Dear All,

3 weeks after buying my first XJ8 (3.2 LWB) and a short trip to France (500 miles) 2 weeks ago yesterday I've experienced a lot of smoke coming out from the engine bay - after stopping the car and checking the engine bay I've observed the following bits;

- white foggy smoke coming from low
- normal, warm engine coolant temperature on the the dashboard, right in the middle
- visible residual oil drops on the heat shield etc...

after checking the forum, this looks like valve cover gasket failure, however I've also checked the oil level and when I've pulled out the oil dipstick, same smoke was coming out from the pipe too.

Please advice, am I facing a major engine fault or the cause of this problem could be limited to the cover gasket only?

Thank you!

C

 

Could be one thing or numerous, the way to find out is to check it out or have someone check.

 

I would certainly suspect the leaking valve cover(s) that you mention, any leak there would definitely drip on the manifold shield and produce white smoke.

As for smoke from the dipstick tube, i would check the crankcase ventilation system. There are two vents, one on each valve cover, one draws air via the intake tube, the other via the throttle body.

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/a...-600-03am3.pdf

 

Thank you I'll try the vents..... much appreciated!
Best wishes,

C

 

From what you described sounds like valve cover gaskets. I had the same issue with my father's car a few weeks ago (smoke billowing from bottom side of left cover) but also check for cracks in the actual valve cover, that turned out to be the heart of the matter. Also I prefer the earlier red and grey gaskets. The AJ27/VVT gaskets just seem flimsier and the one time I let a shop do the job they leaked within 5000 miles. The older style has never failed me in 80K. They do require 1-2 less nm of torque. Just my experience.