What did you do to your Volvo today? Topic is solved

[Rattnalle]

Changed the oil/filter drain plug washer at 359,000. Liqui moly 10-40. Mann filter. Pulled the Volvo 20 valve spark plug cover to soak up a bit of oil that I assume passed by the filler cap gasket. Recently i had opened the filler cap and looked down at the exposed cam shaft. It appeared to be bone dry. I swiped the cam with a finger and sure enough there was 0 oil present. This leads me to believe that if the car sits for a couple days the top end is running dry at start up. Has anyone else experienced this? Did liqui moly help?

The oil will drain. Completely normal. Just like the walls will eventually be dry in the oil can if you slosh it around then let it sit. However there should still be pools of oil up there that gets thrown around a bit when it starts moving. I doubt any fancy additives will change that.

[abscate]

If you look deep enough on car fora you will find statements like

"90% of engine wears happens on startup"

And if you look deeper on that there is no evidence to this claim other than additive marketing

How would you begin to test for such a thing? Test 100 engines that have many cold startup cycles vs others by disassembly?

[bmdubya1198]

That is an awesome story! I have a revenge story of my own, well, it's not really revenge and not nearly as cool as yours, but it think it to be cool anyway. So this happended a few years back when I was 22 years old and I owned a Ford Fiesta mk1 at the time. For those who don't know, I'm 2.05 meters tall and I'm built like a Dutch version of Bud Spencer (that's how my friends describe me and I love it since Bud is one of my hero's from when I was a kid). But you can't really notice that when you put someone like me in a car like that (by the way, the leg and headspace in that car were crazy, I had enough space all around).

So one day I'm cruizing down to the city of Vlissingen and the shortest route was through Belgium. So I did, but the highway of Antwerp is notoriously dangerous. Many accidents happen there and that day was no exception. So I'm stuck in traffic and the thing I do when I hit traffic is that I keep a bit of distance - like say, two to three cars - from the car that is in front of me. In that way, I can just put the car in second gear and let it idle instead of the usual throttle brake throttle brake routine. The guy behind isn't having that and starts to get on my tail like, I can't even see his headlights he's so close on me. I ignore it, the traffic jam is on all four lanes and nobody isn't going anywhere soon. The guy starts to flash it's high beams and shortly after I can see him flipping me of and mouthing the words F-you. The only thing I can do is laugh, for real. Where do you wanna go? Do you see a free lane I'm blocking you from?

Suddenly, I see him braking very hard and getting out of the car with a lifehammer in his hands (the things give out because they're bright orange). I don't think for a second and get out of my Fiesta. Remember, I'm 2.05 meters long, 120 kilo's, Dutch Bud Spencer. The Fiesta lifts a couple of centimeters up when I got out of the car and the guy just freezes in his tracks. I ask him what his problems are while walking at him. He just walks back to his car, sits, and locks all doors. Not a single word. Not a peep. All I can do is laugh. Aah, the memories

That must have been a great feeling! All you needed to do is get out of your car and he backs right off!

[WhatAmIDoing]

That is an awesome story! I have a revenge story of my own, well, it's not really revenge and not nearly as cool as yours, but it think it to be cool anyway. So this happended a few years back when I was 22 years old and I owned a Ford Fiesta mk1 at the time. For those who don't know, I'm 2.05 meters tall and I'm built like a Dutch version of Bud Spencer (that's how my friends describe me and I love it since Bud is one of my hero's from when I was a kid). But you can't really notice that when you put someone like me in a car like that (by the way, the leg and headspace in that car were crazy, I had enough space all around).

So one day I'm cruizing down to the city of Vlissingen and the shortest route was through Belgium. So I did, but the highway of Antwerp is notoriously dangerous. Many accidents happen there and that day was no exception. So I'm stuck in traffic and the thing I do when I hit traffic is that I keep a bit of distance - like say, two to three cars - from the car that is in front of me. In that way, I can just put the car in second gear and let it idle instead of the usual throttle brake throttle brake routine. The guy behind isn't having that and starts to get on my tail like, I can't even see his headlights he's so close on me. I ignore it, the traffic jam is on all four lanes and nobody isn't going anywhere soon. The guy starts to flash it's high beams and shortly after I can see him flipping me of and mouthing the words F-you. The only thing I can do is laugh, for real. Where do you wanna go? Do you see a free lane I'm blocking you from?

Suddenly, I see him braking very hard and getting out of the car with a lifehammer in his hands (the things give out because they're bright orange). I don't think for a second and get out of my Fiesta. Remember, I'm 2.05 meters long, 120 kilo's, Dutch Bud Spencer. The Fiesta lifts a couple of centimeters up when I got out of the car and the guy just freezes in his tracks. I ask him what his problems are while walking at him. He just walks back to his car, sits, and locks all doors. Not a single word. Not a peep. All I can do is laugh. Aah, the memories

I feel like I pictured this beautifully in my head. I'm rolling.

