2011 burning smell from under the hood

[PTRWorkVan]

Hello everyone! I have a 2011 Connect XLT with a little issue under the hood. Back in October I noticed white smoke faintly coming from under the hood and smelled like burning oil. I've opened up the hood and looked around and couldn't really pinpoint where the smoke was coming from, just really from the back of the engine towards the dash. I've attached a link to a video I took back in October of what it sounded like when I would open the hood shortly after stopping the engine. It no longer makes that bubbling sound, but I can still smell what smells like something burning in the engine bay.

 

The van idle's for about 3-5 hours each day, with the heat on low and that's it. There is a workshop in the back of the van that I use so generally it stays put in one spot, sometimes it'll go around town and stop and idle. The smell doesn't get worse when driving or putting load on it, so I'm just looking to see if I can figure out what is causing it.

 

I've replaced the valve cover gasket, and the PCV valve with no luck. It seems like there's oil spitting out where the gasket is located. I can't visually see oil leaking, but there looks to be fresh, wet oil sitting around where the gasket is located after I've cleaned the area.

 

My local mechanic has retired and I'm hoping that this is something I can do myself to save some money. Here's the link to the video that shows the sound of something bubbling or gurgling, which the van doesn't do anymore, but hoping to pinpoint why it was doing that: https://youtu.be/nFBcGSm1QPg

 

Thanks everyone for your ideas in advance!

[G B L]

Looked at the video nothing stood out. Must be oil on the exhaust manifold from some where.  Where do you see the fresh oil first after you clean the area?

[PTRWorkVan]

Thanks for the reply. The area that was cleaned was around the valve cover gasket. Mostly around the drivers side, but it can be all around. I've also ordered a cooling fan resistor and Cylinder Head Temperature Sensor because I noticed the fans not turning on and the oil temperature start to overheat. I'm hoping this may help solve the issue.

Edited March 30, 2018 by PTRWorkVan

[G B L]

It could.  Do a good job cleaning the whole Valve cover area, then watch the whole area to see where it gets wet with oil first. Keep us posted

 

[PTRWorkVan]

So I’ve finished replacing the cylinder head temp sensor & fan speed resistor on the TC and here are the updates. I ran the vehicle with hazards on, high beams on, AC on recirculating main vents on “4” (high), front and rear defrosters on, windshield wipers on just to stress test the vehicle for about 20 minutes with no overheating issues and the fan kicking on every minute or so to keep the engine cool. I’m going to run it for another few hours at my current setting (3/4 heat, and notch “1” (low interior fan speed, good for working in the back of the van) to see if it still smells like burning / shows fresh oil near the gasket.

 

Update:

I ran it for about 4 hours total, and the only smell I smelled was the engine degreaser burning off. I checked around the seal and no oil formed. I have to make a 250 miles run at the end of this week, so I’ll see what happens during that. Thanks again for all your help!

Edited April 2, 2018 by PTRWorkVan

[G B L]

Sounds promising

[PTRWorkVan]

Just a quick update: while the van (thankfully) didn't overheat during my 300+ mile total trip, it still smells like something is burning faintly. It also sounds like something in the engine bay may be whining under wide open throttle. Last time I checked, I didn't have a Whipple supercharger under there, haha. The van doesn't go for long journeys too often, so I'll check out the rest little by little.

[BobbyD]

Hmmm.  got same prob on used 2010 i just bought.  will troubleshoot and post my findings.  i can smell oil thru vent fan.  157k mi.  so replacing bell gasket first.  otherwise ok, no overheating or noticable loss of oil, drips, etc. 

[Bill Jackson]

I have always had that problem with my 2012 with 85,000 miles on it. I'm not seeing any oil leakage. The smell just comes and goes and many times it happens even after a short trip. I have recently taken the van on a 600 mile round trip. The smell seemed to dissipate after a couple hundred miles of driving. Must be some small amount of seepage somewhere in or around a seal. Thanks for bringing this up I will look closer at the seals you have mentioned above.

[Bill Jackson]

I apologize if I'm stating the obvious but for me the key to focus on is that in these newer vehicles we're running a low viscosity oil 5w20. That means that we will be spending more money and attention to the issues of keeping seals and gaskets in pristine condition. Put some of that 5w20 on you hand and rub it around....pretty thin stuff. Much harder to keep contained under pressure - like in a running engine - unless the engineering, machining, assembly and seal placement and care comes up to a much higher standard. Just my thoughts.