Thick Black Smoke

[X5patX5]

Hi all, after reading a story that has come to a happy end for forum member 7builder, I am going to try my luck and see if anyone can offer me some good advice, if not I will have to go and visit Jason and see if he can help me out.

This is going to be a long one but I am going to break it down as much as I can.
So I bought my E53 X5 3.0d 2001, three years ago with a private plate at an amazingly cheap price, I asked the guy if he wanted the private plate and he said no, I will throw it in, so I parted with my cash. (Alarm bells should have rang)
The 15 mile drive home was perfect no overheating in traffic, no lack of power to my knowledge being my first X5. Besides a knocking sound and a loud click when I turned the steering it seemed okay.
The following day I went to start my car, put it into drive and the car did not even move and came up with TRANS FAIL SAFE. Being my first X5, and searching around the internet everything was pointing towards the gearbox malfunctioning and at a price from around 2k to 4.8k for a repair I just gave up and thought I had been ripped off, so the car sat on my drive for four months without me attempting to do any work on it at all.
I then attempted to start the car again and it was completely dead and I could not gain entry as the main door lock was broken. Anyway I called my local mechanic who came out to visit and got my car started and it went into drive, but on pulling away kicked out tons of black smoke.
Three years later everything is fine but I still have the tons of black smoke, but this is what I have done to my X5 so far.

1. Gearbox was fine needed a new battery
2. Bought a new battery and found out I also needed an alternator
3. Fitted the new alternator on the car and started it, and with the correct voltage running through the car it came alive and blew out the small rad with fluid going everywhere.
4. Bought a new rad, fitted it, and car is now running but very sluggish and still smoking.
5. Full service, gearbox oil, oil, glow plugs, air, oil, pollen and fuel filter car is now running to me at 90% but still smoking.
6. Added injector cleaner and some V-power and took the car for a long run but still smoking.
7. Remap new exhaust I would now say its running at 95% but still smoking.

When I say smoking I don’t mean a puff of black smoke I mean thick black smoke that causes people behind me to stop and on one occasion a driver actually turned on his headlights, but this only happens when I kick down otherwise driving normally the car seems perfect. I have tons of power I think, but want to know what I should try next to cure this smoking problem.
I am thinking EGR Valve Bypass and turbo pipe cleaner, any other suggestions would be helpful. I am going to try and get one of my work colleagues to video me driving so you can see what I mean by thick black smoke.

[X5Sport]

If it is smoking that badly, how are you getting through the MOT?

From your description I would go with a possible fuelling problem.  It could have been badly remapped?

What is the fuel economy like?  Low mpg would indicate an injection issue with over-fuelling.  If it's OK then it could be a mixture/turbo issue.

Check all the vacuum hoses around the turbo in case one is either broken, or disconnected.  Sometimes the hoses get left off after servicing and this results in the turbo not running up correctly.

[X5patX5]

Hi, MOT is not a problem as the car is still and not moving, I have seen the tester rev my car and all the readings are good but he reckons in his owns words that I have to use a politer word crap in my exhaust system and I should blast it out with a jet wash, strange but that is what he said. Standing still it produces a little black smoke but nothing more than your average diesel car, or to give readings that would make me fail my MOT. The thick black smoke appears only when I kick down or take off other than that its fine.

I had the thick black smoke before the remap and after the remap I would say it is still exactly the same amount of smoke. My fuel after the remap improved but I will get my mechanic to check my hoses. I have ordered the EGR valve bypass which should arrive this week to see if it makes a difference.

[X5-D-Sport]

It could simply need a good blast up a motorway, get it nice n hot & let it rip... some fuel system cleaner may also help de-coke the CAT & clear it out.... Ive had a few diesels like that, & just needed a good blast out...

The EGR bypass will certainly help, & so will a replacement K&N filter to get MORE air into the engine.

May sound silly, but....what condition is the engine oil in..?
Very often emissions can clean up considerably with new oil & filter...

[X5patX5]

EGR bypass valve has arrived and I am going to buy the recommended injector cleaner from Amazon in the green bottle. I will get the EGR valve Bypass fitted weekend and then probably on my way to Gaydon pour in the injector cleaner and give it a blast, that is if I go to Gaydon as everyone around me seems to be pulling out. I already fitted a K&N filter a while back.

I have had the car hooked up to a computer and loads of faults came up but they were all reset including one in the gearbox, the only one that stayed was a fault in my instrument cluster.

I have changed my oil probably every 3k to 4k miles since i have owned the car, and i normally use quantum oil which is produced by castrol and the oil i sell in my place of work to all the garages i supply to. I will say every service i have done the car runs outstanding for the first couple of months, still smokey but very responsive.

I will update once the EGR valve has been fitted.

[X5Sport]

Official BMW fuel additives

83 19 2 296  922 BMW group diesel additive

83 192 183 738  BMW Group Petrol additive

About £10 a 100ml bottle, one per tank.

[X5patX5]

[quote="X5Sport"]
Official BMW fuel additives

83 19 2 296  922 BMW group diesel additive

83 192 183 738  BMW Group Petrol additive

About £10 a 100ml bottle, one per tank.
[/quote]

Thanks I will purchase the above also.

[Steamyrotter]

I Seem to remember somewhere that someone had issues with the manifolds / gaskets that caused something similar....

Or it could be a dodgy injector.....  (there he goes again....)





(If i say it enough times eventually it will be the right answer!!!)

[X5patX5]

Changed the EGR valve today, and on a scale of 1 to 10 I am not sure how bad it is but there was quite a bit of gunk to clean so i decided to fit the Bypass valve instead. I then went for a short blast and there was some smoke but not as thick as usual. I will give it a couple of days add the cleaner and then take it for a proper blast to try and clear it out and see what happens, but so far it looks like an improvement.

[X5patX5]

Okay so i went on the tunnel run in my beast after pouring in this

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Clean-Drive-NCL ... or+cleaner

The black smoke to me has been reduced by 50% so i will be pouring in some more of the above in the recommended three month periods, for those who have assisted me so far thanks. I will also try some of the diesel additive from BMW for my long drive up to Santa Pod this weekend.

[Turks]

When I read the first post, I thought that it wouldn't be something obvious, because that would have been checked. My first thought was actually Manifold related, cracks and/or holes - then I saw Steamyrotter's post and confirmed I wasn't going mad.

Basically it was affecting the back-pressure I think - similar to how a loose or damage vacuum pipe may affect things and therefore un-burnt fuel getting through and causing the smoke. Check around welds and bolts, but if I remember, it really wasn't obvious at all. You may need to be under the bonnet whilst someone revs the engine to see if there are any leaks.


Turks.

[X5patX5]

[quote="Turks"]
When I read the first post, I thought that it wouldn't be something obvious, because that would have been checked. My first thought was actually Manifold related, cracks and/or holes - then I saw Steamyrotter's post and confirmed I wasn't going mad.

Basically it was affecting the back-pressure I think - similar to how a loose or damage vacuum pipe may affect things and therefore un-burnt fuel getting through and causing the smoke. Check around welds and bolts, but if I remember, it really wasn't obvious at all. You may need to be under the bonnet whilst someone revs the engine to see if there are any leaks.


Turks.
[/quote]

Thanks, will do, its just finding the time, but the more info and ideas people throw at me the closer i am getting to solving my problem by myself. This is a great forum.