I’d like to start off by saying my vehicle (2000 Pajero 6G72 12-valve) has been cared for and pampered since day one. I am the original owner, and fluids were always changed a bit earlier than the recommended intervals and my engine’s had an oil and filter change every 3,000 miles on a regular basis. The vehicle is at 152,187 miles. About 38,000 miles ago, I had my valve stem seals and guides replaced. Prior to that, the engine’s had 3 valve stem seals jobs and these damn seals continue to be a major PITA.

When I start the engine first thing in the morning, the engine puffs out blue smoke with a combination of steam and water. As I let the engine idle, water drips on the ground from tailpipe (which is good) but I can also smell oil burning. There is faint blue smoke coming out the tailpipe, and if I rev, it's smoke galore. As I drive off, I see lots of smoke in the rearview for a short while before it disappears completely...but that takes 2-3 minutes or so. Then, smoke only appears if the vehicle is allowed to idle to prolonged periods.

Performance wise, she runs like a champ, just like day one. Engine has been treated with Auto-Rx and runs as smooth as butter throughout the RPM band…transmission was treated as well and again, smooth with no problems.

Up until the 125,000 mile mark, the vehicle was serviced by the dealer and had a diet of Gulf Max 20W-50, which seems to be the recommended oil viscosity locally, with a Mitsubishi Value (equalivant to GM’s ACDelco, Ford’s Motorcraft and Dodge’s Mopar) oil filter. I switched to Motorcraft Synthetic Blend 10W-30 since then, with Castrol GTX 20W-50 in between to see if it would make a difference in the ½ quart it used between oil changes. The result was negative – oil consumption was still the same – ½ a quart. Momentarily, I used an ACDelco PF1127 oil filter, until I switched to a WIX 51334 with a silicone valve. The real question is oil consumption. The engine uses ½ quart in 2,500 miles, which I think if acceptable. But then if the VSS are worn, I would expect that to be much more. Something just doesn’t seem right. Any thoughts on this will be muchly appreciated.

Also, since I had my motor mounts replaced, the heat shields attached to them keep making noises. Would this go away if they are replaced? Thank you.

 

Was the Gulf 20-50 oil reguar petrolium based oil or also a synthetic oil?

Some cars start to burn oil if you switch from regular oil to synthetic and even more likely they start to leak from the seals. Synthetic is thinner I believe. You also dropped the viscosity from 20-50 to 10-30. Engines get used to one diet of oil and you change, sometimes things go South.

I woud go back to the Gulf Oil or at least back to 20-50 regular (if it was regular) or 20-50 synthetic if you were using synthetic before.

A little steam and water until the engine completely warms up is normal in the Winter months especially.

 

ive said on this board many times before that valve stem seals are usually only a "band-aid" type fix.

your real problem is usually the valve guide. Either its worn, cracked, or slipping out of the head.


you will need a full valve job most likely.
by the way, 20w50 is WAY, WAY too thick an oil to be using.
All mitsus cars these days are 5w20, except the Evolution which requires synthetic 10w30.
using oil that thick can cause a lot of premature wear and a loss of power & efficiency.

 

Many thanks for the responses. At the moment, I'm trying out Auto-Rx with 20W-50 weight oil and so far the blue smoke has reduced quite a bit. It's barely noticible at the moment, although you can smell the oil burning if the engine is allowed to idle for a longer period of time. This should be enough until I can sort myself out to fix it permanently, as I only have the one car at the moment. I'm looking to purchase another vehicle soon (possibly a Lancer GTS or another Pajero depending on how prices fall), since I had to sell my '08 Outlander recently.

That said, Mitsubishi's recommendation in the Middle East is 5W-40 for synthetic and 15W-40 for mineral and semi-synthetic oils. For more severe operating conditions, Mitsubishi recommends 20W-50 weight oil, which was actually the standard back when I purchased this vehicle in late 1999. In my Outlander, I used to run 5W-40 Castrol Edge full synthetic (Group V) with an oil change every 15,000 km (9,375 miles). In my new vehicle, I plan on running BP Visco 5000 5W-40, which is a better Group V full synthetic than the Castrol Edge I was using.

 

The Gulf 20W-50 was a mineral oil.