Dying Tucker Update 1: Light Investigation.

"Mercedes Streeter" (smart)
10/06/2016 at 09:30 • Filed to: Tucker

Not a smart engine.

Did some preliminary checks. My coolant is a bit lower than it was yesterday (I measured engine “cold” both times), and to address the concerns of another Oppo, I put it up on my ramps to see where the oil went when the filter made the exit. There is oil on my towing hitch, oil pan, and exhaust. The plugs and their wires are dry. Of course, I’ll have to open them up to see if any of them got fouled, then a compression test...

The trip to work this morning went off without a hitch. If it weren’t for a little bit of shaking on acceleration and my UltraGauge getting the p0303 error (sometimes the UG will warn you many times for the same error, even after you’ve cleared it, so that’s not really anything to note), I’d say the cat is almost “normal”.

I have one more note to add, the shakes (and the UG warning me of the p0303 code) don’t start happening until the cat reaches running temps.

DISCUSSION (14)

KatzManDu > Mercedes Streeter
10/06/2016 at 09:33

Misfire on cylinder 3.... plugs and coil all good? Injector tests OK?

Mercedes Streeter > KatzManDu
10/06/2016 at 09:35

I have to check all that stuff. I know they’re iridium plugs, so the only way I can imagine them getting taken out is getting fouled by oil.

Mattbob > Mercedes Streeter
10/06/2016 at 09:44

Can you check your intake, and see if there is an excess of oil coming from the PCV system? With all the stuff going on, Maaaybe you have tons of blowby on on that one cylinder causing excess crankcase pressure that maaaaaybe casued the filter to blow off, and cylinder 3 to be fouled by oil. Also smoke out of the tailpipe means something was burned that maybe wasn’t right. This is a wild guess obviously.

Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast. > Mercedes Streeter
10/06/2016 at 09:50

Sounds like it’s almost time for a ‘Busa swap!

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Mercedes Streeter
10/06/2016 at 10:01

I would suggest checking them. Do you know how many miles it’s been since the plugs were changed?

It’s possible, though unlikely, you have a cracked insulator. Or the iridium tip has been damaged. Also, they say iridium plugs are good for 100k miles, but I think that’s optimistic, especially if you’re running a boosted engine (I can’t remember if the Smart has a turbo or not).

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Mattbob
10/06/2016 at 10:09

I’m thinking the same thing. That much oil tends to make me think shot piston rings causing blowby and cooked oil.

kanadanmajava1 > Mercedes Streeter
10/06/2016 at 10:33

Was your cooling fan still operating normally? If it had failed it could have overheated the engine and made something that was near hot exhaust parts fry. That might have also damaged your head gasket.

Mercedes Streeter > Snuze: Needs another Swede
10/06/2016 at 10:51

They were changed roughly 80,000 miles ago. It’s not a boosted engine, however the compression ratio is awful close to a boosted engine.

shop-teacher > Mercedes Streeter
10/06/2016 at 11:04

That’s a lot of miles for plugs, especially on an engine that has to work really hard (and is driven the way you drive ;) )

Mercedes Streeter > shop-teacher
10/06/2016 at 11:33

So I was told by other owners, iridium plugs should have lasted the life of the engine...

...Well, I mean, I guess they did. xD

shop-teacher > Mercedes Streeter
10/06/2016 at 11:38

*Badum, TISS!!*

I was told the plugs in my truck should last 100k, but when I changed them at 75k the truck ran a lot better. I’m not saying the plugs are the problem, but it’s certainly a potential cause of the problem.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Mercedes Streeter
10/06/2016 at 11:55

It may be time to replace them. On my Cruze the owners manual says 100k, I changed them at 90k and they looked awful, and the car ran so much better afterwards. Then I found out GM revised the interval on newer Cruzes to 70k miles.

I’ve been reading your other posts and I’m really at a loss as to what could be going on with your car. I saw the bit about the oil filter, but it sounds like you caught that pretty fast so it shouldn’t be an issue. The smoke is worrisome, but it could be explained by a bad misfire and a puddle of fuel that had built up in one cylinder. Makes me think it is ignition related. Anyways, good luck on figuring it out, and keep posting info.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > Mercedes Streeter
10/13/2016 at 20:59

I don’t know about smartcars, but most modern service intervals today are optimistic.

shop-teacher > Mercedes Streeter
10/13/2016 at 21:32

I remembered something. Years ago my first car started running like shit. The spark plug wires started arcing across to each other. Take it somewhere really dark away from streetlights, start it up, and look for little blue electric arcs.