Help! I need help..
Hey bout a month ago I was driving my Volvo 1998 s70 GLT on the way home from school (I'm a full-time student) And I saw in my review mirror a bunch of white smoke behind me.. So I immediately pulled over and cut the car off, I pop'd the hood and opened it up and a lot of white smoke came from behind the motor as well.. After freaking out 2hours later I decided to start the car back up again and Immediately a bunch of white smoke bellowed out of the tailpipe And the dashboard signal came on for "low coolant" I checked the radiator cap and it was completely empty!.. Before I could even cut the car off again myself it already cut itself off.. So the next day I had it towed home and I did some online searching and I figured out how to bleed the radiator.. I tried to empty all the oil is well but I could not get that bolt off the oil pan not even with vice grips or a pipe wrench it just wouldn't come off.. Two mechanics that I know said the same thing >>blown head gasket<<.. They suggested that I replaced the engine, now I could do that but I would like to go a cheaper route!..🙌🙌🙌 So my Ultimate question is: being that I shut the car off immediately and didn't continue to drive it, does anyone think that I could probably get away with using something like "Block Seal" to perhaps seal whatever the leak is?.. And I'd say the most interesting thing about all of this is the fact that the car never ran hot the temperature thing! never went past half.. Please someone who loves❤ Volvos as much as I do lend some advice? 🙏🙏🙏.. Thanks!

 

There is a chance that you do not have a blown head gasket. You may have a bad radiator. Some things need to be checked out. I would start with draining the oil into a pan and seeing if there is coolant mixed in the oil. When was the last oil change? How is the level?

 

The oil level was pretty good.. I tried adding some oil after it broke down but it wuldnt take no more than 1 quart without overfilling .. The oil was changed less than 3,500 miles ago.. About 5months before this happened.. But I only drive locally no more than 20-25miles a day at most..

 

Well, get you a compression gauge and test the cylinders. Some auto parts stores loan them out. They are just $45 if you have to purchase one.

 

Okay thanks so much!..I'm gonna go to autozone and see if they'll lend me a compression test kit.. I subscribed to your YouTube channel (your videos seem very helpful) but how do I check compression on my s70?.. Does it work the same as for the Audi^^^ ???..

 

Yes, just pull the spark plugs, here is another video. I linked you to that one because it had a blown head gasket and you could see the coolant shooting out of the hole.

 

I did try driving it once just a few blocks and i'd say I got about 12 blocks and then it started what I would say sputtering or maybe misfiring? (It definitely has lost power because this car has a turbo and I remember it used to be fast) Also how do I pull the fuel pump relay and the other two things that you were talking about?

 

Wait ..lol im watching the video and see You're already showing me through the video

 

Hey I did what you said and went and got the Pressure test kit and I checked all five cylinders..

- Cylinder 1 (Dry test) was 150 & (Wet test) was 160...
- Cylinder 2 (Dry test) was 100 & (Wet test) was 275...
- Cylinder 3 (Dry test) was 85 & (Wet test) was 145...
- Cylinder 4 (Dry test) was 120 & (Wet test) was 195...
- Cylinder 5 (Dry test) was 165 & (Wet test) was 200...

So what do you think?

 

If you have white smoke coming out of the tail pipe its coming from the cylinders. Your pressure readins suggest either a crack or a very slow head gasket.

How are your mechanical skills and your tool selection?

 

Hey kwatt im no mechanic but I'm pretty smart and mechanically inclined.. My dads a mechanic but he specializes in American-made cars.. I'd say we have an average tool selection ..what do you think I should do?.. (Perhaps get a new engine?) ..I know I can drive the car for about 3miles before it starts misfiring and loosing power.. But I have not drove it for Cautious reasons..

 

Hey kwatt im no mechanic but I'm pretty smart and mechanically inclined.. My dads a mechanic but he specializes in American-made cars.. I'd say we have an average tool selection ..what do you think I should do?.. (Perhaps get a new engine?) ..I know I can drive the car for about 3miles before it starts misfiring and loosing power.. But I have not drove it for Cautious reasons..

 

If your dad is a mechanic and you have a decent tool selection and no money and a some patience - fix it.


Keep in mind, it could ALSO be a cracked block or cracked head. You won't know that until you take it apart. You probably can't drive it anyway so you aren't out much if you take it apart.


I think rspi has a video of a blown head gasket and what that looks like. You compression numbers on the wet side are a little suspect since you have that 275 reading, but all of them are not terrible except the 85 psi reading. That will be where you will likely find the issue. The cylinder next to it is a little low so I think head gasket, but again, you won't know until you take it apart.

 

Ok, here's the deal... It appears that you have a blown head gasket that warped the head enough to cause coolant to escape the head behind the motor. Kinda bad. Hopefully just the head is warped and nothing else is bad.

The thing is, something caused the problem, it was likely a coolant leak. So you need to find the source of the problem which would be a coolant leak or bad water pump. I would put everything back together, fill the coolant reservoir with distilled water and try to find the problem. If a hose blew the water may leak straight out. If the water pump failed, you may not see that but you usually get a high temp reading on your gauge so my guess is that you have a hose, radiator or heater core leak. Did you ever smell coolant inside the car (check under the carpet on the drivers side).

If you are mechanically inclined, my video and tutorial can guide you through the repair. I have spoken to young guys like yourself that successfully replaced the head on their car so no big deal, just a few hours and a couple of days.

Again, you need to find the source of the initial issue, fix that, then repair the head. While doing the job you should replace the two coolant lines, together they cost less than $15.

Head Removal and Installation, Volvo 850 / S70 Turbo B5234T, B5254T, Head gasket replacement, valve replacement.

 

Hmm interesting I may just try to replace the head gasket ..instead of buying a new motor.. But before I do anything what are your opinions on using something like "Block Seal" ran threw the coolant system???

 

I am not an advocate of adding stuff to try to patch a leak. Once it's in there, it's in there and I always feel it's like one of those Band-Aids you can never get the glue off your skin.


I re-read your 1st post and rspi is right on the mark - I missed the white smoke from the back of the engine.. While stuff is broken, fill it back up and find the leak. for one thing, you can get all the parts you need at the same time. Give where hoses are, smoke at the back of the engine sounds like the heater hoses.


If you can afford it, if the hoses are old (like greater than 7 years) replace them all. It will suck to fix the head and leave the old hoses in place. Also, make sure the head is checked for warping. If you do the work and the head is warped, you won't be happy.

 

Ohh okay.. after consideration I think it's best if I just go ahead and replace the head myself.. and change the hoses.. I'll keep you both posted.. And thanks so very much for the advice (I Really appreciate it) ..wish me luck! ✌

 

How many miles on your S70?


From the compression readings in post #9 I would say the piston rings are severely worn. I.e. just replacing the head gasket may be a temporary patch if your engine is that worn.

 

Hey gdog it has about 248k on it..

 

If the head gasket is blown, that will make the number low, right?

Also, EVERY time you pull one of these heads you HAVE to send it to the shop to have it pressure tested and made true. That should only cost around $60 - $100.

If the head has more than 200,000 miles on it the valve stem seals are likely shot so you should have those replaced as well. That will add another $200 at least. So between $350 and $450 for the head job.