Wondering what to do? 1998 S70 blown head gasket Topic is solved

[FireFox31]

Yup, that really should get fixed. You could sell it for good money as parts (those seats are beautiful!), but that would be a shame.

Just think of what else you could refresh when the head off. With that work done, the car will run that much better.

[hausmeister]

Related question. Might need to do a headgasket on my 850 in the near future... what is the most likely cause of it leaking oil?
I know that the prev. owner did that job and I am afraid that he might have installed some damage along the way, from other repairs I have fixed..
Issue is that it is leaking some oil externally, internally, compression was fine and engine runs good. No issues with coolant etc. I intend to wait longer with that job though... we will see.

[Clemens]

If the head gasket only leaks on the outside of the block I'd leave it as it is unless it leaks really badly. As long as water and oil don't mix, you should be fine.
Are you sure it is the head gasket, though? I had a blown Turbo oil over the back of the engine like crazy and it was really hard to spot. The turbo oil return line and it's gasket is also a well known oil spiller.

[scot850]

It all depends, like Clemens says, where on the engine the oil is leaking from. Cleaning off the oil and then seeing where it comes from when it starts leaking again helps localise the issue. Is it at the front (of the car), the rear of the block (by passenger compartment), LH end or RH end? All these areas can be due to different issues, some needing more work than others.

Neil.

[hausmeister]

I am reasonably sure it is the head gasket. Though it is not that bad yet I think... I will observe and wait...
Leakage was mainly on the front, like I said engine operation is not affected.
There is/was also a leak at the front cam, where the sealing surface was damaged by someone, I don't know if that will seal or leak again. Probably leak again in the near future. if it does I will probably start the head gasket job.
And send the cam to have it repaired somewhere... we will see.

But I don't plan to give up on the car, otherwise I now have almost everything in good repair. Unless of course one of the previous owners caused really bad internal damage that I can't see right now, like on the cam...

[Clemens]

Don't worry about the cams. You could always swap in NA cams if the Turbo cams really are shot. They will add some extra performance as a bonus.

[hausmeister]

I thought about just replacing them instead of repairing, probably cheaper. I would need to find some cams that fit... And I'm not sure it is a good idea - if they are differently worn. But it is hypothetical in any case, I won't do it this year.

[manovlov]

This car should be saved..

[rnelson1044]

Update on my blown head gasket: I've been at it for 3-5 hr's a day for the past several days. I should have the head off by tomorrow. The heat and humidity has not helped! It has been a pain in the shorts,especially at my age; at least as bad as replacing the steering rack! Next will be to deliver the head to a recommended mechanic and purchase all the necessary parts to replace the repaired head. I'm aiming to purchase all the parts from FCP but they don't make it easy. I'll order gasket kit, valve inserts, head bolts, anaerobic sealant, and roller for applying. I may need some new valves but hope not. Wish me luck! Many thanks for all the comments.

[abscate]

The Permatex anaerobic is $10 and well tested here.

You should do the valve stem seals on any engine over 100k, Volvo only. There is a part number for the set which is 1/2 the price of buying individuals.