So my 96 850 that I've had for about 6 months has had the check engine light on for about 2 weeks and I just didn't make it to the auto parts store. So now it won't start. I started with the plugs and low and behold 4 of the 5 ports were completely flooded with oil. I've replaced the cap and I'm about to replace the plugs as well.

I have found out that it is a common problem but I haven't found too much information in the way of fixing the problem. I'm wondering if just cleaning them out really well will be enough or is there another step that needs to be done before firing her up?

 

Hi and welcome to the site.

It is NOT a common problem. If it were, you would have found your answer.

Please explain "filled with oil"? Do you mean that the oil was filling the hole and when you pulled the plug wires oil was on the plug wires?

 

Well I found it on this site: Top 10 Most Common Problems with 1993-2000 850, C70, S70 and V70 Models
Oil Filler Cap Seal Failure

I took of the top part to have access to the plug wires. The first four ports where the plug wires were located were full of oil. It was completely soaked. I pulled the plug wires out and then soaked up as much oil as possible and then removed the plugs. 4 of the plugs were pretty soaked in oil so I cleaned up as much as possible with a rag on the end of a screw driver.

 

oil will fill up on top of the valve cover if your oil filler cap seal is hardened. yours might have gone making oil spill out and filling out the spark plug holes. have you looked at your PCV?

 

Is that the PCV breather system that's in this video? I've read that it is frequently the problem when the engine turns but never fires.

 

No. the PCV has nothing to do with the car starting. it just helps release pressure build up from the engine,when the PCV gets clogged, pressure will force oil pass your seals causing an oil leak. plus it will affect your engine in the long run.

 

Oh Ok, I will keep an eye on that after I figure out how to get it started again. I need to go down a check list because it cranks but won't turn over. I will check for a spark tomorrow.

 

how is your battery?

 

Cranking and turning over is the same thing. What you are saying is that it won't start or fire.

If you believe the oil cap seal failure is the cause of oil getting down into the spark plug tubes then their lies the solution, change the oil cap seal and the cap if you think the cap is bad (won't go on the cover tight).

If the PCV is causing that much oil loss that oil has filled the spark plug holes, the top of the motor should have been soaked with oil, was it?

Now to the real problem at hand, not starting... Cars need 5 things to start:
1. Fuel - is the fuel pump running?
2. Spark - do you have apart?
3. Timing - is the timing belt broken?
4. Air - if you have a bad MAF or bad ECT sensor you may not have proper air mix (check CEL code).
5. Compression - if all other things check out, you may have burnt a valve or loss compression somehow.

 

Alright, I found out that I could rent a code reader from O'Reilly's here. I have the error code P0300 Random Misfire Detected.

The battery was replaced about 4 months ago and is essentially brand new.

I did change the whole oil cap & seal.

The top of the motor was soaked in oil as well.

 

I'm going to check and make sure I have a spark. I'm also going to make sure all my connections are solid. Also, I have heard of resetting the codes. Is this something I need to do/try?

 

You need to try to stick with 1 thread and go down the list of things to check.

Fuel, Spark, Timing, Compression and Air.

 

Yes you can reset the code. If it comes back then you know you have a problem.

Random misfire can be dirty or carbon tracked cap or rotor and also the wires could be old and intermittently shorting out and causing the code.

Did you remove the plugs or just pull the boots out of the holes ??

You might need to pull the plugs and make sure they aren't flooded. Let the oil drain into the cylinders, not the best but I doubt you really want to use a shop vac to suck it out. Then use carb cleaner to spray off the outside and inside of the boots and the spark plugs to get rid of as much oil as possible. If you left the oil in the hole and just put the boot back over the plug it might be shorting out in the hole.

 

Thanks rspi. I forgot to mention on this thread that I started a new one that is better labelled. I did remove the plugs and the new ones have a bit of oil on them so I'll clean them. I'll go ahead and cancel this thread tomorrow morning so everyone who has been so kind to help me out knows that I'm using the other one now.

 

So I'm not sure how or if I even can erase this post. If an administrator can that would be great. My problem has been moved to: 96 850 turbo turns but won't fire - P0300 Error Code because I got the oil problem cleaned up and now I'm moving on to starting problems. Thank You everyone for the help.

 

What is it you did to fix the oil problem ?? If you post the fix you then have a "closed" thread because the two pages of back and forth between us and you have an answer that someone else having an oil problem can search and possibly use to help themselves with their problem.

Any moderator like Rspi, Boxpin, me ... can move, edit, delete

I was going to tack them together but one is starting and the other is oil in the spark plug tubes. So it may be you, and only your car but it is two separate problems . . . IF you've solved the oil and now it's not starting.

My hot button is people who start two, three or four threads over the same problem. Or post a separate answer in a new thread to their problem. I'm happy their car is fixed and that they are happy but what good does that do the guy coming along in a month, week, year .. years trying to solve the same problem and after reading three pages it ends with no resolution.

BUT, there are times I've editied or advised someone to start a new thread because their topic . . . . . . well . . . it sucked. "Help me" should just get deleted right off the bat as it doesn't say anything. It's also worthless if you or I have a problem and try to do a search.

You did good, just post how you solved the oil problem and we all move on to the no start or misfire in the new thread

 

Well, I technically didn't solve the oil problem because I am still unable to start my car. I did clean it all up and replace the plugs and plug wires. So if my PCV is the problem I will have that to deal with when I get it running again.

Today I worked on checking for a spark and also seeing if my fuel pump fuse is to blame. As serendipitous as it is I ended up cutting my finger badly with a razor when preparing the wire to check my fuse. I went to the walk in clinic to get stitches and ran into an old hockey buddy's mom. She asked what happened and made a call right there. Turns out my old teammate is the service manager at Volvo here in town. I'm having it towed thanks to USAA and he is going to check it all out for free and so I'm quite lucky. I will find out the diagnosis and remedy after I get it fixed and post it here. I too have been stuck on incomplete threads so I'll be sure to report.

Thank you to everyone again for the help. I really appreciate it.

 

Sorry to hear about your finger.

There are basically 2 reasons spark plug tubes fill with oil.
1. Clogged PVC that floods the top of the area. (Hard for it to fill 4 holes).
2. Cam cover not installed properly and the spark plug holes seals are bad or missing.