Pueblo Bear Cub Posted July 8, 2021 Share Posted July 8, 2021 Hello all, I have an '03 Avalon XLS with 165,000 miles on it. Started smoking on start up, or whenever it sat for more than 2 hours. Greyish smoke, see the attached video. avalon1.mp4 I changed the PCV valve, which was extremely dirty and filled with sludge. No change. I'm assuming it must be the valve stems seals going bad. Now, sometimes it can sit for hours and still not have any smoke, but more than 80% of the time, it does this. The video you see here was taken after a 20 minute drive at 55 MPH average speeds. It did have a slight stumble upon accelerating from a full stop, followed by a large amount of same color smoke that lasted for 5 seconds. After parking in the garage and sitting for 2 hours, this is the result. Any other input you can offer would be greatly appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pueblo Bear Cub Posted July 8, 2021 Author Share Posted July 8, 2021 So, apparently this is NOT an issue with valve seals. It would only be a short period of smoke 10-20 seconds long. A local mechanic suggested this is oil control rings, as there was that small issue during driving, and that does make sense now. Since this would be a rather expensive repair, and I have no one in our town that does engine rebuilding, I will be purchasing a used engine with 65K miles on it and a 1 year warranty. With shipping, engine will cost approximately $1025.00, and take 5 days to get here. Anyone have an idea what an average cost (labor only) to replace this engine might be? Not sure of time required to do this... any advice would be greatly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pueblo Bear Cub Posted July 14, 2021 Author Share Posted July 14, 2021 UPDATE: This was diagnosed as oil control rings and it is getting a little bit worse every day. Already have a very good condition used engine on it's way, and an ASE Certified technician ready to install it. Changing timing belt to be proactive as well. This car is definitely a money pit, but I don't care. Everything else is in pristine condition and I have never had a vehicle quite this luxurious. Take care, all... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pueblo Bear Cub Posted August 11, 2021 Author Share Posted August 11, 2021 UPDATE: New engine has been installed, and the vehicle runs flawlessly. Will be getting new windshield in 1 week and also replacing sway bar bushings in rear, possibly tie rods as well. Most of the repairs I can and will do myself. This car is my favorite vehicle so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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