Seat Ibiza 1.9 TDI PD130 Blue Smoke

[Abominable_Snowman]

Hey guys

So, I need a bit of advice. My TDI has a ridiculous amount of blue smoke when the engine is cold.

This is what I've found::

The smoke smells a lot like diesel - very strong, kinda burns your eyes
The smoke is only present until the car temp hits around 76 Deg.
Once the car warms up nicely, the blue smoke is gone and only a puff of greyish smoke is emitted on revving.
The engine misfires very badly until it starts warming up

VCDS scans do not turn up any errors regarding the injectors or other engine components.

I've logged the injector values on separate occasions (I have the full log available as well as the scan)

Here is a quick summary:

@25.2 Deg C

-3.01 | -0.68 | 2.99 | 0.66

@76.5 Deg C
-0.96 | 0.21 | 0.68 | 0.05

Looking at the logs, it seems that the values only improve with an increase in engine temperature (however, I stand to be corrected).

I suspect its the injector seals, but I could be wrong.

I would just like to get more input from more experienced guys before I begin throwing money in. Any advice would be greatly appreciated




PS. the previous owner has had some repairs done on the car::
Cage 23 Exman Turbo Replacement
Cambelt Kit & Waterpump Replacement
Sump Service
Water Bottle, Tensioner, Fanbelt, Coolant Replacement
Side Water Flange Replacement
Valve Guides Replacement
Cam Sensor Replacement
Pressure Test/ Skim/ Overhaul
Remove & Refit Cylinder Head
All services carried out at regular intervals

[THANAS]

Do a compression test.

[Abominable_Snowman]

Do a compression test.

Thanks Thanas, I'll look into it. I'm based in Durban so I'll call around and look for a reputable place to get it done (well, after the lockdown that is)

[MarshallGTi]

Skimmed head? bad idea....

[Abominable_Snowman]

Skimmed head? bad idea....

I've received mixed opinions on head skimming, I've never had any personal experience with bad results from the procedure so I'm still on the fence about it.

I know this may seem like a silly question, but why do you believe skimming the head is a bad idea?

[MarshallGTi]

In general on a petrol motor it works, but i've never heard of a happy ending after a heads been skimmed on a 1.9. Maybe Tyrone can advise...

[Dubbed_KG]

I had the same problem, it really was my injectors saying goodbye. Car wouldn't start and it just went worse.

Sent from my ANE-LX1 using Tapatalk

[missioner]

I had the same problem, it really was my injectors saying goodbye. Car wouldn't start and it just went worse.

Sent from my ANE-LX1 using Tapatalk

This here is your problem.

The injectors get worn over time due to our poor diesel quality in the sunny Africa.

The blue acrid smoke is due to lean combustion producing much higher amounts of NOX gasses.

You should find the car will produce the same smoke when warm when accelerating.

As you are in the Durban area look out for a decent diesel injector shop in your area. Be warned many are not equipped to repair or service PD injectors, so do some homework first.

Sent from my Redmi Note 4 using Tapatalk

[DieterMK5]

In general on a petrol motor it works, but i've never heard of a happy ending after a heads been skimmed on a 1.9. Maybe Tyrone can advise...

On my Mk4 tdi I had the head skimmed, got a victor rienes gasket, which offers a 1,2 or 3 notch gasket. Thickest being the latter. That was not a pd motor though, was a VE.

But skimming the head more than once then becomes a tough one I would assume. Unfortunately tdis rely on compression and if the head is to high or to low that could give incorrect readings.

[missioner]

In general on a petrol motor it works, but i've never heard of a happy ending after a heads been skimmed on a 1.9. Maybe Tyrone can advise...

On my Mk4 tdi I had the head skimmed, got a victor rienes gasket, which offers a 1,2 or 3 notch gasket. Thickest being the latter. That was not a pd motor though, was a VE.

But skimming the head more than once then becomes a tough one I would assume. Unfortunately tdis rely on compression and if the head is to high or to low that could give incorrect readings.

The PD motor also use various gaskets to compensate when repair work has been done. I will normally take the next thicker gasket to what was previously fitted. If for any reason there is any doubt the default is the thickest gasket.

Sent from my Redmi Note 4 using Tapatalk

[Abominable_Snowman]

Thanks for all the info guys, sorry for the late response, been quite busy with work recently

A friend of mine helped me to look into the problem using your advice and we found that there was a combination of issues, two injectors are shot, compression wasn't on point either. The cam has a bit of wear on it and the turbo was covered in oil and starting to whine.