My 1st Swede! 1998 v70 GLT - 201k - Steep Learning Curve!

[Botbasher]

...Where in the great state of NC do you live?...
Shane

I'll hold off on the "great" yet... still a couple of issues this city boy is wrapping his head around here!

I'm north of Winston!

K "counter hick" S

[bmdubya1198]

K "some buyers remorse" S

Ah, you didn't do too bad. These cars are very easy to work on. I was regretting buying my $300 300zx that didn't run quite right and leaked from everywhere. Believe me, these Volvos are easier than an old Nissan. Now I'm dealing with a $240 Accord... anyone here interested in a good 2.2 VTEC motor?

That leak doesn't look like it's coming from the RMS. If it is, it's higher up on the seal. To me, it looks like it's further back than that... possibly a turbo oil line.

[Sommerfeldt]

Pretty much the only thing you can do to diagnose further is to clean the whole thing, then pay close attention to where oil then appears. Sounds like the PCV is fine, but you're right - it might have been a too little too late kind of thing. The buildup of "oil dirt" can also be a sign that the PCV was done a little too late, e.g. if the PTC was clogged and a hose ruptured or popped off. A little crud is normal, of course.

With the amount of oil you've got there, it's probably the RMS if you've ruled out cam seals and turbo oil lines.

- S

[sleddriver]

If indeed it DOES prove to be the RMS, I'd suggest you try ATP AT-205 first. Not your usual "stop leak". It worked for me with a badly-leaking PS rack. I'd of never believed it if I didn't see it myself. Look it up.

[bmdubya1198]

That's the thing, it does look like a lot of oil. Definitely clean everything and keep a better eye on it to better spot the leak.

[Botbasher]

Hey Guys... I took this into a specific thread when I started to narrow down onto the RMS. I had a moment of clarity and a bigger moment of total mistrust and I started at the basics. I haven't ruled out the RMS completely yet, but here is what I found after a few minutes of cursing and such...

From my RMS thread...

While waiting for answers, I stepped back and thought about it. Easy stuff 1st....

I put it up on stands and power squirted as much as I could (only have a long wand)... wiped it all down... looked... poked... cleaned... then let it idle.

NADA. Not a thing. No leak... no smoke... nada! OK, let's ramp it up a bit, so I took off the wheels (the kiddo needed to sweat a little too!!) and I stuck it in gear, since that was about the only time it did anything. 30 seconds later... POOF. SMOKE!!! But is was still impossible to see where it was coming from even after removing the shield.

OK... so we went for a short drive. Yep... smoke and drips... AWESOME!! But still no defined trail to follow. OK, now I'm getting pissed! So... when all else fails, check off the basics.

Pull all the accessories and tubes and popped the Rotor. Yeah... I know he said he just did it, but it's the only thing making sense right about now!

Maybe it's just me, but I swear there is something wrong with this picture. Yeah... I pushed it back into place by hand!!! Guess it wasn't replaced when he did the service, huh?


Well... lets go for broke.. if one was bad, what are the odds of the other being bad? Pretty F*&%#&@#$% good!!! It's hard to see in the pic, but it was barely in there. I touched it and it fell out.


So now I am a little relieved.... I think I found the oil leak. Hopefully the RMS is OK, but only time will tell.

I am a little pissed.... as this, and the PCV Service already being done was one of the selling points to me buying this. Now I can't trust anything he had his Volvo Mech buddy (scary, huh?) do to the car and I have to start over. I think he and I are going to have a little chat as soon as I cool off a little bit!!

So my final question.... Does anyone have the part numbers for the Cam Shaft Seals?

Cheers!

K "happier" S

[bmdubya1198]

That's probably your leak right there!
I used SKF 11809, although I've been advised since then that they aren't the BEST choice. They seem fine so far and are identical to Volvo OE seals.
Most people here will tell you to go with either Volvo seals from the dealer (or online at somewhere like FCP Euro) or Corteco. Volvo P/N is 9443310.

[sleddriver]

I thought there was a reason I had double vision....you have two threads going. Your pictures work here, but not on the other one (for me).

Re: Seals they might have been installed properly, then pushed out due to excessive crankcase pressure.....or not. Do they look new or not? I'd drive with the dipstick pulled out a bit until you can verify the PCV system is functioning properly. Also check the oil filler cap gasket. It should be pliable, not hard. If the later, time for a new one. Pickup several so you'll have spares on hand. They're a regular replacement item. Once they go hard, they leak.

[Botbasher]

I thought there was a reason I had double vision....you have two threads going. Your pictures work here, but not on the other one (for me).

Re: Seals they might have been installed properly, then pushed out due to excessive crankcase pressure.....or not. Do they look new or not? I'd drive with the dipstick pulled out a bit until you can verify the PCV system is functioning properly. Also check the oil filler cap gasket. It should be pliable, not hard. If the later, time for a new one. Pickup several so you'll have spares on hand. They're a regular replacement item. Once they go hard, they leak.

Sorry about the double vision... I parted it when I started asking about the RMS but I didn't want to orphan those that helped out here.

The Dizzy seal pushed in by hand and was hard as a rock, so I am guessing that no one has ever changed that one. It had some seriously hard baked oil in there, so it's been weeping for a while!

The Sensor seal is newer and softer. It looks like it had pushed out just to the point of leakage. It literally fell out as I touched it.

Still burning about the fact it was all supposed to be taken care of, but its looking less and less like a RMS, so at least there is that. I have the bits on order and as soon as I have the leakage stopped, I'll start going through all the typical causes and run from there. The car passed the glove test, but with it in this condition it's a crap shoot as to whether the system is actually working properly. It wasn't leaking at idle... only starting after oil pressure overcame vacuum under load.

Like I said... it's going to be a steep curve. I like the car... it's just a bit more than I intended to take on this early!!

Ciao,

K "silver linings" S

[bmdubya1198]

Also check if the top PCV hose is still soft (the one on the spark plug next to the oil filler cap). It's possible that the PO did the PCV after blowing out the cam seals and never bothered to replace them. Your PCV is probably okay if it passes the glove test.