Hello,
I hope someone on this forum has some good insights. I have a 1987 245 Wagon, automatic transmission. It has around 170,000 miles (not exactly sure b/c the odometer was broken for a couple of years and then replaced). Anyway, we recently had it tuned up and had the temp sensor and the O2 sensor replaced so that it would pass DEQ. Apparently the probe for the O2 sensor was completely burnt off. In the past two years we have had the catalytic converter replaced as well as the air mass meter/sensor? But my husband just drove the car to a city about an hour away and on the highway it was spewing grayish/whitish smoke. The back bumper is splattered with oily stuff and the back window was completely covered in an oily film. This happened one other time (like this) a couple of years ago (also after a tune-up) when I drove to a city about 3 hours away. It was very sluggish moving into the next gear. I felt like a lead-foot and as I was putting the pedal to the medal, the back window was being covered in the oil (or whatever).
Any of you real mechanical types know off the top of your head, what could be going on here?

 

Have you had your PCV checked and/or completely replaced? Or you might have some bad oil seals?

 

Check all your fluid levels and see what's missing. Oil, coolant, ATF, brakes. Is it a leak or is it coming out of the tail pipe? Start with the simple and more obvious first: crankcase ventilation, seal leaks, gaskets. Use your eyes.
Ed

 

Depending on the chronology of the last replacement cat and the O2 sensor replacement, another consideration is the possibility of major carbon residue built up in the exhaust. That one, solitary O2 sensor is what informs the engine control unit how rich/lean the fuel mixture is and the ecu then compensates accordingly. Without an accurate signal input, the motor will run pig rich. That excess carbon builds up in the exhaust and will also ruin the cat in no time. So, just one more thing added to the excellent advice already proffered.

 

Whitish smoke, oil on the back, and sluggish, sounds like transmission fluid leaking onto the exhaust. Could be a failed cooler line,or a seal. I had a trans. cooler line fail once,and the same thing happened. After about 3 miles the transmission began to slip and had to pull over/shut down. Continued operation with low oil level will cause transmission slippage and catastrophic damage. Look under the car to see if the bottom is covered in oil .Hope this helps.

 

Would definitely toast the transmission. Catastrophic damage? Always figured that was something like getting your crown jewels caught in a bear trap and the chain's long enough to reach your sheath knife but not the Budweiser. Just sayin'