Why my car smells of burned oil

It often happens that we are on our way to our destination and we begin to perceive a strong smell of burnt oil that, on several occasions, is accompanied by smoke. This happens normally when there is a leak that goes to the engine and it burns and although it is not given importance, it is a fault that must be checked by a specialist.

Keep in mind that many defects in the vehicle may be causing this particularity and if you have ever wondered why my car smells like burned oil, we'll explain it to you.

What is the oil path in the car engine

Before understanding any failure, it is important to know how the oil works in the car and what its route is ; Knowing this we can detect quickly in case it happens unexpectedly.

The oil is deposited in the crankcase, passes through the oil filter and this is responsible for cleaning it of any impurity it contains. After this is driven by a pump, making it travel the entire lubrication circuit, here there is a valve that is responsible for regulating the pressure and maintain it throughout the journey to control the viscosity of the oil and all its changes. After all this process, the same oil goes back to the crankcase to cool down and start the journey shortly again.

In this process valves and pistons are involved, which close and rise, this generates a mixture of gasoline with oxygen creating combustion and when this happens, the oil begins to burn or at least the layer that is created; The problem arises when the oil burning is excessive and begins to create smoke or an unusual smell, from here, we will look for where in the entire route the fault is located.

Smell of oil burned in the car by a leak

Oil leaks in the car are one of the most common faults and can occur properly in the engine or in the catalytic converter or the exhaust manifold. This small error may be due to poor condition or damage to the cover of any of the valves, if there is a break, oil wells are generated, allowing the unintentional exit of oil to the collector and, consequently, burning the oil in the car. leaving an extremely strong smell.

This can be solved with the change or repair of the covers on the covers if it is in perfect condition, otherwise they should be replaced and replaced with new ones. In we tell you more about what to do if the car loses oil.

Faults in the oil filler cap

This is more common in cars whose engine is very old . These can present wear on the piston rings, causing the pistons to absorb much more oil than they should; It burns here and is returned already burned.

Remember that there is a valve that is responsible for ventilation of the crankcase, area of ​​the vehicle where the oil is deposited; When the smoke does not suck properly for another burn, the oil filler cap is passed.

As we commented before, it usually happens more commonly in vehicles with many years of antiquity, however, there are other failures such as clogged valves or with a lot of wear that generate a row of errors in the ventilation of the crankcase and the cover itself.

Failure in valve seals

The valves are responsible for propelling the oil all the way from the crankcase until its return, when there is a problem or breakdown in the seals of these, the oil begins to have difficulty moving to the combustion chamber and is known to happen because it generates the famous "blue smoke" at the time of starting the car or when it accelerates.

With regard to the smell of oil, it may be due to a filtration caused by the same failure of the valve seals ; These small drops fall to the engine and as it is hot, it burns generating a highly unpleasant odor.

Keep in mind that having the car with low oil levels can cause many faults in the filter, valves and the engine if it is not well lubricated.

That is why the first failure you notice in your car, it is important to take it to a professional mechanic to fix the problem in time and not generate a worse or in the worst case, permanent damage to the piece. It is also important to be aware of when the revision of each certain mileage is due and to do its maintenance to avoid accumulation of oil, dust or any other damage.