Long time no post! Advice needed on 99 S70 engine.....

Post by **lewismug** » 28 Feb 2012, 11:47

I used to be a pretty frequent poster on this site, but when the head gasket on my S70 gave way a few years ago, I parked it in the back yard and forgot about everything Volvo. I was recently doing some yard work and opened up the door to move it to a different spot and fell back in love with the car. I have decided to operate on her and get her going again. I know the timing belt needs to be replaced, along with the head gasket, and flame trap. She was leaking oil like crazy when she died. Since I plan to revive her, I've been looking around and have found an engine out of a wrecked car for $500.00. That engine has a 30 day warranty plus one week to allow for it to be installed. I'm still trying to decide if the engine swap would be better or if I just need to replace the parts and throw some more miles on my current engine. I see MIJ and a few of the other guys are still alive and kicking around on here, so maybe someone can offer some advice on this. Used engine or rebuild my old one? Whaddya think?

Post by **rspi** » 28 Feb 2012, 12:51

It's likely that your current motor has locked up since it was sitting with a blown head gasket. I would suggest having a compression test done on the used motor and go from there.

Post by **JRL** » 28 Feb 2012, 15:28

Used engine is less of a hassle if you have all the parts and the ECU

Post by **precopster** » 28 Feb 2012, 20:13

Pull the head; it won't cost you a cent except perhaps for some extra tools like a good torx set. Lots of great tutorials we can point you to if you go this route.

If the bores are OK you might just need a reskim and gasket set.

I'm always very weary about used motors unless you know the history very well. If I really have to get a used motor I usually put it up on a stand, remove the head so I can get it checked and fit a new head gasket & sump o rings just in case.

A compression test is a good starting point, just not enough for me.

Post by **rmmagow** » 29 Feb 2012, 13:56

if you have the space to play, I'd put in the used motor but keep the old and rebuild it at your leisure. This way you'd have a nice new motor to put in or even sell for a few bucks.