88XJSteve

So I finally got my 88 XJ 4.0L started on Thursday. it was sitting for around 8 months to a year the kid who had it before me blew the tranny and just let it sit.

Well I had to replace the plug wires, distributor cap, rotor, ignition coil and I also put in new 10-40 oil and a little over 5 gallons of 92 octane gas to help out the gas that was in there.

To also get it started I put in a oil squirt can some tranny fluid and squirted about 5-6 squirts of tranny fluid into each cylinder to give it a little lube to get going. And well after all of that it fired right up and is going good.

I also filled up the reservoir tank with new radiator fluid and power steering fluid.

The temp gauge goes up to the 210 mark and the mechanical fan kicks in and cools it back down I DO NOT HAVE AN E-FAN AS I DON'T HAVE A/C the oil pressure gauge is broken but the engine doesn't sound like a lawn mower so I have oil pressure. I don't see any leaks of any kind except for all of the tranny fluid on the underside due to the bad tranny.

Now when I start it and it sits for about... oh id say 10 minutes or so give or take a couple minutes the belt starts squealing (not 100% but kinda sure) it starts soft and gets louder as it runs to the 10 minute mark and I start to see smoke/steam whatever it is coming up from the drivers side of the valve cover gasket, now I'm not for sure if its coming from the valve cover itself, but it looks like to me that it comes from that point of the engine. And for what I've looked at (which I haven't looked much) I haven't noticed any burning or hoses.

It smells like a burning of rubber/plastic hell it might even be oil or tranny fluid but I can't pin point it myself and since I just bought it I really don't want to buy a new engine or something. The smoke isn't a thick smoke just transparent like in color.

Thanks for any help you can give to a first time Jeep owner!

ntomsheck

The smoke is probably from spilled oil, or all the tranny fluid that most likely coated the exhaust. Tranny fluid does have a different smell than oil when burning; it's reasonable to believe this is what you're smelling. Tighten your belt for the squealing - it's probably getting warm then expanding and getting loose. Fix the belt issue, then let it idle for longer. If the smoke doesn't eventually go away, then it might be something more.

You could also have a leaking valve cover gasket. The oil may be seeping out of the drivers side, then dripping down to the hot exhaust mainfold. This would give the illusion that it's coming from the valve cover. Check the torque of the valve cover bolts before you start replacing parts.

88XJSteve

I gotcha thanks I actually got some new ac delco plugs and a new fel-pro valve cover gasket from o'reillys today. I want to replace that stuff anyways since it sat for so long and since it'll be reassurance on my part/mind.

So basically tighten the belt to get the squeaking to go away and wait for the burning smell and smoke to go away.

Now this might be an obvious question but if the smoke is getting worse when do I shut the truck off? When I start seeing fire, BAD noises or is there anything I should look for that would say TURN ME OFF NOW!!??

88XJSteve

Oh and does the valve cover bolts need to be tightened in any certain sequence and to what torque do I tighten them to? I looked in the haynes manual but can't find the info I need.

Caish

Start with the center ones on each side.
Snug them up equally then move to the next.
Always best to tighten any Aluminum/Magnesium cover this way.
Never just torque one down tight on the go to the other end and tighten it. You can crack/break the part in question.

gpXJ

They don't take much...around 11 ft lbs. if I remember correctly.

88XJSteve

Thanks for the info guys I couldn't find any of that in my haynes guide

Now about the burning smell/smoke I'm gonna check oil and valve cover gasket is there anything that I should check first off that has been a culprit in the past for other people??

And is it safe to say that if there's no "death" sounds happening and I'm not over heating and everything seems fine that I should just let the fluid burn off?