4.6L v8

[Leart]

well as many might know, my older 97 ford t-bird witha 4.6 gets a little smoky when i accelerate when i sit at a light for a while...never see any blue smoke under hard acceleration or any other kinda driving unless when it sits there for a while idling at a light...i dont know a lot about these engines but i heard that the valve seals on these older modular 4.6s get a little worn out and thats why they smoke. is there anything i can do to decrease these smokes on acceleration. right now i use synthetic Mobil 1 10w30 in it. i been using it probably since 95k on it and it has 113k on it now...should i switch back to regular or what do you guys recomend. once more thanks for all the time..

leart

 

[Whimsey]

You might want to run a course or 2 of Auto RX. It seems to help tremendously with engine seals. And your right the early 4.6L's had "problems" with valve stem seals. Auto RX has seemed to help many other people with their "poor" engine seals. Auto RX is a site supporter and as I've seen is very willing to discuss your particular situation with you. Check in the additive post section and see what other users of Auto RX have to say.

Oh, and

!

Good luck.

Whimsey

 

[RF Overlord]

leart:

Your description SOUNDS exactly like you have bad valve seals, and this was in fact a very common problem with the older (pre '96) 4.6 motors. Ford changed the seals in either late '95 or early '96 and since then it's very unusual to see a 4.6 smoke. Since yours is a '97, presumably with the improved seals, you might try an ARx treatment and see if that helps...

Some people recommend using thicker oil, like an xW-40, but I think that is a band-aid at best; add to that the fact that these are overhead-cam motors and were spec'd for 5w30, I can't in good conscience recommend doing that.

[ September 20, 2004, 06:12 PM: Message edited by: RF Overlord ]

 

[Leart]

thanks for the early reply...i heard that auto rx does help a lot...but wouldnt it just clean the seals and valves...wont this make it worst?

what do i know...

you have a website i can visit?

 

[RF Overlord]

quote:

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Originally posted by Leart:
wouldnt it just clean the seals and valves...wont this make it worst?

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No...if the seals are all crudded up, it will clean off the crud and help re-condition the seals so they'll seal better. If the seals are REALLY worn, then the only cure is to replace them. An ARx treatment is a lot less expensive...

quote:

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you have a website i can visit?

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http://www.auto-rx.com/

 

[cousincletus]

FWIW I use 15w40 truck oil in my new 2003 4.7 OHC V-8 Durango in the summertime and it does fine. This engine also supposedly has a sludging problem so that's why I use the truck oil since this type of oil is designed to clean the engine better. Since you live in Michigan, I would recommend using the 15w40 truck oil in the warmer 6 months of the year, though some people use it year round and seems to do OK.

 

[Leart]

would it help to switch to non synthetic at all after i use auto rx?