Tractor smoking

[dkmc]

Letting an engine idle for 30 minutes is a bad practice. Get it started, let it idle for a minute or two if you must and get to work.

I disagree. Let it get up to at least 140F before applying heavy load. 30 minutes is excessive but 2 is not long enough. Maybe the OP's thermostat isn't working right? Is it really up to 180F? A cold diesel will smoke blue from partly unburned fuel. A warm diesel will smoke black from excessive fuel.

 

[boatmoter]

My tractor is smoking quite a bit and smells like fuel alot, the smoke looks bluish. Wondering what it could be.

blue is oil. if it' smokes on start up or after idling a while then it could be valve seals,all the time could be rings & or cylinder wear. also check to see if crankcase ventilation is restricted

 

[Zork]

I'd check crankcase ventilation also. Sometimes the IP seal will fail and dump fuel into the crankcase. Do you have turbo? Could oil be leaking into the intake from the turbo?

 

[Bentrim]

Lessons learned from over 20 yearsof working on farm machinery. Cold is not a friend of a diesel. If the engine temperature is not brought up to operating tempersture it will produce smoke mainly unburned fuel. Ever watch a highway in the winter? You will often see turns churning out clouds of a whitish blue smoke. Or watch an episode of ice road truckers. If left idleing too long you can cause unburned fuel past the rings and dilute the crankcase oil. It can also cause slobbering as the engine is not hot enough to burn the fuel.

Have you tried a curtain in front of the radiator, adjusting it to keep the engine warm, often seen on otr truckks.
I know there are arguments both ways buth the best way I have beeb taught is to fire off the engine, a minute or two later slowly start moving.
Other things that can cause smoke:
Bad injectors, out of time.
Different blend of fuel

Keep that diesel working--- Make it labor -- no easy rides.

Way back when the White 4-150 was new (Cat 3208) we had one on the lot. Out of couriosity the boss was courios if it would statrt, It was very cold still night, He climbed up in the cab turned the key smf the engine started easily. H e then suggestedwe leave it run awhile to recharge the batteries. Over 1/2 later we went back outside to shut it down. Going just as high as could see was this collumn of white smoke, from that exhaust pipe to just as far as you could see into the heavens.

Diesels do not like cold----different engineers have different ideas for proper combustion and some just don't work well when cold.

 

[aircommuter]

Just to clear things a little. White smoke is incomplete combustion of Diesel fuel. Steam is water/coolant. I don’t see the engine information but a bad turbocharger seal an introduce oil into the combustion chamber as well.

 

[TGM5040]

Multiple good ideas on here for excess oil consumption. If it came on quickly, then a failed turbo seal or maybe injection pump seal could be it.
If it has been building up over time, then valve stem seals/guides or rings maybe be the problem. Maybe a failure in a head gasket to an oil passage.

 

[newbury]

If the tractor is over 18, it is legal for it to smoke. Hope this helps.

Gad, and I thought the thread was about tractor smoking and where it's legal to smoke tractors!

 

[areid]

My 2008 L5240 with 1700 hours smokes under acceleration every time then stops. Doesn't seem to burn any oil. So each time I add load such as loader work or even changing direction. Every time it revs from idle. Original owner said it has done thus from new.

 

[Gord Baker]

My tractor is smoking quite a bit and smells like fuel alot, the smoke looks bluish. Wondering what it could be.

Check to see if it is overfilled with Oil. I expect it is a gasoline engine so try installing a new set of hotter sparkplugs. On removal, identify which sparkplug is fouled.

 

[bill karrer]

From all the answers I read hear, the best advice that I saw was "put the tractor to work"! With only 400 hours on the machine and all of this "working" at three quarter throttle, the rings have probably never set properly. Find, or create, a job where the engine has to labor for a couple of hours at FULL throttle and see what happens.

 

[Paul McILwain]

I had a 530 universal tractor for 15 years and it always produced blue smoke but oil level never went down between annual changes of conventional 15/40 diesel oil. Now have for 10 years anLS 5030c that I use t6 in and it has never smoked or used a drop of oil even before I started using t6 about 4 years ago. Best tractor I have ever had. Will be going out shortly to blow snow (-25c ) here today and there will be no smoke. I have to keep the rad totally covered to get the temp up and even then doesn’t come up much til I work it hard

 

[aircommuter]

The forum is good for suggestions and possibilities but testing is the answer.

