Hello,
I recently bought an 08' range rover with 53,000 miles on it.
When I started it up a week ago, a plume of white smoke came out of the exhaust. When I accelerate from a stop, I get white smoke as well as when I accelerate quickly while driving. Obviously I parked it and have t driven it since. I called a specialist in Cleveland worried about needing a new head gasket... And he stopped me mid sentence and said, PCV valve. He was so sure! I am assuming worse case scenario, but do you guys think that this is the most likely problem based on the symptoms? Please put my mind at ease and give me the absolute worse case scenario and price estimate if it is in fact the worse case! Thanks

 

white smoke from first start up ,usually means valve seals badly worn , ( allowing oil to run down valve stem and drip onto piston/s )

does it still smoke after you have driven for a few minutes ? if it does , then your head gasket needs to be checked , Transmission modulator valve could be faulty as well .

check the PCV valve ( positive crankcase ventilation ) to see if its clogged ...

 

I would have to disgree, white = COOLANT, blue = oil

 

I agree. Oil is blue/gray. White results from water or coolant.

Here may be another possibility:
After a cold start, the moisture in the combustion gasses condense when they hit the cold exhaust. As everything warms up, they turn back into vapor causing white exhaust. the white exhaust will stop after all the condensation evaporates.

 

Please explain how this can effect the color of the exhaust?

 

A bad PCV valve will cause a buildup of pressure in the crankcase. This pressure could push oil past valve seals, rings. Oil will gen into the combustion chamber causing gray/blue exhaust.

I would replace the PCV valve. It is not a lot of cost or effort to replace and should be done periodically.

 

a bad modulator valve can cause you to you to suck tranny fluid in the vacuum hose to the carb. (leaning a heavy white smoke)
But seeing as it is electronically controlled there is no vacuum modulator, just as there is no Carb. this probably isnt the answer

 

any special shade of blue ????

 

seriously now - it wont affect the colour of the exhaust .... it will affect the colour of the smoke coming out the exhaust ,

a modulator valve operates with a vacuum , the most likely place to get vacuum pressure from is the cylinder/s , so it can be possible for oil to go to cylinder/s ....

 

08 RR does not have a vacuum modulator valve

Since you is driving an 08 range rover in Cleveland it is not a diesel, it has a jag powerplant "i" believe.

The PVC valve could very well be the problem, if you read the LR3 or 4 section someone just had this same problem in the last month and it was caused by the PVC valve. it wasn't a RR but was probably running a jag powerplant.