'98 S90 had a check engine light with misfire on #1 code. (car ran very well but there was a noticeable miss at idle) This seemed like an easy fix, many posts here and elsewhere suggesting a leaky intake gasket. Am at a complete loss as to why, but this car never ran again - would stumble and die whenever coming off of idle. The car (my wife's) was replaced and garaged in February '09'. I learned several things before throwing in the towel - most importantly there's no compression on #1.

I'm just getting back to it now. The head is off and there's a burned exhaust valve on #1. Compression mystery solved. A third or more of the hydraulic tappets seem flat so, at this point, I am looking for a complete rebuilt cylinder head. I'd appreciate input on reputable suppliers? I don't know if the rebuilt head includes the upper and lower sections all buttoned up and ready to go, or just the lower section to which I add my camshafts and top cover. This is the first time I've been in this deep.

I'm also staring at the piston tops and see dish marks on the intake side. They are all very uniform so am wondering if (hoping) these are there by design? The intake valves don't look at all like they've slammed into the pistons, never a broken timing belt, etc. Just need to hear someone with more experience in here to confirm one way or another.

 

The grooves are normal by design.

Replace the valves in your head and put it back on. The lifters might be collapsed due to car sitting to long. They should pump right back up.

 

checked springs, lapped all valves (two new exhaust), installed new seals, and the cylinder head (lower) is back on the block. Couldn't generate enough heat from my oxy-MAPP torch to fix a problem that I created when the top-half was removed (see other thread https://volvoforums.com/forum/volvo-s90-v90-40/b6304-cylinder-head-defect-34131/), so will keep fingers crossed! Need to make a trip to dealer to get a tube of the anerobic gasket maker. Will try to get the top-half zipped up by the weekend.