1995 940t wagon how long do head gaskets usually last

earlfleetwood · Post by **earlfleetwood** » 13 Oct 2014, 21:14

The car has 211000 miles on it. I am losing coolant, although I have located leaks at the thermostat housing and top of water pump. Seems to be excess oil in the crank case, but not 100 percent sure of that. I filled to the top of the knotches when I changed the oil, now it seems higher. Oil smells fine and looks like just oil. Curious as to how long head gaskets will last on these. I've driven many Cadillacs in my life, and you put crushed tabs in their cooling system to prevent leaks, believe it is crushed up ginger. Wondered if that would be helpful or harmful to this car? I don't have the money to do a head gasket if needed, so, opinions here. I did rent one of those dye tests for head gaskets from autozone that did not show a blown head gasket, not sure how reliable they are. Thanks for reading!!

lummert · Post by **lummert** » 13 Oct 2014, 22:33

The oil cooler on your 940 is a possible place for coolant to get in the oil.

93Regina · Post by **93Regina** » 13 Oct 2014, 22:44

earlfleetwood wrote:Curious as to how long head gaskets will last on these.

Head-gasket's lifespan is a function of heat and number of expansion cycles.

Myself, I'd replace a HG on a 200K+ engine as a preventive measure. Volvos are well known (steel block with aluminum head) for HG issues. But, I do the work myself, and I would clean-up/inspect the head/pistons while doing it.

Fix the leaks first...