my 400 is smoking BAD!!!!

[brains]

hey guys i just purchased an 03 400ex on frieday, it was sitting in the guys barn for about 2 years. I changed the gas and changed the oil and its still smoking horribly. The smoke is mainly white and slighty blue, there is also a great amount of oil in the exhaust. What do guys think the problem is? Rings? Valves? Gaskets? Let me know what u guys think the problem is. THANKS!

[sprayedgt]

Sounds like rings to me. Does it only smoke at start up or even when it has fully warmed up?

[brains]

even on warm up, just dumps out white smoke

[tri5ron]

probably rings, and possibly also valve seals.

you say it had been sitting for quite a while in a barn.

Did you take the time to pull the sparkplug and squirt a little WD40, or oil in the cylinder, before you tried to start it for the first time?

Did you pull the plug wire and crank it to get some oil stirred around, and get some parts lubed, before you fired it up for the first time?

or did you just pull it out of the barn, change the gas/oil, charge the battery, and fire it up?

[brains]

i wouldnt kno because the guy started it before i came with bad gas, and he prob just got it going cause the battery was dead the day after i got it. so the guy basically just fired it up after not riding it for that long

[tri5ron]

OK, first things first.
priority #1,.... Dont freak out yet,....
There will be plenty of time for that later, if needed)

Pull the sparkplug and take a good look at it.
Is is wet? Is it wet with oil? Alot of oil?

next,
get a small magnet on a wire,(make sure it is attached very well, and can't come off the wire,
Fish it around inside the cylinder, and see if you find any pieces of the rings. (hopefully not) . If no pieces of metal come out on the magnet, that's a good thing.
(if you do get pieces of metal on the magnet, your probably looking at a top end rebuild) , but still don't freak out yet.

if no metal came out, and the plug/cylinder look fairly free of oil,
(if there IS alot of oil, you will want to blow air in the plug hole, and do your best to dry it out first)

Next, do a compression test.
You will want to do a "dry" test first,
and then "wet" test.
This will help to determine if your rings are bad, and/or your valves/valve seals are bad.

if your compression is just horribly low,....
you can figure your going to be pulling the head, and once you pull it, if you find chunks of rings, or your cylinder is gouged bad,... then you can start the freak out process, and evaluating what is it going to cost.

is it going to just be a hone/overbore and ring job?
A little valve lapping and new seals?

or a full monty job needing a new cylinder also???

hope the best for you, and hope this helps.

BTW- how much did you pay for it in the first place?

keep us posted, good luck

[brains]

thanks for the help!

and i only payed 1300 for it

[tri5ron]

$1300 is not bad.
it gives you some breathing room for a top end job.

most important is that you DO NOT start or ride it again until you get it checked over very well.

think of it this way,...
If it is just a stuck ring, or slightly scored cylinder right now,...
your repair cost's should be minor.
But if you continue to run it before checking it out,... and THEN break a ring, and screw the pooch on the cylinder, your repairs will be more expensive.

at $1300 initial investment,...
even if you put another $700 or $800 into it, you're still ok in the current value arena.
hances are, if you play your cards right, it wont cost near that much to get it back in tip-top shape.

good luck, and keep us posted on your progress.

[brian76708]

when you changed the oil how much oil did you put in it? maybe you overfilled it.