1996 850 bad condensation in dist cap

ghostrider103 · Post by **ghostrider103** » 19 Dec 2014, 19:19

Hey all, I'm new to this and I'm not sure where else to turn. My daughter has a 96 850 n/a wagon that, until recently ran pretty well. Last Feb, (2014), it developed a bad misfire and we thought it had dropped a valve. Towed it home and it sat over night before I could look at it. Next morning it fired right up and ran great. I discovered the inside of the distributor cap was coated with oil and a small amount had puddled in the bottom. Complete tune up later, (cap rotor wires plugs and fuel filter), and we were back on the road. Fast forward to Thanksgiving 2014, car develops the same problem on her way to work the day after t-giving. I quick check the cap and to my surprise, no oil, but a great deal of condensation, causing a misfire. Since then I have had this thing apart about six times due to misfire and each time is a huge amount of condensation. I have gone to a Bosch cap and another set of wires and nothing seems to help. I cant believe the camshaft seal will cause condensation, (or will it?) There's no oil in the cap, just water. I'm totally baffled. Car ran great from Feb to Nov. I'm sure the condensation is due to temp change but my 98 V70XC has 253k on it with the same ignition system and it runs great all the time. Am I missing something? I have checked to make sure the weep hole at the bottom of the dist surface is clear and everything is in order. All the factory recommended parts are where they should be. The last time I drove the car it went less than 3 miles and the problem returned. I continued to drive with the car running on 3-4 cylinders and the c/e light flashing and it eventually cleared up and began to run great again. Diagnostic shows misfire on almost all cylinders and multiple cylinder misfire, (8 codes set). Each time I think I've got it straightened out it returns in a day or two. Anyone have any ideas?

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 19 Dec 2014, 20:24

The original oil problem is easy, that is typically a rear camshaft seal which is a snap to replace.

As are you, I am perplexed as to why what was an oil problem turned into a condensation problem and, as far as I could glean from the post, the cam seal was never changed. Cam seal leaks are typically due to a PCV system blockage so servicing the PCV would be a companion project along with replacing the seals. We have writeups in the repair database with some excellent tips for both procedures.

My gut is telling me that there is still a seal leak but condensation in the cap isn't really typical unless the oil is somehow trapping the moisture.

...Lee

Post by **kahl** » 19 Dec 2014, 20:30

Does your car still have the saucer shaped cap that fits around the rotor and the cam shaft well? Check the "O" rings on this saucer for a snug fit against the cam shaft well.

Post by **jreed** » 20 Dec 2014, 05:30

I picked up a few of the rotor covers (aka 'flash shields') at the junkyard the other day. The price for a new one is unbelievable for what is essentially a plastic dome with an oring around the outer edge. I don't know if they will help keep the interior of the distributor cap cleaner or drier.

Post by **erikv11** » 20 Dec 2014, 09:13

A blown rear cam seal can absolutely cause condensation in the cap, I have seen it happen.

Like Lee says, from your thread it isn't clear, have you checked the cam seal yet? If it is blown, do the PCV.

Post by **rspi** » 20 Dec 2014, 10:42

Post by **dosbricks** » 20 Dec 2014, 21:29

If the distributor cam seal is blown and the PCV is clogged, pressure from the crankcase is venting through the cap and carrying crankcase moisture with it--the latter collecting inside the cap. The little plastic hat with the o ring is likely there to drain anything back to the weep hole. As kahl asked, is that part underneath your distributor cap?

ghostrider103 · Post by **ghostrider103** » 27 Dec 2014, 08:22

The "plastic hat" is there. I am planning on having the camshaft seals replaced along with the pcv. I do have an update though. Since the last time I had an issue, (12/20), I removed the cap , wiped it out and sprayed it with "WD40", and wiped off the excess. We have had cold, warm, rain, snow, sun, (not much), I have driven the car everyday and have not had so much as a wimper out of it. Has started and run perfect. I put about 150-200 miles on it and it's run great. I installed a new Pioneer CD player, (with USB, replacing O/E cassette deck), and She, (my daughter), wanted the car back. We'll see what happens.

screwdriver · Post by **screwdriver** » 31 Dec 2014, 13:45

nobody beat me for this If you need to get by for a short period of time remover your dist. if the cam seal is out drive it back in. replace dist. dry out cap and don't push your dipstick in all the way, this is not a permanent fix however it could save you a cross town tow bill. The pressure will follow the path of least resistance.