Using oil, thinking rear ram seal/PCV, suggestions?

dorvin · Post by **dorvin** » 14 Jan 2016, 10:42

Hello All,

Since my last oil change I've been putting on some extra miles, nearly 2000 since December 19th. The vehicle is a '97 Volvo 850 NA. After a pretty decent cold snap here in Minnesota, I checked my oil, and what appears to be some leakage near the rear cam seal. Please see the following pictures to confirm or deny. I have yet to throughly investigate the leaks, like removing the spark plug cover, but one picture almost shows that it hasn't yet leaked down from the distributor, although it is a less than ideal picture. Over the past summer, I replaced the distributor, wires and plugs, and didn't find anything indicating a blown seal. At that time, the "glove test" was performed, with passing results.

I'm hoping I've caught it soon enough to quickly replace the PCV system and rear cam seal prior to any additional seals blowing. Please see the following pictures for what I noticed when I checked my oil last.

http://imgur.com/a/uu3Rl

I have the PCV replacement kit already, and will likely order a rear cam seal replacement upon some input, but just wanted to share what I'm seeing, prior to shelling on money on parts I may not need. Can someone please advise?

Thanks!

Post by **tryingbe** » 14 Jan 2016, 11:05

Take off the plugs cover and see where the oil is coming from.

dorvin · Post by **dorvin** » 14 Jan 2016, 11:08

I will definitely be doing that this weekend and post results, I just wanted to post what I have seen so far and see if any conclusions could be drawn. I'll likely remove the distributor as well, just to check that.

Post by **dosbricks** » 14 Jan 2016, 14:00

Rear cam seals leak from the weep holes in the bottom of the distributor or CPS. You have oil on the top of the cam cover so not likely coming from the cam seals. How fresh is the oil filler gasket? Or that top PCV hose may be cracked.

dorvin · Post by **dorvin** » 14 Jan 2016, 14:55

The oil filler gasket is about a year old, I replaced it when I bought the car, as the one that was on there didn't appear to seal well. I'll pull the spark plug cover off and investigate further tomorrow and post additional pictures.

Post by **cn90** » 14 Jan 2016, 17:35

The oil is likely from:
1. Oil oil from bad oil filler cap seal.
2. Oil spill from filling the engine during oil change.

I removed the cosmetic cover (Torx bolts), threw it away and never look back. That cosmetic cover is nothing but trouble:
- It covers oil leak.
- When washing engine, if you are not careful, water gets underneath the cover ---> misfire: you can't see the water with the cover in place.
- It simply traps the heat at the spark plug wires.

Anyway, you will be happy w/o the cosmetic cover.

Post by **dosbricks** » 14 Jan 2016, 18:13

1. There are about two or three dozen electrical connections between the fan shroud and the engine, and although they have seals, these are 20 y.o. cars with deteriorating connectors. So I never wash down an engine.

2. Those torx bolts don't need to be tight. I run them in and out with a cordless drill set to it's lowest clutch setting.
And I may be odd, but I just wouldn't be happy without my covers.

Post by **mecheng** » 14 Jan 2016, 19:51

cn90 wrote:The oil is likely from:
1. Oil oil from bad oil filler cap seal.
2. Oil spill from filling the engine during oil change.

I removed the cosmetic cover (Torx bolts), threw it away and never look back. That cosmetic cover is nothing but trouble:
- It covers oil leak.
- When washing engine, if you are not careful, water gets underneath the cover ---> misfire: you can't see the water with the cover in place.
- It simply traps the heat at the spark plug wires.

Anyway, you will be happy w/o the cosmetic cover.

Conversely it keeps heat away from the turbo to intercooler pipe and heat inside engine to run more efficient and away from a/c system

Post by **cn90** » 14 Jan 2016, 20:27

The plastic cover is a worthless piece of plastic.
In all of my 4 vehicles at home (2 Volvos and 2 BMWs), I remove the cosmetic cover.
It makes servicing 10x easier.

In the 1980s, cosmetic covers were not there, later...in the 1990s and 2000s, engineers dressed up the engine for prospective buyers' eyes.

Post by **dosbricks** » 14 Jan 2016, 21:01

cn90 wrote:...in the 1990s and 2000s, engineers dressed up the engine for prospective buyers' eyes.

True. And when I see a P80 on craigslist with missing throttle cover and spark plug cover, I think to myself, "Hacker...too lazy to put the covers back on to dress up the engine."