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· HOTM Winner
2020 Challenger Hellcat Redeye Wide Body
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12,720 Posts
Very common actually. Should only be once in a blue moon. If it becomes a pattern then I'd have it looked at.
 

· Registered
2020 Challenger Hellraisin Scat Pack.
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3,225 Posts
I have a 2020 dodge charger hellcat widebody with 17k miles, i started realizing the vehicle blows out blue smoke here and there. Just wondering if that is normal for thess engines?
Techs see this all the time with new and used cars on the lot. They tell me if the smoking is short lived, the CEL remains dark, and the engine otherwise manifests no signs of any trouble they pay the smoking no mind.

I would add that as long as the engine doesn't smoke upon hot start or on the road the smoking is normal.

The smoking arises from the separation of oil vapor from the crankcase fumes that pass from the engine to the intake is not perfect. Some oil vapor makes it through and upon entering the intake can't make that sharp turn. The heavier oil vapor particles strike the opposite side of the intake and reform into liquid oil. If the engine is warm and continues to run this liquid oil gets burned with no drama.

However if the engine is cold/cool or not run long enough when the engine is shut off the intake is heat soaked which warms the oil and of course gravity will have it flow down. A bit of oil can collect on top of a closed intake valve or even flow into the cylinder if the valve is open.

Upon cold start the oil is ingested by the engine but its combustion is not complete and smoking is the result.

With my cars including my Hellcat and my 2020 Scat Pack what try to do whenever possible is ot avoid short engine run time. Starting the engine to back the car out of the garage to move the car to the driveway then some time later starting the engine to pull the car back in the garage again is the worst.

But short trips that do not have the engine and its oil reach full operating temperature are nearly as bad.

What I found was even though I avoided the short trips that as the oil accumulated miles occasionally I'd see a bit of oil smoke upon cold start. In my usage this was as the oil approached 5K miles. As the oil accumulates miles it gets more contaminated. This increases the oil's propensity to create oil vapor from the violence it is subjected to inside the engine. Thus more oil vapor for the not very efficient oil vapor recovery system to allow to pass through to the intake.

And last but not least needless to say avoid overfilling the engine with oil. I have no qualms running the engine with the oil level at the max level -- when running the oil level in the pan drops as several quarts as this oil can be in the various oil passages/oil lines and under the valve covers and running down the various crankcase surfaces back to the pan -- but when changing the oil I put only the required amount of oil in the engine. If necessary to add oil between oil changes I"m careful to only add enough oil to bring the level up to the full/max line but no higher.

As an aside, with my 2018 Hellcat and with my 2020 Scat Pack it appears that with the right amount of oil in the engine the oil level on the dipstick is above the full line by a small fraction of an inch. For the Hellcat I learned of a dipstick upgrade which required a new dipstick and dipstick tube which would with the correct amount of oil in the engine have the oil level at the max/full line on the dipstick. I ordered the dipstick -- and got it -- but the dipstick tube was on back order. However, I never got a chance to have the dipstick tube installed before I traded in the car.

With my Scat Pack I'm not going to worry about seeking out a dipstick/dipstick tube to address this issue. When I get the Scat Pack back from an oil/filter service I check the oil level and note where it is on the stick and use that as the "full" or max level. So far with around 5K miles on the car I have not seen it smoke upon startup even once.
 

· Registered
Challenger SRT Hellcat
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1,885 Posts
my 15 HC and 18 392 did it randomly. My 1320 has done it maybe 3 or 4 times in 15k miles.
 

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133 Posts
Occasionally on startup, just a little puff of blue, no big deal.
I think it's a big deal, there's a big problem with this in the Hellcat department. Oil is getting past the valve seals.

This is why I don't use 0W 40 in the summer and before any master mechanics here tell me somethings going to happen if I don't use 0W 40, well I put over 30,000 miles on the Hellcat and never had a issue using different grades of oil.
Summer/fall/spring I put 5 quarts 10 W 40 and 1 1/2 quarts 0W 40.
Winter time I use 6.5 qts 0W 40.
This solved my start up smoking problem.
 

· Premium Member
2021 Black Widebody Challenger Redeye
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3,259 Posts
I think it's a big deal, there's a big problem with this in the Hellcat department. Oil is getting past the valve seals.

This is why I don't use 0W 40 in the summer and before any master mechanics here tell me somethings going to happen if I don't use 0W 40, well I put over 30,000 miles on the Hellcat and never had a issue using different grades of oil.
Summer/fall/spring I put 5 quarts 10 W 40 and 1 1/2 quarts 0W 40.
Winter time I use 6.5 qts 0W 40.
This solved my start up smoking problem.
Nah, no problem, mine only does it like stated above in another post. I start it, move it, shut it off then start it again still cold. Just one little puff. Perfectly normal when everything is cold & oil coats cylinders. I use recommended oil.
 

