Boy, did I do something dumb .. on Christmas Day yet!

alan-bc · Post by **alan-bc** » 25 Dec 2018, 14:30

So, I was about to head out to the inlaws for Christmas dinner. It was a bit of a trip, so I did my usual inspection; tire pressure, fluids, etc.

Oil was about a litre low, so out to the shop and there was an opened 5 litre jug of oil, with about a litre of oil in it! Beauty!

I started to pour and something wasn't quite right .. the colour was good and the gloop gloop gloop sound was good, but something wasn't right.

I stopped, looked inside the jug and .. the jug had old solvent in it! Old solvent, plus whatever gunk was on the thing I used the solvent for in the first place.

There was no marking on the jug, which is unlike me, because I always remove labels and mark jugs when they contain something else.

Anyway, the damage is done, and I'm not sure how much damage. About half a litre, maybe less, of contamination has been dumped into my engine.

As a minimum, lots and lots of perfectly good oil is going to get poured down and allowed to drain right out and then sent to recycling.

But is there anything else I should do? I'm thinking I should remove the valve cover(s) and look for .. things .. , but removing them looks like a fair bit of work, and I'm not even sure how much work.

Can someone advise .. just how hard a job is it to remove the cover(s)? And any tips on doing so (as in, don't forget this hidden bolt, etc.)

Thanks in advance.

Alan

Post by **abscate** » 25 Dec 2018, 14:55

Dump the oil, replace with fresh, soldier on. If you are really paranoid, idle for 15 minutes and repeat but I would do one change only.

Post by **Rattnalle** » 25 Dec 2018, 14:58

Particulate gunk usually sits at the bottom so if you poured carefully I wouldn't be worried either.

I'd probably chase the old oil out the pan drain with half a litre or so of new (or used but clean) oil just to flush the top from whatever you poured on there.

bepilot · Post by **bepilot** » 25 Dec 2018, 15:28

I would start it first to dilute that wrong product better in the existing oil, then drain it indeed.
And change the filter.

Post by **cn90** » 25 Dec 2018, 15:51

Don't start the engine:

1. Drain the existing crap.
2. Add new regular oil (not synthetic). Run the engine for about 10 minutes.
3. Do the usual oil change with new filter.

Don't sweat over this stuff.

Post by **precopster** » 26 Dec 2018, 15:56

I pour 500ml petrol/solvent down the oil filler hole at every service to clean out any loose gunk around the head and down in the sump with the sump plug off. I let it drain then pour 200-300ml cheap oil down after 10 minutes, let that drain off then repeat.

The solvent gets diluted by the cheap oil. Finally I let the cheap oil drain then fill with synthetic. The solvent doesn't actually enter the bearings/oil delivery system as it's not drawn up by the oil pickup pipe as long as the engine isn't started.

As long as engine isn't started you've nothing to worry about.

alan-bc · Post by **alan-bc** » 27 Dec 2018, 15:26

Thanks to all who replied!

I didn't start the car .. I'm dumb but not THAT dumb.

The worry was not the solvent, exactly, but what was IN the solvent, which in this case was fine fine dirt .. almost sand, but finer. I'm not at all sure where it came from, but clearly the solvent was used it to clean SOMETHING somewhere along the line.

That's why my question about "valve cover removal"; I wanted to look and see how much (if any) of this grit might be on a cam lobe, valve follower, etc.

But as I've come to learn, it isn't a "cover", it's a "retainer", and while removal is easy enough, re-installation is non-trivial.

So now I'm stumped.

Options are (in order of ease):

1. flush with regular oil and hope that washes the grit (if any) away, then a standard oil change with synthetic oil, done
2. pour down some CLEAN solvent to rid myself of grit that MIGHT be there, then step 1 above
3. remove the cam cover and know for sure

Not quite sure how to proceed ...

Man, it would sure be nice to be able to remove that filler from the cam cover!

Post by **June** » 27 Dec 2018, 15:50

So you have not started it yet? In the old days mechanics used diesel to flush out engines. Perhaps with the drain plug out you could flush say five gallons or so of diesel through to wash the grit through to the pan and out the drain. By monitoring the diesel exiting the engine you can get a idea if any grit is in there.

Even if you take the cam cover off, you still will have to flush out the oil returns from the head and oil pan. Undoubtedly some of that polluted solvent is in the pan now. Once you feel the crud has sufficiently exited the engine, change the oil with cheap oil. Run the engine a few minutes. Than change it again with your normal oil. That seems to me would get it. June

Post by **SuperHerman** » 27 Dec 2018, 16:45

Flushing it with diesel is not a bad option. The problem with the Volvo design is it doesn't take oil fast enough due to the baffle - so knowing how far out any crud extends is hard to tell. I agree cleaning it properly requires pulling the upper cam cover and the oil pan. You have a can of worms here.

I would drain the oil, clean out the oil collection pan really well and then try slowly pouring some cheap oil (or if you have some unused ATF) into the motor. Check what comes out the oil drain pan for the crud you fear entered the motor. Do this a number of times, low volume and slow speed. If you don't see any of the feared crud - it most likely stayed on the bottom of the container. You may get some sludge coming out that is built up inside the oil pan. Here is where it gets tricky - any crud that is dislodged can result in throwing a clot. For this reason cheap oil may be the best to start with. After that you can try ATF or diesel, but any solvent may cause issues. ATF should be fine as a flush agent.

If you are happy with what you find then fill it with cheap oil and let it run. Drain and change the filter. Keep an eye on what comes out - always start with a very clean oil drain pan so you can track. I think you will be fine.

If you are not happy then I would drop the oil pan, clean it up really well, and put it back on w/o sealing it for now. Then do a few diesel flushes from the top and see what you get. You are temporarily installing the pan to control the mess - you are not going to be starting the car. Once you are happy, change out the oil pan o-rings and properly install the oil pan.

To be honest, I think the filter will catch most of the bad stuff - that is what they are designed to do. My main concern is a serious flush will cause clots and you could toast your motor. Happened on an old Land Rover I had after a head gasket change - threw a clot and sent a rod through the block. The engine was known to sludge and the mechanic said it had sludge when he did the head gasket. Looking back the motor should have been cleaned better and the oil pan dropped and cleaned. Hence my fear of solvents. A large enough sludge lump can block an oil channel and cause havoc. Having pulled an S80 pan I can state they have sludge buildup.

Georgeandkira · Post by **Georgeandkira** » 28 Dec 2018, 11:58

Go with the first (abscate's) suggestion.

The baffle or grate in the filler neck would've caught anything large.
Anything small enough to go through glided down a return "line".
Chasing with a quart of diesel or cheap, thin oil then draining the sump would be more than enough to satisfy me.
But that's me.

Then again, I'm the guy who wants to drain my crankcase of oil and fill it with 2 gallons of lacquer thinner and let it sit for a few hours so the PCV return elbow and pick-up screen get soaked real well.