Also posted on m.net: http://forum.miata.net/vb/showthread.php?p=3252172
So I was @ ButtonWillow this weekend. The drive down from the bay area(5.5 hour trek towing my HF trailer) was uneventful, but after my first warmup lap Saturday morning I started to lay into it and after about 1.5 laps a huge plume of smoke blasted out from behind me. At first I thought maybe it was a coolant leak at one of the heater hoses(vaporizing on the hot downpipe), but then I smelled burning oil. I got off line and slowed way down, but didn't see any oil drops or a trail behind me, but I stayed off line the rest of the way around to the pits anyhow. So I pop my hood and my oil dipstick was sticking up about 2 inches with oil blasted all over the damn place - frickin mess. I let it cool down and used about 1/4 roll of blue towels to clean everything up. I then thought "hmm, perhaps the SS wool I stuffed in the valve cover baffling was inhibiting proper crankcase ventilation?" I didn't see how it was an issue NOW, after about 5k miles and several track events, but I took it off and spent the rest of the morning removing the SS wool and resealing the valve cover baffle plates and then reinstalling the valve cover. Also, my oil catch can was 1/2 full of oil(it was bone dry before the drive down to BW). So fingers crossed I go out again & the same damn thing happens . I pulled the plugs and the tips were all clean(no oil). Then I thought maybe the 3psi boost spikes(saw a few up to ~18psi) were causing it so Sunday morning I just disconnected the EBC entirely ran off the stock wastegate. SAME THING happened after 2 hard laps, oil blew out the dipstick tube and my catch can was 1/2 full of oil too. I called it a day and drove home VERY gingerly, staying completely out of boost(driving ~55mph all the way - the limit since I was towing anyhow). So after about 100 miles I stopped for gas and checked my oil catch can - it was TOTALLY FULL ! I stopped every 40-50 miles from then on and each time it was nearly 1/2 full. The good news is at least oil didn't puke all over my engine bay again. The bad news is I have NO friggin idea WTF the problem is... The engine sounds and feels fine, but I am at a loss. Any ideas? _______________________________________________ Miatapower mailing list [email protected] http://list.miatapower.net/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/miatapower
