1995 850 T5 coolant blowing out of Coolant Expansion Tank

aviam · Post by **aviam** » 29 Nov 2009, 14:29

Hi Volvo brothers

I had a issue with battery losing contact with main power wire due to corrosion, which causes car to stall for a sec and gag. A stall happened while i had did a kickdown (turboboost) which might have caused one heater core hose coming out the firewall to burst. I did not notice that the car was overheating until i stopped to eat. (I noticed oil indicator light starting to blink just before turning car off). Little bit of smoke was coming out of left back corner of engine which is ok for i know there is a weak spot in the gasket there and leaks little oil.

After coming back from eating i noticed heater hose blown and car is unable to hold any coolant. I drove back home five min away. the next day i repaired the heater hose temporarily by attaching two sides of the hose together with a tube and two bands holding two sides tightly together. I started car and heard that air blowed out from Coolant Expansion Tank when i removed coolant cap. I added coolant/water and let the car run for a while and then closed cap. I drove around for ten minutes and all seemed well. I turned the car off and came back a few minutes later to drive away ( i didn't recheck if Coolant Expansion Tank needed more water or open cap to let air out if any.

When starting the car it choked but then came to a normal idle. After driving for 15 minutes i noticed car was overheating. I drove back home and let the car cool down. As i was starting car this time i left Coolant Expansion Tank cap off and noticed water blowing out of Coolant Expansion Tank. Could it be my thermostat is stuck shut or could there be a blockage from hoses i combined together or the worst combustion getting into cooling system? (no signs of water mixing with oil) and car starts fine when cap is off and/or no water is in the cooling system. could i have caused damage to the head and head gasket among other parts? The car starts fine? Is some how combustion getting into cooling system? or air stuck in cooling system?

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 29 Nov 2009, 17:10

Sadly this sounds like a classic blown head gasket to me. You can verify that with a special dye that detects exhaust gases in the coolant.

The kits are expensive and are more set up for a shop to use multiple times.

http://www.automotive-diagnostic-tools. ... 560000.htm

That said it is likely cheaper to buy a kit and test it yourself than to pay a shop unless you plan on having it repaired at a shop anyway.

...Lee

aviam · Post by **aviam** » 30 Nov 2009, 05:14

Hey thanks for the reply Master Ozark Lee. Would you repair/replace the head/head gasket or would it be better to drop a new engine in, for I am just concerned that other parts could have been damaged due to the overheating? When replacing head gasket does the shop usualy remill the head.

Thank you
Aviam

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 30 Nov 2009, 06:45

There was a very heated thread on the repair or replace subject a few weeks ago. In the end I think it came up evenly split. I have not yet had to repair or replace a head or an engine on an 850.

For starters it depends on the number of miles you have on the existing engine, if you have topped 200k it nudges the decision towards just replacing the engine with a lower mileage used engine.

The first thing, of course, is to verify that the head gasket is indeed blown.

...Lee

FCPEURO · Post by **FCPEURO** » 30 Nov 2009, 07:49

Personally, I agree with Lee on this one. If you engine has more then 150K miles on it, I would look into a rebuilt or used engine.

One other thing to keep in mind is what shape the rest of the car is in. If the suspension is shot and/or the interior is really bad, if may be best to just pick up a lower mileage volvo in better condition and part the current one out.