Hello All,

I have a 1998 S70 GLT which is fairly new to me but I'm quite in love with.
It has been leaking oil the last week or two and I've been trying to chase down the cause. After reading a few posts here I located a part of the leak coming from the oil filler cap seal. But sent it to my mechanic just in case. Sure enough there is another leak. If you were to draw a line between the tires (looking anterior) it would be just a little left of center.

Looks to me like the oil pan o-ring thing. But he said it was the second center oil pan that is leaking and that it's a common problem with these cars. I never heard of such a thing? He says the whole engine would have to come out and be reassembled and it's not worth the time or money to do the job.

I'm going to get another opinion because although he is usually and honest mechanic I don't think he has the expertise to work on Volvo's. Before I go crazy trying to find this leak I just wanted to ask the board if anyone has heard of this problem? Thanks.....

 

He's talking about the main bearing carrier- there's no "center oil pan.", and I've NEVER seen one of those leak. Is your car turbo? If so, the location of the leak sounds like the turbo return line seals. These are quite easy to change, and they fail all the time. The oil cap seal is also a common leak source. One other place that often leaks is the 3 bolts on the oil pan below the crankshaft pulley.

As for the oil pan o- rings, those are an internal part, and if they leak, you lose oil pressure, the oil won't leak out of the engine, though.

 

Ok so it's still a slow leak and I still can't figure out where it's coming from. The turbo return line seal does not appear to be the cause. Both the gasket at the turbo side and the block side do not have a steady flow of oil coming out. But then the leak is so slow it’s hard to tell. There are only a few drops on the driveway every day.


It looks like the oil is coming from the left side of the turbo if you’re lying under the car looking forward. I really wish I could find the cause; the local Volvo experts are going to soak me for this fix.

 

So..............Swedish shop near me is saying it's the REAR MAIN SEAL.
But then he also says the PCV needs service. Duh where do you think the pressure is coming from. There Quoting me about 1k is that reasonable?

 

I would replace the PCV system first and that might slow the leak more or stop it.

 

I agree with Tech... fix the PCV first, see what happens. But $1,000 to replace both PCV and rear main seal is not bad. Rear main replacement requires engine or transmission removal.

 

Thanks for confirming what I was thinking as well.

I asked them to check the turbo oil return and that area. It seemed to me the leak was coming from the turbo itself? I thought the oil was running from higher up than the rear main seal, but then what do I know(I'm just a ham&egg'r)

But to tell you the truth, they really did not seem totally convinced about where the leak was coming from. He mentioned turbo return line, PCV, and rear main in the same sentence.

Carrots: The 1K is for the real seal alone, the PCV is another matter.

Your advice was just what I was thinking and hoping for. It makes since to fix the thing that is causing the high pressure in the first place, maybe that will do it. Should also be a whole lot cheaper to try this first.

 

If the rear main was leaking it will be coming out of the little hole all the way on the bottom where the engine and transmission meet.

You can try to look at the turbo return line o-ring your self using a mirror and flashlight.

 

So they said the PCV was checked and the vacuum seals are fine. Oil pressure is also good, not high like I thought. I don't know enough about cars to understand his answers let alone what the question was. But they are a trust worthy shop so I'm at their mercy.

Anyway I need this car to last a little longer so they're going to fix the rear main. That's alright I did not need a vacation this year anyhow.

Thanks for all your help guys.