My 09' 6.4 is smoking blue smoke at idle and red lights, no smoke when driving?? WTH?

[Jp1985]

Hi guys, this is my second go round with the 6.4 I finally decided to tune it, the truck has the sct live wire with the innovative extreme street 285 (which I run) for fuel mileage, however it started smoking at red lights and idle? I changed the oil thinking it may have gained oil during the old regen before I deleted it, and drove it for a couple of days.. Then just yesterday I hit it a little bit passing someone up, I got to the job site and left it running and noticed it smoking again! The truck has right over 50,000 miles and runs strong, idles fine and everything.. Any input would be greatly appreciated. I also saw another one smoking at the red light the other day lol.. This truck is pissing me off

[Jp1985]

Anyone.. This thing is driving me crazy

[6liter_BigSkyStroker]

I have noticed with innovative tunes on my 6.0 that causes blue smoke. I think that what we are seeing is unburnt fuel. Very strong odor if you are back there. Also burns your eyes. This could be many factors, timing, ambient temps, injection pulse changes, engine temps. Not totally sure but this is what i am seeing. If i go completely back to stock it disappears. Spartan tunes do not smoke, Hybrid tune is good. The hotter the truck runs the better the burn of fuel. Our Large Cat Haul trucks at the mine are known for belching blue unburnt fuel unless we are working the everliving dog snott out of them. A shot in the dark is to place cardboard in the radiator, enough to create heat for a good burn but not to much to hurt your cooling of the engine. You don't want to get it hot but keep it warm. I have almost 3/4 of my radiator and CAC Air Cooler covered just in the colder seasons.

[Jp1985]

Thanks Bigskystroker, however I bought a spartan and installed it.. The truck continued smoking at stop signs, red lights, idle etc.. So I changed the oil, cleaned out the CAC, changed both fuel filters, returned the intake to stock, changed the tune to a canned TOW (40 hp) tune and it continued to smoke a whitish/blue smoke at red lights.. If I hold the throttle while slowing down and until I take off, there is no smoke. This truck is possessed! I've narrowed it down to either the egr, piston , turbo seal, or injector or injector o-ring..

[04hdfatboy]

Jp1985 how did you clean out your intercooler?

[cornbred]

I had what sounds like the same issue with my 08. Finally my EGR malfunctioned and I had a full delete done. No more smoke at all.

[TBuck]

Originally Posted by cornbred

I had what sounds like the same issue with my 08. Finally my EGR malfunctioned and I had a full delete done. No more smoke at all.

I agree, I've heard from a few mechanics in my area that when the EGR valve is open, you see a little bit of blue-ish smoke at the tailpipe, especially if you've done the DOC/DPF delete.
Correct me if I'm wrong, if you're running Spartan tuning at anything lower than 250 or 275 (can't remember which), and your EGR is intact, the valve will remain active at idle. I think they designed it like that to prevent sticking.

[cornbred]

Originally Posted by TBuck

I agree, I've heard from a few mechanics in my area that when the EGR valve is open, you see a little bit of blue-ish smoke at the tailpipe, especially if you've done the DOC/DPF delete.
Correct me if I'm wrong, if you're running Spartan tuning at anything lower than 250 or 275 (can't remember which), and your EGR is intact, the valve will remain active at idle. I think they designed it like that to prevent sticking.

Yes I used to run KEM tuning (very similar to Spartan so I have heard) and everything below 250 cycled my EGR. I mostly ran tunes that did this because I didn't want it to fail. It did anyway (while running 175 tune). Use to have blue haze at idle ALL the time. Since the EGR amazingly fell off it runs very clean. It only hazes black when I stomp it with IDP xtreme street but clears up fast.

[TBuck]

We want these truck to yield more power, better mileage, and greater reliability...
I've got it... let's suck hot exhaust through the intake but run it through coolant first.. bulletproof... (rant complete)
But yes, blue smoke is normal if you have an intact EGR, the cure, run higher tuning that will close it off; you'll achieve better fuel mileage anyway, or yank it; and increase the reliability of your motor.

[cornbred]

Originally Posted by TBuck

We want these truck to yield more power, better mileage, and greater reliability...
I've got it... let's suck hot exhaust through the intake but run it through coolant first.. bulletproof... (rant complete)
But yes, blue smoke is normal if you have an intact EGR, the cure, run higher tuning that will close it off; you'll achieve better fuel mileage anyway, or yank it; and increase the reliability of your motor.

Couldn't agree more. My truck runs so much better without EGR. And a few other things that have fallen off. Not to mention the better MPG, and the fact that it doesn't dilute the oil!!