Hello,
I found the car I really want. A 1995 Volvo 850 Turbo Sedan, 132,000 miles, excellent condition, 2 owners. The only issue is, it has a small oil drip. They are using the car still, but I am concerned about this. I understand it could be a cheap fix like a hose or oil line, but I am scared that it is a blown head gasket or something like that. Anyway, I live about 10 hours one way from the car, so I need to make sure I have them find out what the problem is before I make a commitment.

I know there could be many possiblities, but are there any common problems with the 850 about this age that cause a small drip?

-Thanks

 

Could be the head gasket, could be PCV, could be . . . Have you asked them if they know where the leak is? If it is very small it could be an inexpensive fix.

 

Thanks, I just talked to the guy, and he said he is pretty sure it is the oil pan/oil pan gasket. Is this an expensive fix?
-thanks

 

If it's from the back of the pan, it is most likely the oil return line seal for the turbo. These have a high failure rate.

If it's from the front, it may be the PCV housing.

If it is coming from between the engine and transmission, then you may have a rear main seal leak.

It's pretty rare for the pan to leak, but possible.

B

 

Buy with your head not with your heart.....An 850 turbo requires an oil change every 5000 miles, there should have been an oil change/minor service at 130,000. If he has kept up the service he should have records.

Any competent mechanic would have noted the oil leak and it's source, simply because the mechanic would want to sell the owner additional work . He would also cover his azz in case the leak got so bad the car lost oil and wrecked the motor , the customer couldn't claim he didn't inform him of the leak.

So if the owner doesn't know : He either hasn't been servicing the car, The leak is worse than he is telling you, or the leak has only started in the last 2000 miles.

BTW There was a major service due at 120,000 he should have the records for that service since it would have probaly been done in the last 12-18 months.

Maintance schedule for 1995 850:
http://new.volvocars.com/ownersdocs/...intenance.html

Owners manual : http://new.volvocars.com/ownersdocs/...0/95850_1.html

 

The 850 rarely has head gasket problems. They are known to have oil leaks though. The most common place to have a leak on the 850 is with the Turbo return line, and it's very easy and cheap to fix. Just a seal on one end and a gasket on the other.

My adivice is to have a Volvo mechanic do a pre-purchase inspection for you before purchasing the car. He should charge around $60 to do this type of inspection. Then you can use the result of this inspection as bargaining power with the seller. If the mechanic finds a reason for you to not buy the car (i.e. Head Gasket) you have wisely spent $60.

100 miles is not far at all. I have gone 600 miles to buy the white one. 400 for the V70 and 200 for the T5R.

 

Another leak-favourite location is the oil cooler line connections, especially the connection between the rubber portion & aluminium portion. This one requires replacement of the hose assembly and is approx $90+ shipping. But this leak should be minor and can be deferred until you have the money to fix it. If not from there, it's most likely from the turbo oil return, like others have already noted.

Be sure to have 2 quarts of name-brand's 10W-30 oil in the trunk. Also, I personally would do the oil & filter at every 3,000 miles for a turboed car. For NAs, 5,000 would suffice.


JPN