325i white smoke and idle problem

[puppie]

Hi all,
I have an e36 325i and im having problems with the idle,

The car works fine for about 1 week of town driving.

After 1 week the idle hunts from 200-1500 rpms this

is also accompanied by white smoke on startup and

lasts for about 5 mins - till the engine gets warm.

Taking the car on the motorway for 30 mins clears the problem.

then 1 week later its back. any ideas would be greatly appriciated.

[cloaked95]

Check the coolant for any mixing of oil. You can usually tell by the creamy look to it. Also, If you can pull out one of the spark plugs to see what kind of crap is on it. Just hope its not soaked in oil. Hows the oil consumption?

[puppie]

Hiya,
the spark plugs are clean and oil consumption is just about zero.

When the cars idle surges it tends to use about 2-3 time the

normal amount of petrol. dont know if this helps used:

[Dudesky_E36]

The smoke on startup sounds pretty normal to me if you don't smell anything funny along with it. It's more pronounced in colder climates. Condensation in the exhaust is not uncommon, and burns off after a few minutes of driving.

As for the idle, try cleaning or replacing your idle control valve. If it gets stuck or is closed, the car tends to run richer and will burn more petrol.