than the valve covers, rocker arms & the valve springs. if it's not done properly, it can cause major engine
damage. such as broken pistons, valves, heads & the block.

not replacing the seals will sooner or later cause the plugs to start to oil foul & will kill the cat.

 

Make sure of the color of the smoke. White or lightly blue tinged? You can smell the difference between oil and coolant as well. Coolant will have a sweet smell to it.

 

That's not "unusual" smoke. That's the USUAL smoke. THe 'O' ring valve stem seals on SBC engines from that era are seldom good for more than a year or two of service. They fail and crumble, allowing a bit of collected oil above the valves to settle into the chambers after shutdown. My '86 started doing that around 16,000 miles, and has been the same for the last 15 years. I've never fouled a plug, clogged a cat, or caused any other damage as a result. I just accept the extra lubrication on cold startup and move along.

As DENN mentioned, they are easy to replace, but unless the heads are machined for positive seals and that type seal is installed, you'll be replacing 'O' rings every few years if you allow the syndrome to bother you.

 

Does anyone have step by step instructions on how to replace the valve stem seals? Please post.

Thanks in advance!

 

Mine does the same thing, light blue tent when I first start it up.

 

Do a search. i know i have posted at least 2 times on how to do them. I'm sure others have as well.

 

my 88 has smoked like that for 4 years now,i just accept it for now.sooner or later the heads will need to come off and will fix them then.