About a month ago, my car quit running while on I 80 in Iowa. I had it towed to a small volvo shop I trust. They could find nothing wrong with it without
digging more than they wanted to. So I had it towed to volvo shop where I
purchased a used engine end of March 2009. They are saying the crankcase
seized and the engine is shot. Funny thing though...this is the same thing
that happened before, why I bought the used engine. Questions:
1. Is this coincidence or is it quite possible the same thing would happen
in a little over a year?
2. Can any other engine be put into this car?
I love the car. I don't want to junk it, but can't afford to pay another 5000
for another volvo engine.
Must decide in the next few days.

 

Sounds very fishy! I am guessing that the crankcase seizure really means the timing belt broke and there are bent valves. Unless you drove for miles without oil and ignored the oil warning light.

Why are they describing this kind of failure as a crankcase seizure, makes me think they are not honest.

So will the engine crank over on the starter but just not fire up, or when the key is turned it does nothing like a dead battery?

$5,000 is way too high for an engine, junk yards are filled with potential used engines. If it really is the valves you should be able to get away for about $1,200-1,500.

How long ago did you do the engine swap? Was there a warranty? Was the timing belt change according to the owners manual? How many miles on the first one, how many on the second one? How many miles on the second engine before it was installed into your car and then how many did you put on in that year?

Did the engine make any sounds before dying? How was it running?

Somebody should be able to tell you what exactly went wrong on the first engine.

DanR '94 964 355,000 miles (121,000 on the new engine)