2002 S40 1.9T Smokes when going up hill

Squarehead · Post by **Squarehead** » 27 Sep 2015, 10:35

This is strange. I have a Volvo mechanic and initially we thought it was a bad turbo, but upon taking it apart discovered it was bone dry. I had seen smoke coming from behind the car when accelerating up hill. Apparently it is not coming from the tail pipe, but from the engine compartment (we think) and drifting behind the car. There's also a smell that permeates the car. I was thinking it smelled a little like brakes, but not sure the brakes can produce that much smoke and again, only when going up hill. Today when I got home, there was smoke coming up from the engine, but I couldn't locate the source. The car doesn't appear to be burning oil. I use full synthetic 5W-30 (put in a zinc additive at mechanic's recommendation during oil change last week) and there's approximately 137K on the odometer. Thoughts?

Post by **alschnertz** » 28 Sep 2015, 03:41

Any drips on the ground under the car? Front or back of engine? Left side? Right side?

Unrelated, but I'm pretty sure you don't need a zinc additive with a 2002 car.

difflock54 · Post by **difflock54** » 28 Sep 2015, 04:30

Check the dipstick to confirm the oil level in the sump is correct after reasonable oil settling period but still reasonably hot.
I wonder if maybe excessive oil has been used which then slops/tilts to the back of the oil pan when climbing hills and raises the crankcase pressure excessively,hence the smoking .

Squarehead · Post by **Squarehead** » 28 Sep 2015, 06:16

alschnertz - no drips under car anywhere.
difflock54 - I've pulled the dipstick and the oil is right at the line (hot or cold). I think however that it takes around 6 quarts of oil, which I thought was a tad excessive for a 4 cylinder, but I'm told it has a deep oil pan and needs more as it's a turbo.

Livens · Post by **Livens** » 28 Sep 2015, 12:03

I would pull the upper plastic engine covers and look for pools of oil under the plug wires. Also remove the upper TB cover while you have the others off and check for oil there. I suspect that oil is collecting somewhere and when you go uphill it runs down the back of the engine and onto the exhaust.

Post by **alschnertz** » 28 Sep 2015, 14:42

Have you checked the transmission fluid level?
How about the coolant level?
What about the power steering fluid level?
etc., etc.

You've got to take a closer look at where the smoke is permeating from and report back.

And yes, it is surprising that that 1.9L engine holds 5.7 quarts of oil (according to the owner's manual.)

Squarehead · Post by **Squarehead** » 29 Sep 2015, 07:20

I will check and get back to you. Probably by the weekend.

Livens · Post by **Livens** » 29 Sep 2015, 08:32

alschnertz wrote:...

And yes, it is surprising that that 1.9L engine holds 5.7 quarts of oil (according to the owner's manual.)

Yep, 5.7 when you drain and replace the filter. PITA too because for my other 4cyl's I can just buy a 5q jug and have a little left over for top offs. For my Volvo I ended up buying 2 of the 5q jugs and use the second one for the extra 0.7. So every 4-5 oil changes I need to buy an extra jug.