Ford F-53 Black Smoke

Did it throw any lights? (CIL or check engine?)

Soot buildup along the exhaust system?

Everything looks great under the rig. I may take to dealer just to be safe.

Dale.Traveling wrote:
Using my 2006 as a comparison, the exhaust tail pipe is on the driver's side but it runs down the passenger side of the chassis and crosses over just before the rear axle. Left cylinders cross over to the right just in front of the transmission torque converter housing. Climb under and take a close look at the transmission cooler lines and filter which on the right side of the chassis between the frame and engine. Also check the transmission oil level. The Ford transmission has the thermostat much like the engine that will open when hot, as with a hill climb, and send oil to the cooler to regulate the transmission temp. Hotter the transmission the more oil going to the cooler. Doesn't take much oil on a hot exhaust to make a lot of smoke.

Take a look at the catalytic convertor heat shields. You could have picked up some road debris, such as a piece of retread, that the hot convertor burned off.

Rather than an RV dealer find a Ford truck service center. Take it to the experts. In San Diego Miramar Ford Truck Sales might be a better choice for chassis related problems.

Thanks for the info. I never take it to the RV dealer. I've always taken it to the local ford dealer. However they seem to take a few tries to fix things. It's always been pretty convenient as they are 10min away. But I'd agree that the truck center is a better option.

Once the rain lets up I'll crawl under and take a look.

Using my 2006 as a comparison, the exhaust tail pipe is on the driver's side but it runs down the passenger side of the chassis and crosses over just before the rear axle. Left cylinders cross over to the right just in front of the transmission torque converter housing. Climb under and take a close look at the transmission cooler lines and filter which on the right side of the chassis between the frame and engine. Also check the transmission oil level. The Ford transmission has the thermostat much like the engine that will open when hot, as with a hill climb, and send oil to the cooler to regulate the transmission temp. Hotter the transmission the more oil going to the cooler. Doesn't take much oil on a hot exhaust to make a lot of smoke.

Take a look at the catalytic convertor heat shields. You could have picked up some road debris, such as a piece of retread, that the hot convertor burned off.

Rather than an RV dealer find a Ford truck service center. Take it to the experts. In San Diego Miramar Ford Truck Sales might be a better choice for chassis related problems.

rgatijnet1 wrote:
Black smoke is usually an indication that your engine was running rich. I run with a ScanGauge hooked up all of the time and one thing that I monitor is the air/fuel ratio. In normal operation it is running at 14.7. During hard acceleration or during a hill climb where the engine downshifts, the mixture is automatically enriched by your engine computer to provide more power and for cylinder cooling.
I think that since your engine is running fine now, that this was just normal operation and nothing to worry about. The white smoke could just be some moisture in your exhaust system which is pretty common during the Winter.
If you have access to a Scangauge, you may want to hook it up and see if your engine is running at 14.6-14.7 during normal cruise on flat land. If you can't do that, I wouldn't worry about it.

Cruise Control was set at 65, toad didnt make it this trip.. pretty decent grade. Cruise control down shifted and floored it, thats when the smoke appeared. Didnt do it on any other grades and after I got the call that it was smoking I floored it again and this time there was no smoke.

Odd.

Engine only has 5k miles on it so the warranty is still fresh.

Was raining pretty good, not sure if that matters.

Black smoke is usually an indication that your engine was running rich. I run with a ScanGauge hooked up all of the time and one thing that I monitor is the air/fuel ratio. In normal operation it is running at 14.7. During hard acceleration or during a hill climb where the engine downshifts, the mixture is automatically enriched by your engine computer to provide more power and for cylinder cooling.
I think that since your engine is running fine now, that this was just normal operation and nothing to worry about. The white smoke could just be some moisture in your exhaust system which is pretty common during the Winter.
If you have access to a Scangauge, you may want to hook it up and see if your engine is running at 14.6-14.7 during normal cruise on flat land. If you can't do that, I wouldn't worry about it.

Effy wrote:
Was your gen set running?

No.

Was your gen set running?