Changed the oil/filter drain plug washer at 359,000. Liqui moly 10-40. Mann filter. Pulled the Volvo 20 valve spark plug cover to soak up a bit of oil that I assume passed by the filler cap gasket. Recently i had opened the filler cap and looked down at the exposed cam shaft. It appeared to be bone dry. I swiped the cam with a finger and sure enough there was 0 oil present. This leads me to believe that if the car sits for a couple days the top end is running dry at start up. Has anyone else experienced this? Did liqui moly help?

The oil will drain. Completely normal. Just like the walls will eventually be dry in the oil can if you slosh it around then let it sit. However there should still be pools of oil up there that gets thrown around a bit when it starts moving. I doubt any fancy additives will change that.

Molybdenum disulfide is the one additive that is great for cold starts. It sticks to metal surfaces and creates an amazingly low-friction environment. It provides superior protection at cold start and during a catastrophic loss of oil pressure. So yes there are additives that reduce wear during cold starts even if the engine has been sitting for a while.

If you look deep enough on car fora you will find statements like

"90% of engine wears happens on startup"

And if you look deeper on that there is no evidence to this claim other than additive marketing

How would you begin to test for such a thing? Test 100 engines that have many cold startup cycles vs others by disassembly?

That's exactly how you would test it. Not sure any oil companies actually do such tests anymore. Probably done in computer simulations with theoretical data and parameters.

Technically more wear would happen at start up on a cold engine, but most engines should build oil pressure almost instantly. I would think within 60 seconds of turning the key, your engine would be pretty well lubricated.

[Rattnalle]

Changed the oil/filter drain plug washer at 359,000. Liqui moly 10-40. Mann filter. Pulled the Volvo 20 valve spark plug cover to soak up a bit of oil that I assume passed by the filler cap gasket. Recently i had opened the filler cap and looked down at the exposed cam shaft. It appeared to be bone dry. I swiped the cam with a finger and sure enough there was 0 oil present. This leads me to believe that if the car sits for a couple days the top end is running dry at start up. Has anyone else experienced this? Did liqui moly help?

The oil will drain. Completely normal. Just like the walls will eventually be dry in the oil can if you slosh it around then let it sit. However there should still be pools of oil up there that gets thrown around a bit when it starts moving. I doubt any fancy additives will change that.

Molybdenum disulfide is the one additive that is great for cold starts. It sticks to metal surfaces and creates an amazingly low-friction environment. It provides superior protection at cold start and during a catastrophic loss of oil pressure. So yes there are additives that reduce wear during cold starts even if the engine has been sitting for a while.

It won't change the fact that the oil will have drained away from surfaces and pooled at the bottom where there are cavities.

Personally I'm betting that if the Moly was such a game changer everyone would use it or recommend it. But either they don't or they do but it isn't a big deal. Engines often last much longer than the rest of the car either way if serviced.

[tysauce1986]

Personally I'm betting that if the Moly was such a game changer everyone would use it or recommend it. But either they don't or they do but it isn't a big deal. Engines often last much longer than the rest of the car either way if serviced.
[/quote]

I think I agree with you. The engine has gone this far with proper. Maintenance. But I'm willing to give liquimoly a shot.

[June]

The oil will drain. Completely normal. Just like the walls will eventually be dry in the oil can if you slosh it around then let it sit. However there should still be pools of oil up there that gets thrown around a bit when it starts moving. I doubt any fancy additives will change that.

Molybdenum disulfide is the one additive that is great for cold starts. It sticks to metal surfaces and creates an amazingly low-friction environment. It provides superior protection at cold start and during a catastrophic loss of oil pressure. So yes there are additives that reduce wear during cold starts even if the engine has been sitting for a while.

It won't change the fact that the oil will have drained away from surfaces and pooled at the bottom where there are cavities.

Personally I'm betting that if the Moly was such a game changer everyone would use it or recommend it. But either they don't or they do but it isn't a big deal. Engines often last much longer than the rest of the car either way if serviced.

Last night I peeked through the grates and oil was still pooled under the cam. My car had not been started for a couple of days. So even if the cam was dry, it would be wet with oil as soon as it hit the puddle under it? Just my thoughts. I still feel my engine is being better protected by the ester based Redline oil. June

[abscate]

Metal on metal for seconds, or even a minute, isnt damaging as long as the engine isnt loaded. Thats why you can show those trick videos of running an engine with an empty sump for a minute or two without damage.

Oil gets pumped around the cams and splash lubes pretty quickly.

Once you ask the engine to start moving 2 tons of Swedish steel, the oil pressure is important.

[tysauce1986]

Metal on metal for seconds, or even a minute, isnt damaging as long as the engine isnt loaded. Thats why you can show those trick videos of running an engine with an empty sump for a minute or two without damage.

Oil gets pumped around the cams and splash lubes pretty quickly.

Once you ask the engine to start moving 2 tons of Swedish steel, the oil pressure is important.

Working as an apprentice machinist, the thought of no lube makes me cringe a bit. So while it may be a valid concern i realize it will be ok. Thanks all for your responses.

[bmdubya1198]

Once you ask the engine to start moving 2 tons of Swedish steel, the oil pressure is important.

My wagon's only about 3,400 pounds according to the scale at the scrap yard