1995 855 NA: Oil leak next to oil filter area

lcc014 · Post by **lcc014** » 09 Jan 2018, 09:41

I have this on going minor oil leak since last year - area next to oil filter, under the crankcase pulley always wet. No oil drop onto ground yet. Local Volvo garage replaced the rectangular shape gasket right under the crankcase pulley twice and oil still exists. I did not see oil next to bottom of crankcase pulley. Where is oil leak coming from ? Volvo garage said that it could the from oil filter. They claimed that they had seen Volvo oil filter did not seal well, same also true to Mann oil filter. That would leak oil next to filter. I did not believe that explanation as I have been using Volvo oil filter for years and no leak at all until last year.

Any suggestion is appreciated.

Thanks,

Ching-Ho Cheng

Post by **theWIFES_S70** » 09 Jan 2018, 15:28

- Volvo oil filters can leak, I think it's pretty normal at this age. As long as it isn't gushing from the filter, you're probably OK.

- Oil leaks from around the edges of almost all our oil pans. At 22 years old, it's going to leak a little. (Unless of course you've done it all over again.)

- Have you inspected your cams closely? A leak at one of the cams can travel all the way down and appear to be something bigger than it is. Take off timing belt cover and shine a flashlight into your cams, chances are one of them might be leaking.

- Though, if I had to guess, it sounds like your oil pump seal is leaking (it's the one behind the harmonic balancer). Seems like a pain to get to... rspi has a video on it he just posted a few days ago.

[youtube][/youtube]

Also, that little rectangular seal that you had replaced... maybe it was replaced with a non-oe seal. These cars demand oe seals...

Post by **jtp** » 09 Jan 2018, 19:26

Have you tried a high mileage oil? Might slow it down. I have used Mobil One HM full synthetic in the past for those types of situations and had decent results.

Post by **cn90** » 09 Jan 2018, 20:03

- This sounds like front cam seal leak to me, it trickles all the way downward.
- Remove the TB cover, use a flash light and look at areas underneath the cam seals.

lcc014 · Post by **lcc014** » 09 Jan 2018, 20:58

Thanks for the suggestions. I will take TB cover off when weather gets a bit warmer the before 20 degree F or sub-zero in Boston area. I have been using Mobile 1 (not high mileage though) since day 1 (back in 1995) to now and I change oil every 3500 miles for all these years.

If this is front cam seal leak then why Volvo garage did not see it when they replaced TB and water pump last year ? They did not pay too much attention or else ?

Thanks,

Ching-Ho Cheng

Post by **cn90** » 09 Jan 2018, 22:08

I covered this issue (FRONT cam seals leak) in the DIY for Timing Belt, Serp belt etc.:

viewtopic.php?t=53722

You can see in the photo in Step #6, the LOWER TB Cover sits right below the cam sprockets, so any oil leak from the Front cam seals, wicks down and BEHIND the LOWER TB. The oil now ends up near the crank pulley area.

lcc014 · Post by **lcc014** » 10 Jan 2018, 05:56

Very detail instruction !! This definitely will help me to track down the oil leak.

Thanks.

Ching-Ho Cheng

Post by **RickHaleParker** » 10 Jan 2018, 11:21

If you want to find the oil leak. Get a ultraviolet light and a bottle of trace dye. You can get these at any auto parts store. Take the car to a car wash, degrease and power wash the engine clean. Add the trace dye to the oil. As more oil leaks out your be able to see where it is coming from with the ultraviolet light. Trace dye is fluorescent.

I'm shocked that the mechanics he took the car to did not trace the leak.

lcc014 · Post by **lcc014** » 10 Jan 2018, 12:42

No, the mechanic did not do any tracing of oil leak. He just replaced the "rectangular" shape gasket right under crankcase pulley 2 times. He kept thinking that was the source of leak or oil filter leak.....

Thanks,

Ching-Ho Cheng

Post by **scot850** » 10 Jan 2018, 13:35

What rectangular shaped gasket are you talking about? Does your car have an engine oil cooler in the radiator, if so it will have a metal unit (the oil cooler thermostat) mounted under the crank pulley with 2 hoses running forward to the radiator. I didn't think the NA motors had this, as I thought it was a turbo requirement only.

If you have that then there is another possible source for the leak and that would be the 'O' ring seals at the oil cooler thermostat. I had an issue with these and the dealer trying to fix them. Once they leak they get hardened burnt oil in the recess for the oil cooler pipe 'O' rings, and if you are not careful and clean that out (don't scrape or damage the recess) the old oil rips the 'O' rings when they are re-fitted on the cooler pipe. Dealer did this job twice for me before blaming the cooler pipes as being worn out. I found the problem when I went to replace the pipes. Also there is a clip that sits between the 2 cooler pipes help in with a Torx screw. The retainer bends outward on the ends with age allowing the pipe to pull out slightly which allows them to leak. Either replace the retainer, or reverse it or hammer it careful flat again before fitting.

Neil.