I just bought it, 93 Caravan 3 Ltr v6 automatic... It seems to run pretty decently. Tho it had by the sellers account between now n sometime in Sept it started smoking white smoke whike warming up and after it's warm only when you press hard in the gas or the motor is reving down when ive come to a stop. The oil is thin some what n smells of gas and the air filter is nasty nasty looks likes it may have blown a little oil over time in one spit its so old. Plus im sure the plugd have probably not been changed in for ever. So I plan to change the air filter, plugs n wires, oil n filter to start with n also the brakes all the way around... N hopefully it turns out to just been dieing for lack of a tune up because it only has 125,000 miles on it. Please let me know if there is something I missed n definitely need to do like maybe a MAP or O2 sensor or something... Thanks in advance.

Sincerely,
Scott

 

That white smoke is probably water vapor. Sure sign of a head gasket problem. Keep an eye on your engine coolant level. Check engine oil for a milky appearance. If it keeps getting low you may need to pull the heads.

 

I agree with Cougar41, it sounds like a head gasket issue.
The 3.0s are notorious for blowing the factory head gaskets, usually between 80-100k. If you're at 125k you've made it farther than most.
Head gaskets aren't hard to do on 3.0s and if you use good replacements (Felpros come to mind) you should never have to do them again. It's about a 6hr job for a capable mechanic, someone learning on the fly, 10-12hrs.
If they need to be changed, make sure the head bolts get torqued to 80ft-lbs instead of the recommended 70ft-lbs. I've done this on every 3.0 I've owned since a tip from some fellow forum members who build them, never had another HG issue.

 

Dang I hope it's not that. Is there a possibility iits just because it was having a air flow n map sensor issue was causing it to over gas and that theres just so much extra fuel in the oil that that is where all this light smoke is coming from. It doest run like there is any issue with it and si ce I change the air filter yesterday the smoke seems to be lightening up a bit and made it run a whole lot better.

 

They will run for a long time with blown HGs with no sign off issue, as long as it's not mixing with the oil.
It's possible that it just needs a tune up, but generally over-fueling leads to black smoke, not white.
It's possible the temp is cold enough that it's just causing excess moisture, causing the white smoke, not sure how warm it is where you live.
I've never had a MAP fail on a 3.0. FPRs go bad, o2s fail, wiring gets bad, HGs fail, but through the 4 3.0s I've had never had a bad MAP. Bad wiring to the MAP yes. Coolant temp sensor failing can also cause over-fueling, so there's something else to check.

 

So what else is involved really beside popping the valve covers popping the heads changing the head gasket and putting it all back together. Im good at changing parts and am pretty good as long as I have a good set of instructions. Normally I would just go to my Pops, but he sadly past away almost a year n a half ago so I must seek advice else where. Or what? Thanks in advance....

Sincerely,
Scott

 

The whole front side of the motor needs to come apart to remove the timing belt. Whole top end comes apart. Exhaust. Timing should be set to TDC before tearing anything apart. Get a Haynes or Chilton and follow the instructions.

I would check your coolant sensor and the other things I mentioned before you decide to tear into it.
Like I said, cooler temps can cause white smoke as there is moisture. Keep an eye on your coolant level. Keep an eye on your oil, looking for milkiness (think chocolate milk). If your oil is clean and you're not using any antifreeze, it may just be normal exhaust moisture you're seeing.

 

I hope its just something minor cuz the oil looks ok, aside from being a lil thin and smelling of gas, there isnt any kinda bubbles or greys whiteness under the cap ir on the stick n the white smoke smells more of gas n oil than any sort of sweet antifreeze type smell and there doesnt seem to be any oil in the coolant on the cap, reservoir, ir floating in it at all. Beside the air filter n map sensor, fpr n O2 sensor would have been my next suspects

 

Pull the vacuum line for the FPR and smell it. If it's smells like gas, it's bad.
Valve guide seals are notorious for going to hell on these, which could also be the cause of excess smoke. They can be done without pulling the heads, but I never have as I always pull the heads and do HGs and port work while I have it apart.
The gas smell from the oil tells me it's dumping excess fuel for some reason. Find the reason, you may fix your issues. FPR, Coolant Temp Sensor would be the first things I'd check. The CTS can be checked with a meter. I'll see if I can dig up the chart on what to look for.

 

Here's the readings for backprobing the Coolant temp sensor. It's easy to do. Do it from a cold start and watch the readings until it hits operating temp.