Flame Trap
 

Greetings..

I have a 97 850 wagon. How often should the flame trap be cleaned or replaced. I change my own oil on occasion.
5 Cyl. non-turbo 170,000 miles.

Thanks.

RE: Flame Trap
 

The quote from your service book is:

60,000 MILES:
PCV - REPLACE FLAME GUARD: CLEAN NIPPLE AND HOSES (also at 100,000 miles for '95 - '97 models)-
* Maintains proper emission control.
* Clogged flame guard may cause oil seepage.

There is a whole library of documents waiting for you at:

http://www.volvocars.us/_Tier2/Owners/Library.htm

RE: Flame Trap
 

At the dealer we do it as part of the 30k service.I would reccomend doing it every 30k I have seen then clog at 40k.

RE: Flame Trap
 

This is my first time working on a Volvo engine, and I hate to screw anything up, or take anything apart unneccessarily. With this in mind, can anyone tell me exactly where the flame trap/pvc valve is... exactly, and also what is the process of taking it off... exactly? Thank you.

RE: Flame Trap
 

I forget if you have a turbo or not.The turbo has no flame shield or anything servicable.The non turbo has it in the induction hose close to the throttle body.There is a plastic housing with 2 vaccum lines going to it.Turn and lift out of the hose and there is a plastic sheild inside there that is the flame sheild.

RE: Flame Trap
 

Okay, first of all, and this may sound like a dumb question, but where is the throttle body? And, second, what about the pvc valve? Is this one-in-the-same?

RE: Flame Trap
 

Volvo's dont have PCV valve they have flame sheilds. The throttle body is on the end of the intake on the left side of the car.If it is non turbo follow the hose from the air filter box the the engine.

Remember the turbo engine is not servicable

RE: Flame Trap
 

Yes, I do not have a turbo, I have GLT. And, thanks for the info. Should I clean it with carburator cleaner... OS safe?

RE: Flame Trap
 

Take a good look at it if you can still see through it just clean it good with carb cleaner.If it is clogged replace it.

RE: Flame Trap
 

Thanks loads!!!!!!!!!!!!!

RE: Flame Trap
 

Your welcome.

RE: Flame Trap
 

Is this the flame trap, or is it at the other end of this very loooong hose under the engine? By the way, the last picture is of the air intake where the thing plugs into... what I think is the flame trap?

[IMG]local://upfiles/1748/2B8379220C514207BCF207FB5CF5EFDC.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/1748/118B5FD764AA42B89DF3F76A1A4FE8FC.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/1748/FAD97BFDAFED46B5BF46FDFC4FE41305.jpg[/IMG]

RE: Flame Trap
 

About the previous message, notice the oil all around the area. I seem to be having a very small oil leak, and the oil is comming from this area. Any clues?

RE: Flame Trap
 

The first 2 pics are the flame trap setup.Was there a white insert in there with a bunch of holes?
Install a new o-ring whe you put it all back together.
The vent box may be clogged and pushing oil up to the flame trap.
Or the rear cam seal could be bad weaping oil onto the flame trap.

RE: Flame Trap
 

No, there wasn't any pieces inside, or when it just came out, some of the pieces just fell out. The flame trap looked like part of it was melted away, and that was one reason why it wasn't holding on. Another thing is, how do I clean the vent box? Also, would you recommend that I try and get a new rubber hose... you know the hose that goes from the flame trap to somewhere deeeeep behind the engine!!!!

RE: Flame Trap
 

Actually, which one is easier to check, the seals, or he box? And, where are they, and how do I check them/change them?

RE: Flame Trap
 

Actually, how can I truely tell what is the problem?

RE: Flame Trap
 

Could all of those internal parts of the flame trap have done any damage to the engine? I mean, you can't see it, but there is nothing but a thru hole in the flame trap, the flame trap looks like half of it is gone, like maybe it was broken off, and there is nothing inside of it. Also, when I took it apart, very few parts, if any fell out. Is this okay?

RE: Flame Trap
 

The rear cam seals are under the dist cap and the cam sensor.
The vent box on located in the front of the engine on the side be the A/C compressor.There is a black box attached to the engine.That is the vent box.To be safe I would just replace it and the seals.
If the hose looks really bad and brittle I would replace it.
If any of the peices go sucked into the engine they would have been chewed up.Since it is only plastic it should not have caused any damage.

One way to check for the leak would be to clean the engine and the hoses in the area good with brake clean or something like that.I would not use water to clean it.Once it is really clean drive it for a little while and recheck it and see where the oil is.

RE: Flame Trap
 

Just curious. If you look at my pictures, and you see all the oil in the throttle body, and underneath the flame trap area, could that be because the flame trap was broken, or does it still mean that there is definately another problem with the vent box, or the rear seals? Also, if it is the rear seals, would it be just as easy to change the front seals at the same time? Thanks for the input, and sorry about all of the questions, I have a Haynes book, and it is one of the worst car books that I have seen, so I need to ask many questions about locations, and what parts look like. Hope you don't mind. And, thanks again everyone, Mr. Tech especially.

RE: Flame Trap
 

Yes I saw all the oil.
I would clean everything really good and then take it from there.
Some of it may have been from an old leak and still sitting there.
Clean it good and drive it for a couple of days and see what happens.

RE: Flame Trap
 

Okay, could you be a little more specific about where the vent box is, and how big it is, and what shape it is? Sorry, I don't seem to be able to find it, but I am a little blind.

RE: Flame Trap
 

If you are standing in the front of the car looking at the engine.It will be on your left down towards the bottom of the engine.It is a black box with a hose coming out of the top of it.If you look from the back of the A/C compressor it is not far back from the back of the A/C compressor.

