it only does every now and then.... more so when the engine is hot like when off roading. it doesnt always burn oil but when it does it smoke quite a bit. Could this be valve guides? I would think if it was a broken ring it would be constantly smoking.

i heard synthetic oil doesnt burn does that mean I could run symthetic and stop smoke?

A rebuild is the only real solution to stop the oil cloud.

Coming out the tailpipe?

Sounds kinda like my '93, she'll sit there and run all day on the highway or around town without burning oil, but once she gets hot she'll start to smoke. This is usually when I've been stuck in traffic or sitting at a drive-thru long enough for the efan to come on and move the temp gauge up ~210.

In my case, it's just worn valve guides. Probably the same for you. My engine has good compression, which is what pointed us to the guides as the culprit over the rings. I've found that putting a bottle of Engine Honey in it after an oil change pretty much eliminates the smoke, but I'm sure that's not overall good for the lifespan of the engine. I'll be putting in a new engine when I do the 4x4 conversion this fall.

was rebuilt in feb 2010... but no head work was done other than valve seals.

i have been considering putting a new head on it..

Thats what I would do.

If it's making its way into the cylinder/combustion chamber, it gonna burn, synthetic/conventional, makes no difference. Where do the myths get started?

guy that works at auto zone lol ... i just assumed if it didnt burn it would just blow out of the exhaust. thanks for clearing that up though

The only way it won't burn, after reaching the cylinder, is if there's no ignition in the cylinder......but hey, that's been known to happen because the oil fouled a spark plug so bad that it won't fire.