My 850 dos not have a turbo...

It started out as a small drip, then after leaving it for two days, it leaked about a cup. Now after driving just a couple of days on short trips, th oil is down a pint.
Looking underneath, oil sprayed all over the oil pan, then slowed down and is now dripping below the transaxle.

I am going to inspecct the flame trap again. Maybe it just clogged up causing the RMS to fail.

Thanks,
Tom

 

>I am going to inspect the flame trap again. Maybe it just clogged up causing the RMS to fail.

I personally think it's still worth wiping up the oil from the bottom (cleaning liquid & paper towels work great for this) and locating the actual leak. It could be as simple as a loose oil filter.

Just make sure NEVER to allow the engine run low on oil, as these engines are extremely sensitive to oil starvation. I would carry one of those 5-quart tank oil in the trunk until the problem is fixed. Doesn't have to be a fancy brand for this purpose, as long as it's 10W-30 (Wal-mart's Super Tech brand would suffice).

After tomorrow, I may not be able to give you advice for up to a month due to relocation. But not to worry, there are enough experts on the 850 forum (I think V50 forum or something is miserable, they have only 5 active members or something like that[8D]).

I wish you luck. Again, NEVER allow the engine to run low on oil.


JPN

 

Well, its been 3 months. The following has been fixed or replaced.

Timing Belt
Rear main seal
Brakes
Tires
shock/strut mounts
engine mounts
clutch

Drives like its only three years old. Invested about $3K. With a little TLC and an occasional performance drive , I should get about 5 more years on this car.
Thanks to all who contributed to this thread.
Tom

 

Great to hear. And thanks for the feedback, which many people don't bother.

A note of appreciation is what keeps us going.

Best regards,


JPN

 

Wow, you definatly went the long haul route. With all of the maintainence you have done it should be good foralong time.

Nick

 

Wow just went back an read this entire thread. We gave some good advice. Glad it has worked out for you. Like JPN said, thanks for coming back and letting us know.

 

I gotta say I'm throughly impressed with my '95 850. My parents bought it new in '95 and deeded it over to me after college in 2003. It's got 138,000 miles on it now - they never had any mechanical failures, the first one was when I replaced the starter in 2005. That's the ONLY non-wear and tear item that has been replaced on a 13 year old car. Amazing. If it were to die tomorrow I would be sad but certainly not pissed! What a car.

Meanwhile my '98 Jetta VR6 has had so many mx issues I'm looking at tossing it and buying another 850.

 

It's interesting when you're looking to make such a decision to put it simply in dollar value... yes that's the biggest consideration. Here's a few other thoughts...

1) How much do you want to spend on a monthly payment for a new(er) car?
2) If you're buying used, as mentioned above, you should still expect to have to spend $500 or more to make it ship-shape
3) Tires, brakes, exhaust, shocks... they all wear no matter what the age of the car.
4) Do you still enjoy the car or do youneed another driving experience?
5) Is it that you would just like a new car because it's time? (which I do understand and accept as a valid argument)

... I don't think that a lot of the things you're looking at in your list are all that far out of line. Buy a 3 year old BMW or Audi and you might as well pick up some lube for your butt as well, at least from a few friends I've talkedto in the past. Buy a Chrysler or Ford sedan and you'll get cheaper parts costs, but will you enjoy the ride as much? And will it last as long? (Used car reviews wouldindicate no...) Finance another vehicle at $400 a month and that's almost $5000 a year, $7500 for your 18 month time-frame, not factoring in depreciation on what you buy.

If you're capable of some or most of the work, I don't think you should be so quick to sell the car if it's otherwise running this well. Consider that there is so much help for Volvo owners here and other forums. And if you think of it, driving a Volvodoesget you a few looks from others... something you don't get when driving an Intrepid. I still say that my 850, with 350000km on her and running strong, is more comfortable than wifey's Santa Fe or my Nissan Frontier. I never get tired behind the wheel with those seats.

 

This was the argument that I had with the wife, well not so much as an argument. Anyhow, with the total lack of interesting cars under $30K, it just made sense to keep the 850 running. We even tested the new C30. Wife loved it, but it is overpriced and the 10 week wait on the custom models just turned us off. Maybe when the dollar recovers against the euro will I look that way again.

BTW, just gave a friend a white knuckle ride going around slow pokes on I-77 in Charlotte. What fun!

 

[:@]
Just checked the oil level and dang it, a creamy white film all over the dipstick. Looked into the oil fill at it is all clear, nothing unususal. So I am a little perplexed to what the problem is. The coolant overflow is 1/3 full and clearly green.

When I had the previous work done, I requested synthetic oil. Since the tech uses Castrol, I am assuming that Syntec was used.

And the car is running so well these days..[:@]

 

Don't get scared YET...

Pop the oil fill cap - is it frothy white under it?

Do an oil change - did the oil drain out a honey brown color with NO coolant mixed in it (again, frothy white or milkshake looking)?

Pop the rad cap - what does it look like in there - do you see any oil or again, a frothy mixture?

Are you experiencing over heating issues?


IF you are seeing all of the above, then I would consider taking a compression test and seeing if you have a possible head gasket failure. IF you don't see any of the above signs in those areas, then what you are seeing on the dipstick could meerely be due to internal condensation within the engine. Condensation can occur or happen on vehicles that are A) not driven daily or B) vehicles that are driven very short distances (ie: short warm up & cool down periods).

Ford Broncos are notorious for having a little white mixture under the oil cap - it's due to condesation build up under the valve covers and is a common occurance with many Bronco owners. Even other vehicles may experience such - however, not many owners are as meitculous with their vehicles or maintenance there of, so it is never "noted"....

Head gasket failure will yield:

1) higher than usual white smoke out of the exhaust and strong coolant smell
2) milkshake like mixture when changing oil
3) milkshake like mixture in radiator
4) overheating - either sporadic, or final failure
5) affected spark plugs will be "clean" looking due to cylinder washout
6) compression readings that are below normal

you can't mistake the "milkshake" signs, as it does really look like a chocolate milkshake when coolant and oil mix together...

Hopefully that is helpful.

 

Coolant in the oil could just be a case of a bad ratiator too. Probably not the head gasket unless you are seeing oil in the coolant which it sounds like you are not.

 

I really hope it is not the radiator since I just replaced it with all hoses back in July. Though a radiator would be easier than a head gasket.

 

I just recently had to make the decision of moving on or repairing a head gasket. I have a 95 850T that my wife picked out in 2002 with 116K. I inherited the car a couple years ago and have done repairs such as fuel pump relay, evaporator, steering rack, AC compressor, Cam position sensor, Wheel bearing, Axle, Radiator, etc. I put a lot of sweat equity into this car and not too much money since I did the work myself and the car now has approximately 190K. Approximately because the odometer gear went out at 135k several years ago. I didn't see the point in fixing it because the trip odometer worked fine. I put tires on it a year and a half ago and wanted to get at least 3 years out of them. That didn't happen with this car but I remedied the situation of buying new tires by moving up to a 2005 S40. The tire sizes are the same and made the decision to let the 850 go a little easier.