 

[MARK FROM LI]

Did you recently add fuel that could be the cause of it?...do you use a fuel treatment?....I use Power Service......walmart carries it for the best price...use this only in cold weather and do not add more than instructions call for

 

[aircommuter]

I use that product too. Best deal I found is Petroleum Service Company, I get 2-2.5 gallons for $179.04 including shipping.
It is a good product and Cummins endorsed. The sell it in different concentration levels so read carefully.

 

[Dman1981]

My tractor smoked a lot but I talked it into quitting it breathe better now

 

[just_Dave]

Letting an engine idle for 30 minutes is a bad practice. Get it started, let it idle for a minute or two if you must and get to work. I run Shell Rotella T6 synthetic in my diesel tractor and diesel truck. Delvac 1 synthetic in the diesel car. I start up and go in all my diesels. Well the car and truck do a low speed idle for a 1/4 mile to get to the highway. Synthetic oils tend to have better flow at cold temps than a regular oil.

I agree 30 min low idle is bad practice. start it, once smooth running half to 3/4 throttle if you want to warmn things up some but 3-5 min is plenty. then work it. diesel will never heat up at idle.

 

[Portals]

Mike, I assume you are talking about the WM and does it have a hydro transmission? Hydros run at 3/4 to full throttle most of the time to be the most efficient. Lighter loads don't necessarily have to
Any PTO work like bushhogging requires the PTO at 530-550 rpm range to keep the blade tip speed at the correct speed for smooth cutting. This varies tractor to tractor. The PTO is engineered to run around the peak of the torque curve. On some tractors this could be close to full rpm. Whatever the case, you aren't doing your equipment any favors not running at the optimum speed.

Chiseling and disking full speed is fine, but again, you need to run at the upper end of the torque curve which could allow you to throttle back a little.

You and others refer to running the tractor at "full throttle" or "all out". Do you really mean that? Or are you referring to optimum PTO rpm? I have a hydro. PTO is about 2400 RPM but there is more throttle available. Do you think I should periodically run it at max RPM?

 

[Flogger]

My tractor is smoking quite a bit and smells like fuel alot, the smoke looks bluish. Wondering what it could be.

I use ATF in my diesel fuel. My older 2 cyl tractors get a heavier dose than the newer tractors and my pickup. It cleans the system and provides lubrication. My old 7.3 Powerstroke seemed to be getting worse mileage around 100k so that is what started it. It now is approaching 300k and the mileage has increased plus it purs like a kitten. I am convinced it cleans injectors and provides great lubrication. I also use power service in the winter to control gelling.

 

[TractorTech]

You and others refer to running the tractor at "full throttle" or "all out". Do you really mean that? Or are you referring to optimum PTO rpm? I have a hydro. PTO is about 2400 RPM but there is more throttle available. Do you think I should periodically run it at max RPM?

No I don't think you should run it at max throttle and yes, you need to run the PTO at optimum PTO speed; 540-550 PTO rpm which can be at or very close to full throttle.
My 4600 optimum PTO speed is at 1800 engine rpm, but depending on the implement I'm running at no load is 1900 engine rpm. Max engine rpm is 2200.
Fiat/New Holland 4430 runs at close to full rpm to achieve 540 PTO.

Depending on the engine, the gearing, the implement and the load, the engine rpm is going to be different among different makes and sizes of tractors. Running the PTO at the 540 mark +/- 10-20 rpm is what you want to do.

 

[GinNB]

I run regular Rotella 10w30 per the owner's manuals in my Kubotas. 15w40 works fine as well but not in the winter. I just run 10w30 year-round so I don't have to worry that someone jumps in something that had summer oil when it's minus a million to clear a driveway or something. I'd change the oil just in case of diesel dilution and run it hard with non-synthetic oil with actual dead dinos for a while and see if that either breaks it in or frees up a stuck ring or something. I'd keep a close eye on oil use. Also, just in case it's engine oil starting to leak past the seal in your turbo, practice opening your hood and envision completely choking off the air at the filter (shirt, jacket, or hoodie works fine). If that seal lets go then your engine will runaway uncontrollably on engine oil until you run out and it grenades fatally. The only way to stop that one is to choke off the air. Unlikely in a motor with 400hrs but it never hurts to consider the possibility and many people are unaware of both the possibility and method to stop it.