1996 850 Turbo Is my engine seized..?

Shawn Stanford · Post by **Shawn Stanford** » 04 Oct 2013, 12:33

Okay, I pulled the plugs and it cranks smoothly now. Good call on the water in the cylinder. Thanks!

I know Bars-Leak is crap, but I don't want to do or pay for the extensive tear down needed to fix the head gasket.

Anyway, new problem cropped up: when I pulled the plugs I found that the top of the motor is full of oil.

Off to the 'Search' function again!

Post by **rmmagow** » 04 Oct 2013, 13:47

I don't know but to me this is shaping up as a motor that needs replacing. Top of the motor (near where the plug wires go in) full of oil could be just bad oil cap seal or sloppy oil change technique but also a bad PVC system will do that I think.

Post by **MoVolvos** » 04 Oct 2013, 15:02

Shawn Stanford wrote:Okay, I pulled the plugs and it cranks smoothly now. Good call on the water in the cylinder. Thanks!

I know Bars-Leak is crap, but I don't want to do or pay for the extensive tear down needed to fix the head gasket.

Anyway, new problem cropped up: when I pulled the plugs I found that the top of the motor is full of oil.

Off to the 'Search' function again!

**

Per rmmagow it could just be Oil Filler Cap Gasket that is leaking or PCV tube. Which cylinder had the water? Is the water in the oil still? You may want to use Steel Seal as it will not make a mess in the Internals like the Bars Leak.

Either way you may have to do the PCV and your probably 1/4 way into to the head gasket.

Blessings,

BKM

**

difflock54 · Post by **difflock54** » 04 Oct 2013, 19:13

In a nutshell, if the head gasket has gone and water is seeping into the cylinders you have no option but to pull the head and do a head job properly.
Filling it up with bars leaks or any similar product is just a waste of time and a very short fix at best.
It will also make a proper overhaul more expensive in the long run.
As BKM says: your about 1/4 way into a head gasket job already so do it properly.
The PCV overhaul to fix the oil leak into top of engine can be done concurrently to deal with the excesive crankcase pressure.

Post by **erikv11** » 04 Oct 2013, 22:47

I agree with most of the advice here except one thing: OP is not even 1/20th of the way into a head gasket job. It is a whole lot more work than draining the coolant pulling the plugs.

difflock54 · Post by **difflock54** » 05 Oct 2013, 17:03

Was meant in a figurative sense only.

Also given that he also now knows what is required, (apart from the results from a head reconditioning specialist inspection ) he now has a fairly good means to assess the likely cost of parts, procedures, time required etc.
He will also have already removed the timing covers, head covers, plugs, leads, fuel rail etc to have checked out what he has done to date.

Post by **erikv11** » 05 Oct 2013, 18:57

I see the point, he is indeed starting to get the lay of the land.

And to elaborate, my point is that the crux of a head gasket job is the timing parts, cams and cam covers (which have not been touched yet), replacing various seals, the head bolts, cleaning the surfaces meticulously, torque specs, etc.; none of that has been touched yet. So I just mean it as advice, he should not be misled into thinking there is just a bit more to do.

Post by **rspi** » 06 Oct 2013, 16:10

Very nice call on the cylinder being full of coolant/oil. I really like that. On another note, why not just pull the plugs, turn it over by hand, hit the starter and let the starter blow the crap out of the cylinder.

If you have that much in the cylinder, it's head gasket time. No way around it. At least you know that the block is not locked up.

And yes, oil on top of the motor is a classic sign that the PCV system is in need of replacement.

Head gasket thread:
http://atthetipwebs.com/technologyinstr ... gasket.htm

No real need for the PCV test video, maybe for someone else.

Post by **rspi** » 06 Oct 2013, 16:11

On another note, if you were given the car and drove it more than a week, there will be no loss in cutting bait and getting your daughter something nicer to wreck.

Shawn Stanford · Post by **Shawn Stanford** » 07 Oct 2013, 13:05

Okay, first: Thanks for all the advice. Very much appreciated.

Second: I pulled the spark plug cover, the leads, and the plugs. I got a hose down into each cylinder (taped onto the end of a plumbing syphon) and sucked a fair amount of oily water out of three of them. I think my next step will be to reinstall the plugs, put *some* water into the radiator, and then see if it fires. I expect it will.

Third: Neither of my daughters wants a thing to do with this car. They think it's ugly. (Awww...) My wife is inclined to set aside a few thousand and let them pick their own beaters when the time comes.

Fourth: My primary concern is clearing garage/parking space for hobby car (looking for a Porsche 928). My wife's not going to let me continue to acquire cars. A car needs to go and if I can't point at the Volvo and say, "But it's for the kids!", then the Volvo has to go.

I found some extremely detailed instructions for changing the head gasket, but I'm not willing to dive into it if I don't have to. Maybe I can fob it off on my brother. My nephew's going to need a car before too long...

Again, thanks a bunch for the advice.

1996 850 Turbo Is my engine seized..?

Re: 1996 850 Turbo Is my engine seized..?