98V70 na volvo - appears to have died

[erikv11]

Is it still dumping oil? Very unusual for the oil pan seal to fail. The oil trap is also in that area.

p0301 is a petty misfire code. You can unplug the #1 injector and the engine will run with just a little roughness that is basically not noticeable above 1500 rpm, nothing like what you describe. Sounds like much more serious damage, maybe engine internals.

I'd put a compression test on the top of the list, just to see if #1 is at zero, you can do that without starting the engine.

[98v70dad]

Here's a little more information. Plugs wires distributor cap and rotor are all new, volvo plugs beugicord wires, bosch rotor and distributor cap. Coolant is full and well maintained - it looks as clean as the day I put it in. Timing belt is less than half way through its replacement interval. The car never used more than a quart of oil every 3000 miles and that was probably due to leaking valve seals.

The day I had this problem the car hadn't been driven for three weeks - that should be irrelevant but maybe not. It ran rough for about 30 seconds when I started it but evened out. That usually happens when it hasn't been driven for awhile. My meltdown incident started nearly 20 minutes and 15 miles later.

I did not get a giant cloud of white smoke during/after the incident so I'm not inclined to suspect a headgasket failure. Coolant is full and no milky froth in the oil.

[RickHaleParker]

Plugs wires distributor cap and rotor are all new.

The #1 misfire could be a collapsed lifter due to low oil pressure. I suggest you put this problem aside until after you get the oil pressure problem solved.

[98v70dad]

Is it still dumping oil? Very unusual for the oil pan seal to fail. The oil trap is also in that area.

p0301 is a petty misfire code. You can unplug the #1 injector and the engine will run with just a little roughness that is basically not noticeable above 1500 rpm, nothing like what you describe. Sounds like much more serious damage, maybe engine internals.

I'd put a compression test on the top of the list, just to see if #1 is at zero, you can do that without starting the engine.

Well, I'm not sure about whether or not its dumping oil. There's bout 8 inches of snow in the driveway and I can't see much without putting the car up on ramps or jacking it. I can get it up in the air when the snow melts - maybe later today. I'll take some pictures. I agree about the compression test. I've been meaning to do that anyhow just to have a baseline...too late for that now. I don't have a tester and that's why I haven't already done it.

What I saw when the tow truck picked it up was oil seeping out of the oil pan/engine block interface aft of the oil filter and a little bit of oil seeping down the side of the oil filter (like one big drip). The oil seepage was a mess but the oil level was still on full so it probably wasn't a large volume of oil. There was some oil dripping from the air dam in the same area so getting a good look will help.

The car has A LOT of new parts, tires, etc. I'd like to fix it because everything can be fixed. But, I don't love it enough to spend hundreds of hours on it if its a serious problem.

[scot850]

Could be one of the PCV hoses has split or blown off. It can give oil all over the front and RHS of the engine.

Neil.

[98v70dad]

Could be one of the PCV hoses has split or blown off. It can give oil all over the front and RHS of the engine.

Neil.

Well, that's an optimistic outlook but I doubt it. The car has symptoms of oil starvation but I don't understand how that could have happened. The oil level is at the top mark. Its gotten regular oil changes since I've owned it with high quality stuff. I overhauled the PCV system about 3 years ago - all of those hoses are new. The low oil pressure light and subsequent rough running and metal on metal sounds, etc. don't give me much hope.
For now I'm going to enjoy the holidays and take a closer look after the first of the year. The worst case scenario is that I have to sell it for scrap. Unfortunately the truck I have to replace it only gets about 17 mpg and I drive almost 100 miles each day.

My opinion is that its headed to the junkyard, but maybe I'll get lucky. I'm due for some good luck.

[scot850]

I wish you good luck, as someone must be getting it all. as I sure don't get any with my P80's!!

Neil.

[bmdubya1198]

I'll try to respond in order here, haha...

The misfire feeling like a washing machine is a tricky issue. Maybe it's just how the engine is balanced, but for example, my dad's BMW E39 is having trouble now where it misfires when it's cold on cylinder 1. The car feels like a washing machine and it sounds very rough. Once it warms up and is restarted a few times, it smooths out and runs great. However, back when my cousin was having issues with the VVT on his '99 S70, we professional mechanics accidentally mixed up the cylinder 1 and 2 coil wires (anyone could have done that...) and it was firing on 3 cylinders. It sounded rough, but it was oddly smooth for running on only 3 cylinders. From that experience, these 5 cylinders shouldn't feel like a washing machine when they're down a cylinder. Adding to that, lots of people temporarily drive these on 4 cylinders when a valve is burned.

I agree about the collapsed lifter theory. It's definitely likely due to oil starvation, and it will make an awful noise. My Saab has the same lifter setup as these Volvo engines, and when I first started it after the head gasket replacement (car was sitting 2.5+ years before that) the lifters were louder than I've ever heard. Within a minute or so it cleared up though.
It's odd to me that much damage could have occurred if you still have a good amount of oil in the engine. My cousin's car had maybe 10 ounces of oil in it after it let go of a cam seal, and there was no damage done. If anything, I would lean towards a lifter being that you lost oil pressure but not much oil.

I would pick up a compression tester from Harbor Freight (just got one myself yesterday for the BMW, $20 with coupon) as they're cheap, readily available, and decent quality. Compression test the car before anything else.

As I said before, though, your best bet is to clean the engine up and run it to find the oil leak. It's hard to find a leak when the engine is coated in oil.

[RickHaleParker]

As I said before, though, your best bet is to clean the engine up and run it to find the oil leak. It's hard to find a leak when the engine is coated in oil.

It is better to do so with a clean engine but it can be done with a dirty one. Put some ultraviolet dye in the crank case. Fire up the engine. With a ultraviolet lamp search for the leak. A fluorescenting arrow will point the way. The arrow will be much clearer and sharper if the flow is not being deflected by grime and oil build up.

[98v70dad]

I agree about the collapsed lifter theory. It's definitely likely due to oil starvation, and it will make an awful noise.

What's the fix for a collapsed lifter? My valve seals have been leaking slightly for years but its too much trouble to replace them. If I decide to fix the car maybe now is the time because I guess I'll be in that area.

I still need to figure out why my oil pressure dropped - I'm hoping for one of the passenger side cam seals (easy fix) - although would loss of one of those be enough to get a significant pressure drop? Like I said the oil level was full last time I checked, right after the incident.