· Registered
2022 Charger Redeye
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553 Posts
Techs see this all the time with new and used cars on the lot. They tell me if the smoking is short lived, the CEL remains dark, and the engine otherwise manifests no signs of any trouble they pay the smoking no mind.

I would add that as long as the engine doesn't smoke upon hot start or on the road the smoking is normal.

The smoking arises from the separation of oil vapor from the crankcase fumes that pass from the engine to the intake is not perfect. Some oil vapor makes it through and upon entering the intake can't make that sharp turn. The heavier oil vapor particles strike the opposite side of the intake and reform into liquid oil. If the engine is warm and continues to run this liquid oil gets burned with no drama.

However if the engine is cold/cool or not run long enough when the engine is shut off the intake is heat soaked which warms the oil and of course gravity will have it flow down. A bit of oil can collect on top of a closed intake valve or even flow into the cylinder if the valve is open.

Upon cold start the oil is ingested by the engine but its combustion is not complete and smoking is the result.

With my cars including my Hellcat and my 2020 Scat Pack what try to do whenever possible is ot avoid short engine run time. Starting the engine to back the car out of the garage to move the car to the driveway then some time later starting the engine to pull the car back in the garage again is the worst.

But short trips that do not have the engine and its oil reach full operating temperature are nearly as bad.

What I found was even though I avoided the short trips that as the oil accumulated miles occasionally I'd see a bit of oil smoke upon cold start. In my usage this was as the oil approached 5K miles. As the oil accumulates miles it gets more contaminated. This increases the oil's propensity to create oil vapor from the violence it is subjected to inside the engine. Thus more oil vapor for the not very efficient oil vapor recovery system to allow to pass through to the intake.

And last but not least needless to say avoid overfilling the engine with oil. I have no qualms running the engine with the oil level at the max level -- when running the oil level in the pan drops as several quarts as this oil can be in the various oil passages/oil lines and under the valve covers and running down the various crankcase surfaces back to the pan -- but when changing the oil I put only the required amount of oil in the engine. If necessary to add oil between oil changes I"m careful to only add enough oil to bring the level up to the full/max line but no higher.

As an aside, with my 2018 Hellcat and with my 2020 Scat Pack it appears that with the right amount of oil in the engine the oil level on the dipstick is above the full line by a small fraction of an inch. For the Hellcat I learned of a dipstick upgrade which required a new dipstick and dipstick tube which would with the correct amount of oil in the engine have the oil level at the max/full line on the dipstick. I ordered the dipstick -- and got it -- but the dipstick tube was on back order. However, I never got a chance to have the dipstick tube installed before I traded in the car.

With my Scat Pack I'm not going to worry about seeking out a dipstick/dipstick tube to address this issue. When I get the Scat Pack back from an oil/filter service I check the oil level and note where it is on the stick and use that as the "full" or max level. So far with around 5K miles on the car I have not seen it smoke upon startup even once.
I’ve occasionally seen a cloud of blue smoke but never paid attention if it was after a short run. I don’t think it’s an issue though. Over 100K miles on my 2015 Hellcat and never had to add oil between changes.
Glad I read this thread. I’ll pay closer attention to circumstances next time I see smoke.
 

· Registered
2020 Challenger Hellraisin Scat Pack.
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3,225 Posts
I think it's a big deal, there's a big problem with this in the Hellcat department. Oil is getting past the valve seals.

This is why I don't use 0W 40 in the summer and before any master mechanics here tell me somethings going to happen if I don't use 0W 40, well I put over 30,000 miles on the Hellcat and never had a issue using different grades of oil.
Summer/fall/spring I put 5 quarts 10 W 40 and 1 1/2 quarts 0W 40.
Winter time I use 6.5 qts 0W 40.
This solved my start up smoking problem.
Oh God another one of those mad oil blenders....

You realize that 0w-40, 10w-40 both have the same high temperature viscosity index? If 0w-40 is getting past the seals so too is 10w-40.

Also, for an oil the additive package is critical. By blending two different oils -- and you assume they are even miscible -- the resulting oil has a comprised additive package.

Yeah, you have 30K miles with no problems. That's good for you but would you be willing to stand behind your oil recommendation for other owners?
 

· HOTM Winner
2020 Challenger Hellcat Redeye Wide Body
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12,720 Posts
Every once in a blue meaning?
Meaning randomly and not very often. My last Hellcat did it maybe three or four times in four years. Wasnt a daily driver though. Had 7k miles after four years.
 
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