Hey guys,

I'm no mechanic and I don't know much about cars in general. Though driving my Volvo 850 this afternoon it suddenly started feeling a bit different.

I noticed the temperature was quite high and the car was vibrating quite a bit. I checked the coolant and filled it up, it was reasonably full beforehand and filling it up did nothing. I checked the oil and it was clean. I don't know enough to test or diagnose anything more. There is also a strong petrol smell.

When I accelerate up a hill I am basically flat footing it and it's gaining speed very slowly and struggling while the temperate increases quite fast.

I'm not sure what it could be as I am taking it into the mechanics tomorrow, if anyone of you knowledgeable here knows what the problem might be it could save my pocket (I'm a uni student working a part time job) and I would be extremely grateful.

Thanks

 

Hi and welcome to the forum.

If the car is overheating it is likely from coolant loss. So, you probably have a coolant leak, which caused you to over heat the car, and now it has a blown head gasket.

How to avoid coolant leaks:

How to check your heater core for leaks:

How to know if the car is overheating:

How to check for a blown head gasket:

How to pull the head off of the motor:

How to rebuild the head: