MK7 2.2 TDCI Transit blowing out blue/white smoke.

[Vittese]

Hi guys,this is my first post on this forum, i have a problem with my Transit van,that i an hoping you good people may be able to help me with. The van is a 2006 MK7 2.2 tdci Transit, that broke down in a cloud of smoke a few days ago. The van was running fine but started to lose power, the engine started to shake with clouds of smoke coming out of the exhaust. The recovery man did a diagnostic on the van and advised me that number 1 and number 2 injectors were faulty. I replaced both injectors, got them re-coded but the van was exactly the same as before, engine still shaking and blowing clouds of smoke from the exhaust. I bit the bullet and got the van towed to a Ford main dealer, they rang me to say that there was oil dripping from the exhaust and advised me that they were 90% sure that the van had a cracked piston, as this is common on these vans, so there wasn't any point at that stage of doing any further diagnostic checks. I started to strip the engine today in order to remove the cylinder head, but when i removed the inlet manifold i noticed all of the inlet ports in the head were black with oil. I am only a DIY mechanic, but oil in every inlet port doesn't seem like a cracked piston to me. Would a blown turbo, or a fault EGR valve cause these problems?
Any advise would be really appreciated. Thank you, Martyn.

[pwhooftman]

My guess is the increased crankcase pressure blows oil through the crankcase breather into the inlet. But i admit i'm not familiar with the crankcase breather setup on these types of engines.

[Vittese]

Hi, thanks for your reply, much appreciated.

[Altransit]

I'm no expert either, but from what I've read on here, a blown turbo normally causes the engine to run away, not lose power, but on the other hand, these engines can be prone to cracking pistons

Surely a simple compression check would have confirmed this one way or another

[ned]

What if the chain has jumped, would it cause the symptoms your getting?. N

[knobby1]

I'm guessing a blown/cracked piston...(probably #1 or #2 cylinder).. Not what you want to hear but your symptoms point to it..!

Lord Knobrot

[Vittese]

Hi guys, thanks for your replies. Unfortunately i cant do a compression test due to the glow plugs wont come out.

[knobby1]

Hi guys, thanks for your replies. Unfortunately i cant do a compression test due to the glow plugs wont come out.

A compression test can also be done through the injector holes...but uses one of the older "push 'n hold" type gauges as there's no thread to screw into.

Lord Knobrot

[Vittese]

Hi, thanks for the info, i will try to do a compression test through the injector holes.

[Vittese]

Hi guys, thanks for all of the advise. I removed the cylinder head over the weekend, the problem is a cracked/holed piston on number 2 cylinder.

[knobby1]

Hi guys, thanks for all of the advise. I removed the cylinder head over the weekend, the problem is a cracked/holed piston on number 2 cylinder.

Guessed as much...Sorry for your loss..

Lord Knobrot