Any word on this? Did you get my advice in time, or did another good one go to the junkyard?

 

Had already dumped in the BarSeals before I saw your post later. Car has quit leaking it seems and sure doesn`t smoke on start-up like it did before.

I am saving my pennies for something else in the meantime. We will see how it goes.

 

Whew! Disaster averted, and one more -SE stays on the roads...

I'm up to 220k mi on my original engine, and for the fact that it's been well-cared-for with regular oil change intervals, filters, and general preventative maintenance, it's getting the white smoke at startup (coolant and/or oil getting past the Oil Control Rings), and had a hard time getting going on a hot start last weekend. Also, fuel mileage is down around 12-14mpg city - when I used to get about 16-18 city and 20-22 highway, so I'm losing fuel efficiency at the compression seals, as well. And... my oil dipstick doesn't seem to want to stay in place, as it's popped every time I open the hood.

My compression must be dropping, as I had to spin the motor for a good minute before it got enough liquid fuel in the chambers to seal a bit better and build compression. I was getting worried. It's been drinking about a cup of coolant every 20-30mi trip, so I know it's time that I swap my spare engine. Rebuild opportunity,