P80 PCV System Repair on a Volvo 5-cylinder (-1998)

[chernobyl1]

A bit is normal especially if that system is not venting at all (it doesn't sound like it), then the air is drawn in and some vapors are blown out while the moisture remains in the oil.

I'd do the system as soon as spring rolls around your way. If it is just a base V70, remove the flame trap snorkel from the throttle body, perhaps this weekend if it is warm enough, and clean it out - it is easy to do without disassembling anything major.

Thanks Justin. Gave that a try a few weeks ago, ran through a bit of seafoam, changed the oil, made sure the dipstick was seated properly, make a few highway trips and voila... the dipstick moisture is gone!

Thats the good news, but I still know the PCV needs replacing. My question is: which is a better choice: IPD at $133 or FCP at ~$160 (last time I checked)?

[jblackburn]

Those prices sure have gone up, haven't they? I paid under $100 for IPD's kit last year sometime. The FCP one uses Oetiker clamps, which can be a real pain if you don't have the right tool.

They both use URO hoses I believe. They're garbage - my advice would be to call them up and substitute OEM hoses for the rubber (lower) hose and the one that runs from the oil trap to the PTC connection.

[LamboSE5]

Hey guys, It's been a while since I posted.

Me and my mechanic friend did this job, finally, yesterday.
I took a while, and there were snags and bumps pretty much the whole way through. When we finally had her back together I drove down the road with my friend close behind, the car wasn't idling right btw, and then just as I came to a turn, she lost power/pressure and died.
Anyway, we popped the hood and eventually saw that the throttle body hose had blown off - I guess we didn't do it up tight enough. So we cranked it down, and away I went.

Question - I've had a Lambda light(check engine) on and off since I bought the car. But lately (before this repair) it's been turning off (not illuminated), for weeks at a time even (sometimes it'll come back on if I do say 120kms+ or drive "spirited" haha. But after this job, it came back on.
Could the computer/ECU be figuring things out now that it is able to breath and all that do you think?
Maybe it's because on start up I had forgot to hook up the electrical connector to the MAF sensor (not to mention that throttle body hose wasn't firmly clamped down)?
OR, simply because the battery was disconnected and during the job, then reconnected - and now the computer is now 'remembering' "oh yea, that problem that I had forgot about is still here"?
Interesting.

Anyway, I mainly wanted to say THANKS so much for this write-up JaBlackburn! And for answering my questions, and PM's in the past.
This really is one of the best write up for a given repair/issue I have seen.
Great explanations, pictures, the steps are broken down very well. And if my mechanic friend would have looked at them - we would have had less hassle and done an even better job.

Thank you!

[jblackburn]

No problem, glad I could help.

Congrats! I immediately noticed my engine felt a lot less restricted after cleaning mine out. It was happier to get up and move.

If the MAF was disconnected, that's currently what it's mad about. Reset it again, and see what comes back.

Did you happen to pull the codes before when the CEL was on? A check engine light is only set if the car notices a condition multiple times within a driving cycle; if it then goes through a few drive cycles without noticing anything wrong, it'll turn it back off again.

Stop by Autozone or somewhere and have them pull the codes for you for free. The OBDII connector is in the center armrest.

[cdnbluez]

I had my mechanic do the pcv today, took him 2.5 hours. My car is a '98 V70 N/A with 180,000, and the pcv was only clogged in one port in the block. He re-used most of the hoses, he said they were still good. It cost me $280, which included throttle body cleaning, a used fog lamp, and a set of used D pillar rear speakers.

[Chriss]

Has anyone found the FCP kit had come with the wrong hose that runs between the Oil Trap and the flame trap housing on the breather tube? I am trying to sort this out now. Its a Volvo branded hose assembly #91225598 having two lines. Both terminating at the flame trap nipple at one end and the large to the oil trap and the smaller to the vacuum nipple on the passenger side of the intake manifold. I got it all on and back together only to find the new flame trap nipple is attached to the assembly at an impossible angle to connect to the breather tube with the twist lock prongs. I started a thread on this but then looked through this one and see there might be more help here.

Chris

[Chriss]

here the link to the other thread with more curret information.
https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums ... =1&t=38383

[manoverboard]

Thanks to everyone who has written on this. BUT!! WE just spent 2 days installing the Fcp kit on a 95 na 850 that had super strong exhaust smell and dipstick pressure. Surprise! The pressure from the dipstick is still strong and oil is coming from the filler cap. I was wondering, should I pursue the egr? This has been a royal... learning experience. Can anyone explain the routing of the system and the order of what to check for. Thanks in advance!!

[jblackburn]

Did you clean the ports in the engine block? The lower one especially to the oil pan can clog up and render the job pointless.

EGR is another possibility; fortunately it's a bit easier to clean out than the PCV system.

Have you run a compression check? Very worn rings can cause more crankcase pressure than even a clean PCV can handle.

[tkende06010]

I broke the plastic tube that go's from the oil separator to the ptc nipple. After shopping endlessly for just he tube, I decided to fabricate one. Home depot sells copper tubing in a 10 foot roll that has the exact outer diameter as the hard plastic tube. cut the correct length and re use the elbows on both ends that were on the plastic tube. This is much cheaper than buying the whole kit for $155.00 or buying the tube from Volvo for $62.00. The copper tubing can be used for all oils/fuel/gases, and is smoother inside than regular hose, so it is much less prone to clogging from particles sticking to the inside. The copper tubing is stronger, more heat resistant, and should last pretty much for the life of the car. Seeing as I have a little less than 9 feet of the copper left, I am going to see if there are any other lines on the car with the same 1/2 inch outer diameter! hope this helps someone.