Short term billowing smoke (1 Viewer)

[Swandog]

1996 lx450, 275 km, last weekend I started it cold, backed up 10 feet and shut it off to hook up utility trailer. Started up again and drove maybe 100 yards to brush pile and shut it off again.Started again and drove maybe 200 yards to burn pile and shut it off again. Started again and parked it.Did not run all week.
So today I started it cold again and drove down the road, got a few miles and smelled hot, looked in mirror and it was billowing white/bluish smoke, pulled over and at idle was smoking and smelled horrible, not sweet or burnt oil but more like a house fire, drove back home , ran fine and had pretty much cleared up,
Checked oil, coolant, looked for bubbles in rad, looked up tail pipe for mouse nest, just got back from 15 mile drive and worked great, no smoke or smell.
My guess is the 4 or 5 cold starts loaded the cats with unburnt fuel and oil and it just burned it off, actually being a diesel tech the smell kinda reminded me of a new diesel doing a burn, anyone had something like this happen? Feasible or am I out to lunch?

 

[1911garand]

My 1997 doesn't like short tips either and will smoke similar to what you describe above if I short trip it. The exhaust smells like....old Toyota smell.

 

[Swandog]

Ha old Toyota smell, yup that’s it

 

[1911garand]

My old 1986 Corolla, 1986.5 Supra (non turbo), 1987 Nova, and 1987 4Runner exhaust all smell IDENTICAL to the 1997 FZJ80. Funny how that works.

 

[LandLocked93]

Sounds like the cats. Smells like cabbage.
The smoke is concerning tho. Intermittent ring seizing going on?

 

[flintknapper]

Oil seeping past valve guide seals and possibly un-burned fuel are your most likely culprits.

Not much you can do about oil getting past the VGS, it is harmless and burns off quickly. Un-burned fuel 'could' be an injector sticking open (even if intermittent) which floods the cylinder (when not being fired). Then it burns off in the Cats (not good for the Cats) and can take quite a few minutes to dissipate.

Both conditions taken singularly or together will produce the smoke you describe. The smell of each is probably the best indicator as to what it is.

 

[Swandog]

Thanks guys, just back from a 20minute drive and no issues, I’ll have to keep an eye on it.
I had been thinking of valve seals before this as I sometimes get a little puff of blue at startup and oil consumption, although still very low, is up a bit since I switched to synthetic .
This truck has always ran rich at cold start open loop, more so than other Toyota’s I’ve owned same vintage.