Hello Enthusiasts!
 

Hi all, I am totally new to the Volvo world. I have always admired them from across the parking lot but am now finally an owner! We picked up a 2006 C70 with 126,000 miles on the T5 engine off Facebook Marketplace.

I didn’t really do much checking it out beside put the top up and down and drove a few miles. I saw oil underneath both sides and thought I bet those will be easy fixes and gave the dude my money 😃

It is my daughter’s first car and she is in love!! I just couldn’t say no. I am sure a lot of you Dad’s out there know what I mean. I only have 3 years left with her before she moves out and goes to college. I am all about making memories while I can.

So yesterday, I put it up on the stands and looked it over. Just oil change and filters replaced so far but I found one of the two oil leaks. The drivers side axle boot is leaking grease and flinging great quantities all over that underside. I did hear it click a couple times on the drive home so that mystery is solved. The passenger side has oil from the top of the belts all the way to the bottom. It’s not leaking a lot but has leaked for awhile I think, thus the large spread pattern. I need to watch a video on how to do the timing belt, seals, water pump, etc and clean that whole side off the fixit list at once. It sure is a tight fit in there!

Any guidance would be appreciated but really I just wanted to say Hi!

In my personal opinion, do not drive that car until your figure out the oil leak by the belts. (probably a cam seal leaking due to the PCV system needing to be service) Some background for you, these are interference engines, if that timing belt slips because of the oil, it can bend your valves and you would need to get the head repaired or worse. When the PCV system isn't serviced at 100k or 10 years it can cause excess crank pressure and eventually an oil leak at the weakest seals, often a cam seal. You can look up a glove test to see the crank pressure while idling. The PCV system is under the intake manifold and consist of a oil trap and some hoses. There are some passageways in the block that are good to clean out and inspect. People often drop the oil pan to make sure it's nice and clean.

Since your CV is clicking, I think you are beyond the point of regreasing and replacing a boot. If you do need to replace the CV, do not cheap out. Go with an OEM brand (does not need to be genuine volvo, GKN is an example of OEM) and make sure you are getting the correct one.

The timing belts aren't terrible to replace in these cars, it can definitely be a little tight. While you are in there, replace every idler pulley and the tensioners as well. EDIT: Also do the alternator (accessory) belt, pulley, and tensioner as well if you do not have vehicle service history.

FCPEuro has a lot of DIY videos to let you know what you are getting into. I attached a couple links below. Your car falls under the P1 chassis, a term you will see often.

https://blog.fcpeuro.com/how-to-repl...30-c70-s40-s50

https://blog.fcpeuro.com/volvo-pcv-b...-and-diagnosis

Wow, awesome response!! I think you nailed it, Thank you Dingus1. I am working up the parts list now. FCP EURO is a great resource. My daughter said we are taking it to the shop right and I said “Nope, you and me are doing it”. She doesn’t believe me yet 😃

I have a window issue as well but I will start another thread.

Also I should mention, FCP euro has lifetime warranty on everything (even your oil changes, ship the old oil back to them after your oil change for a full refund) I am lucky enough to work within 15min of them and the amount of money I saved on oil changes is amazing. You can also use them for oil changes on non-euro vehicles if you do your own.

Lifetime warranty on oil….you are blowing my mind right now 🤯

did you have a chance to pull off the timing belt cover yet? As Dingus1 noted you could have leaking cam seals which can in turn point to a bad PCV system. Quick test for positive crank case pressure is to put a latex "surgeons glove" over the oil fill port and start up the car. If it inflates fully, you likely have a PCV issue. On newer Volvo models, replacing the oil separator (aka flame trap) usually does the trick and is not that difficult (the older 850s were a PITA, you have to lift the intake manifold to get at the PCV system!) Next possible cause for a leak is the the VVT gear/actuator. The VVT system uses oil pressure to actuate the gear and if the gear or the actuator leaks, it will soak the timing belt. Start by doing a scan of any stored codes to see if there's any cam timing issues. Either way, you'd need to redo the timing belt and tensioner as part of the repair. Any signs of whether/when the timing belt was last serviced? These cars are 10 years/120K miles (whichever comes first) so it should have been done at least once. Don't bother replacing the water pump unless its leaking. Volvo pumps are pretty stout and typically last 200K miles or more. +1 on replacing the serpentine belt, and inspecting the pulleys/tensioner etc. Since the parts have to come off to fix the timing belt issue, its just the cost for the replacements.

I pulled the Carfax (after I bought it 🤔) and the timing belt has not been changed at a Volvo dealer. I guess it could have been done privately but I doubt it because the owner even had all the oil changes done at the dealer.

I did pull the timing belt covers off, both the one on top and the vertical one. I also pulled the wheel and the inner fender liner. There is oil behind every pulley from top to bottom. Nothing obvious could been seen but admittedly, it’s pretty tight and there are quite a few areas I couldn’t see. Surprisingly, the belts themselves don’t have oil on them. I wiped down everything I could reach and will look for fresh oil.

For the glove test, air is actually being pulled into the engine through the oil fill port. So much so that when the cap is removed, you can hear the hiss of air being pulled in for a split second. When the cap is put back on, the engine actually boggs down very slightly.

This is getting interesting…where will the clues lead 😃

usually when indy's do a timing belt they either add a sticker to the engine or firewall or write the belt date with a marker on one of the engine covers. Another way to tell is if the belt on the car is a genuine Volvo part or an aftermarket brand (Conti, Gates being the top two).

As to your glove test, if the glove sucks in, that's a good sign. it means the engine's vacuum is properly pulling the blowby gasses from the crank through the oil separator into the intake to be burned. This suggests you have a leakly cam gear. Check out Youtube for vids and search for other posts/write ups on leaking VVT gears/actuators. If it turns out you do need to fix the gear, you get to do the timing belt and tensioner :-)

After going back and looking for fresh oil, I think they are all leaking!! The worst one though appears to be the oil pump. I am going to change everything out and then won’t have to worry about it for 100k more. I have the parts in my fcpeuro cart. I hate to buy the cam locking tool but getting that timing thing right seems somewhat important 😃. I wonder if I can send the tool back after using it and get a refund? Thanks to everyone for all the help. I’ll let you know how it all turns out!

I have always frowned upon buying a tool to use it once and return it, especially at a company I like to support. Getting the timing correct is very important, but very possible without a locking tool if you know what you are doing. I did my 3 timing belt changes without a locking tool.

Dingus1, I agree about BS returns. I was talking about being honest and seeing how they handle that situation. Kinda like a rent a tool.

I got a quote today for labor at a really good local garage. $400 for everything associated with the timing belt change. I didn’t think that was too bad especially since I would definitely buy the camshaft locking tool for $130. I showed them the fcpeuro kit that I ordered and and he was impressed. He said the kit he orders does not come with all the seals and oil pump gaskets. He orders them separately.

$400 is a very good labor price for that job.