Engine problem, looking for diagnosis

sgm85 · Post by **sgm85** » 26 Jul 2010, 09:16

I just took my 1995 Volvo 850 on an 800-mile move and have been living in a new town for just under a week. Last Wednesday, the car started to grind at lower revs and felt a little suspicious, but I still took it to the airport to drop my mother off (about 80 miles away). When we got to the airport, we discovered that the oil was bone dry. Leaving the airport, I found that the check engine light was flashing (something I had never seen before) and took it to a nearby gas station to add 3 quarts of 10w-40. I started driving back home but the problem persisted. Since discovering the issue, I have probably driven 225 miles and am worried about permanent engine damage.

Here's what is going on:

- 1995 Volvo 850, Automatic Transmission.
- The Check Engine light is always ON or FLASHING.
- When NOT in gear, the engine sounds fine.
- When in gear, especially at lower gears (1 or R), the engine stutters, sometimes violently.
- At higher gears, the lower the RPMs, the easier the ride - I can occasionally get it to drive 55 or 60 smoothly.
- It got it's last oil change a month ago, and was taken to its regular mechanic two weeks ago.

Does anyone have insight as to what is wrong (or have a fix)?

Post by **jblackburn** » 26 Jul 2010, 09:21

Read the codes! You've certainly got a misfire code in there, but there may be more to give you a clue as to what's going on.

http://www.volvospeed.com/CheckEngine.php

The flashing light means you are misfiring. The other question is, where the heck did all your oil go?

sgm85 · Post by **sgm85** » 26 Jul 2010, 10:48

I am taking it to the local repair shop right now - this is the kind of thing I'm not mechanically savvy enough to try on my own.

I don't know what the deal is with the oil, since neither my regular mechanic nor my oil change place has diagnosed a leak there. I basically drove it 800 miles in 30 hours though, and the 10w-40 I added was not a suggested viscosity type for the car.

Post by **vjaneczko** » 26 Jul 2010, 11:33

sgm85 wrote:the 10w-40 I added was not a suggested viscosity type for the car.

The weight of oil shouldn't be a reason the oil disappeared - you'd probably only notice a difference during winter before it warmed up. Is it possible that the oil change place didn't give it 6 quarts? If you lost 3 quarts in 800 miles, you'd have noticed smoke coming from somewhere.

Post by **bigdaddylee82** » 26 Jul 2010, 11:47

Has the car leaked or smoked at all? Do you notice puddles/oil stains where you park? Is the underside of the car coated with oil? If your oil change was filled to manufacturer specs, even a novice would notice three Qt. of oil disappearing in 800 miles.

- Lee

sgm85 · Post by **sgm85** » 26 Jul 2010, 14:56

I took it in for some basic checks - they have it at the shop right now.
Oddly enough, the engine STOPPED acting up entirely on the way there - the check engine light remained, but we suspected that might be because I was over-full on oil and I (recklessly and without checking the manual) gave it as much oil as I was told to.
Anyways, after that much driving I figure it's a good idea to get everything looked over once again - I don't plan on driving it more than 30 miles a day for another week and a half.

No, there wasn't smoking or leaking - I figure that the "bone dry" measurement of oil was some kind of false positive/negative, and adding oil was more of a quick fix than anything else, just to get me the 80+ miles home.

Weather has been fairly temperate for July, only a few days above 90. I did have the A/C on for about 85% of that 800-mile drive though.

wjwatkins · Post by **wjwatkins** » 26 Jul 2010, 17:19

Okay, I have a similar incident. My wife ran the volvo 850glt, 2.4 non-turbo low on oil last year. This started a misfire it said on cylinder 4 with TWC damage. I added oil, tried an italian tune-up, and it seemed to only want to hesitate when you pushed down on the gas abruptly. I looked at the spark plugs and noticed a burnt wire connection on 4, so I replace sparks, wires, cap and rotor. Then I could not get it to start, tried and tried, the thing would never start. So, It sat over the winter. I finally dragged it down to my mechanic late spring and early June. he was able to get it to start by pulling a plug wire. Anyway, come to find out the manual I was using had the cylinders labeled backwards. So we got it started, but it still did the same thing. I could get the engine reving if I slowly applied pressure to the gas but if I pressed hard and fast it would cut out. I occasionally get a misfire, but it is random on which cylinders usually 4 or 5, occasionally 1 or 3, never 2. I think it is a fuel issue, each of the fuel injectors resistance is equal at 17.4-8, I looked at the 103 relay but it looks good, I haven't looked at the injector relay yet. I also looked at the ECT sensor but it tests out good, I did have a replacement and compared ohms with the screwed in and the other just sitting in the thermostat housing both read about 1400 ohms with the engine cold.
I also tried seafoam injection service thinking carbon build up, soaking the cylinders in restorer over night thinking cooked valves or rings. replaced the fuel pump. I have a fuel filter ordered, I am using a smaller filter right now that I picked up at Wal-Mart, Truthfully these things I tried seemed to help a little but then it seems to go back to doing the same thing again.
Another thought, I considered the MAP sensor, but can't find it so I don't think there is one on this engine because Sunday, I drove it to church about 30 miles and it drove great, btw this was after I used the smaller wal-mart filter, then I headed home it drove great until I filled it up with gas that is when it started all over again. I thought it might be a heat issue because the engine was hot, and it was hot outside so that is why I considered the MAP and ECT sensors
So, now that I wrote this out, I think I will check that injector relay, and wait for my new filter. It probably is the filter because adding gas most likely stirred up crap and clogged the smaller filter, I won't know until tomorrow. If anyone has any other suggestions. I would be happy to look,

Post by **vjaneczko** » 26 Jul 2010, 20:33

wjwatkins wrote:I could get the engine reving if I slowly applied pressure to the gas but if I pressed hard and fast it would cut out.

Sounds like you have a clogged cat. Take a soft mallet and give it a gentle wack to listen for chunks rattling around. If that's not it, it'd be best to start a new thread.

sgm85 · Post by **sgm85** » 28 Jul 2010, 13:03

Hi, wanted to update everyone on the progress...

Trouble code P0305 (cylinder 5 misfire) was the check engine light issue.
The mechanic suggested a $400 "tune-up," consisting of plugs, wires, a rotor and a cap. My mechanic back home wants to walk me through just replacing the spark plugs on cylinder 5 and seeing how it runs, so I'm caught between two possibilities here.

Post by **jblackburn** » 28 Jul 2010, 13:19

No. Before you go throwing money at it, change the plugs. You'll spend $10, and it takes all of about 20 minutes. These engines are perhaps the easiest ever to change them on, everything's right on top of the engine there under the little black cover. THEN if it's still misfiring, go forward with the rest.