Hey guys,
I think the inevitable happened (LT1 + S/C = Kaboom!!!!) but something is puzzling me. The car smokes out the breather on the valve cover but yet the vacuum gauge reads perfect (20"). The readings do not fluctuate but remain steady at 20". That is some serious vacuum for a motor with supposedly leaking ring lands. I know that if the rings are leaking the vacuum should drop considerably and remain steady but low. The vacuum that it reads is for a perfectly healthy engine between 16"- 22" Hg. Please explain this to me because I can't understand this.

 

Is that with the PCV hooked up? probably not. How much is it smoking? a little is some what normal

 

Yes, its with the pcv hooked up but like ATI reommended. It smokes enough where at idle it is smoking through the breather. Funny thing is the car runs strong and no hesitation or nothing.

 

ring ring ring.... hello?

My guess is... the piston is still pulling air sufficiently in and the super is still pushing the air in for a normal vacuum. To create the vacuum it's basically just filling a void with air and not as strenous on the rings... but the rings aren't holding when it comes time to compress all that gas and so the extra air is forced behind the piston and thus creating the excess crank pressure and smoking out the valve cover.

 

Of course the true test is just do a compression test and then know for certain.

If you just installed it I'd most likely say it was improper hookup of the crank vent line but I think you've had this on a while and it's just now doing it right?

 

Dont remember how ATI recommends it. I think you just remove the hose at the t-body? Or is the pcv valve no longer hooked up to vacuum? If the car is still running strong then leave it. If there is damage you might want to get a wide band up to it to make sure its not going lean.

 

Thats the same symptoms of my stock motor. Car ran perfectly fine, no miss, vacuum was good. Only thing was it smoked like a freight train at idle. Diagnosis....3 broke ringlands.

ATI does recommend that the PCV is disconnected all together which *could* cause a little smoke. Do a compression test, if it checks out fine then you can try and hook the PCV back up and see if that helps.

 

I will take out the plugs and do a compression test this week and see whats up. Damn!!, didn't even enjoy it for 3 months.

 

Welcome to the club! Mine lasted 1 month.

 

Ring land .. i know this first hand (two times LOL)