To replace it you will need to remove the intake manifold.That will save you tons of trouble.

RE: Flame Trap
 

Okay, one more question... I hope also. What exactly does the vent stop do, and how does it interact with the rest of the engine?

RE: Flame Trap
 

Im hoping you mean Vent Box.It takes the crankcase gasses and routes them into the intake manifold to get burned.
Excessive crank case pressure will also blow out older weak seals and cause oil leaks.

RE: Flame Trap
 

Yes, I meant the vent box. Question; where can I see this box? I've looked in the car breifly. Behind it is the serpentine belt, above it is the alternator, below it is ?, on the driver's side of it is the engine, and some open space, and on the passenger side is the wheel well. Correct me if I'm wrong, please. So, where is it? How is it easiest to access, and look at? From the bottom, from the top, from the wheel well, etc? HELP!!!!

RE: Flame Trap
 

You will have to remove the intake to get to it.
If you follow the upper radiator from the top of the engine to the bottom of the engine you should hit it or come close to hitting it.

RE: Flame Trap
 

Is this thing also called an oil separator? It is somewhat the shape of a box, and has a hose coming out of the top, and is under the intake manifold, toward the back of the air compressor. Is that it?

RE: Flame Trap
 

That sounds like it.I believe some call it an oil seperator.I know it as a vent box from what Volvo calls it.

RE: Flame Trap
 

Yahoo!!! I think I'm on to something :-) Now if I can get the rest of the stuff, I'll be alright!!

RE: Flame Trap
 

Keep me posted!!!:D

RE: Flame Trap
 

Do I need to change the fuel injector seals when I take them off to replace the vent box? And what other seals, and parts will I need, other than the manifold gasket, to do the job? And, how long do you think it should take? Thanks so much for the information. I don't think I could have done it without you guys. This/these forum/s is/are the best thing on the internet for car help.

RE: Flame Trap
 

As long as one of the injector seals don't tear when you remove the fuelrail and they are still rubbery then you can reuse them.
The parts you will need if you replace the vent box will be.
The vent box.
A couple of clamps.
The seal that goes between the vent box and the engine.
The intake gasket.
Some carberator or brake clean to clean everything up.
I think that is about it.Hopefully I am not forgetting anything.

It should take you like 3 to 4 hours maybe a little more since it is your first time.

RE: Flame Trap
 

very informative topic. i think replacing the ventbox is something i also need to do. when i took off the top cover to the engine (the plastic cover that has VOLVO 20 VAlve written on it) there was puddles of oil sitting in the indentations of the valve cover - and it seems that in a previous post there was some info of what this means. i.e., that maybe my vent box is clogged and the oil is backing up and spilling out that hole on top(it seems that the hose that comes out there goes down the front side of the engine to the vent box, correct?)

if this is not the case, could it just be from accumlated spillage over time when someone filled the crankcase with oil? also, could a clogged vent box increase emissions? thanks for any input. eric

RE: Flame Trap
 

and/or could a clogged flame trap have the same effect - i.e., cause oil to accumulate on top of the valve cover? thanx

RE: Flame Trap
 

Yes they both can cause higher emmissions and oil in the top of the Valve cover.

RE: Flame Trap
 

thanks. my flame trap looked almost new, so i'm thinking that it was bad earlier and replaced, but the damage was already done to the vent box and they didnt go further and replace that. oh well, off comes the intake manifold...

also, i had asked previous question about my car just barely failing smog, so i did some basic tune-up and fuel adiditive and it passed!!! - however, instead of failing by one point, it TIED the max number - but hey, i'll take it however i can. the tech seems to think that the cat is fried, looks original (117k miles) and that its just barely passing w/o any help from the cat. i looked up the dmv history of this car's smog tests and it seems to have done the same thing the last 2 times-i.e, it'll fail, then 10 minutes later it'll pass. i guess its right on the line and its just the luck of the draw when the sampling is done.

thanks for all your advice (i also fixed my power front seatback not moving up by some of your other posts!). now about my center rear window brake light not coming on . . . naw, on second thought, i'll put that off til later. caio.

RE: Flame Trap
 

The third brakelight is like a 2 peice setup. Remove the upper peice and clean the contacts really good.Then bend the tabs slightly and then it should work good.

You will know if the vent box is clogged when you get it off.It will be heavy if it is clogged.You will see the new one is very light.

RE: Flame Trap
 

I hate to ask another question on this subject.... but I will anyway....
I recently bought a 93 850 (n/a) with a 5 speed. It was taken to the dealer every time it needed ANYTHING, and then some. I don't have the records detailing what was done, other than the date and miles, and what service was done - 10k, 30k, 60k....
The car has 220k well kept miles on it. (last dealer service was May of this year - 3,000 miles ago.) I checked the flame trap soon after I bought it, and there wasn't one. I noticed a small amount of oil in that area where it is located. I put a new flame trap in it a few hundred miles ago. I just checked, and the flame trap looks clean, but again, there is a small amount of oil there. It is possible that it is residual oil from the lines leading to it, though I cleaned the intake hose, and the plastic piece the flame trap goes in before I installed a new flame trap.
Is there a way to know the condition of the vent box, without removing the intake? Does anyone know if the vent box is part of routine maint. at any mileage? If it is, how often do mechanics "forget" to change it? - I asked the last question because it appears that my plug wires have never been changed (until now) - and that makes me question everything the dealer was supposed to have done to the car.
Comments? advice? suggestions?
Thanks, Cranky

RE: Flame Trap
 

No replacing either one of the parts you asked about is not in a service routine.

You will always have a slight bit of oil in there.Not 100% sure why but everyone I take apart has some.