Hi Guys,
I've a V40 '97 and i've 2 concerns.
Firstly a leak from the gearbox. I replaced the gear oil a few months back and only 1.6 litres was extracted (should be 3.4l). I've got under the car and had a look, cleaned it up, had another look 4 days later, but its really difficult to see exactly where the leak is eminatting from. Hazard a guess I'd say the seal between driveshaft and the gearbox itself. Anybody seen tis prob before??


Secondly and more importantly I've found on a routine inspection that there is a creamy substance on the dipstick. Immediately I'm thinking water is getting into the oil somehow. There is still signs of good oil at the very end of the dipstick, so I thought it might be condensation forming through the opening of the dipstick handle. This is the first winter I have used a car in Sweden (originately Australian), so I'm on a learning curve with such cold winters. There is no sign of the 'cream' under the oil cap or in the coolant, so I'm going to drop the oil and inspect in a next few days. I'm using Castrol Magnetic 5W-40.
Cheers
Mathew

 

I can't help on the gearbox. Only thing I can suggest is to clean outside thoroughly and watch for new fluid.
On the creamy dipstick, here in PA, USA, during the winter, people who only travel a short distance to/from work everyday see condensation due to the engine not reaching proper operating temps. This does not give the engine a chance to burn the moisture off properly. It starts in the internals first, but eventually shows up on the filler cap. Don't know if this is your situation or not. Just a thought. If it is, take it for a long run every now and then.

 

Cheers for that info.
After reading through the forum I've found similar advice with this condensation phenomenon. I did take her for a short drive in low gear to keep the rev's up and got the oil temp to 70C, but still no signs of the cream abating. My main concern at this early stage is whether the cream will spread and block oil channels. If this is the case would it then take a major overhaul to clean out?
All the best
Mathew
.

 

The frothy oil will not abate by itself. You will need an oil change to rid your crankcase of the problem. As the prior poster noted, you will HAVE TO DRIVE the Volvo every few days for several miles so that the oil is hot and the block is hot. Failure to adhere to this policy will cause the issue to reappear. It is harmful for the engine as water/moisture is NOT a lubricant and you will encounter issues down the road. Driving the Volvo in a lower gear is not going to accomplish a thing but will instead allow you to vist your local fuel dealer more often. It is TIME that will allow the engine to properly warm and RPM's will accomplish nothing. One last note, make sure that you clean the dipstick and the oil cap after replacing the oil.

r.

 

Man, I hate to post this because I know I am going to get FLAMED for doing this, but it works. The last one I did was a 84 Mustang V8, I don't know if I would do it on a turbo, maybe someone can chime in.
1> Run the engine until at operating temp.
2> Drain the oil, remove the filter. Yes, I know, it will be very hot.
3> Pull all you can to clean by hand, filler cap, dipstick, etc.
4> Install a new oil filter and some cheap oil, same grade you run normally, just a generic version. When you refill with oil, leave out one quart of oil and add, here it comes, 1 quart of automatic transmission fluid.
5> Run car for about 5 minutes.
6> Drain oil again and remove oil filter.
7> Install new filter and oil you normally use.

You will be surprised what it looks like coming out. It works. I had to do a second time time to one car at next oil change.
Reg was correct, driving it for a longer time once in a while is preventative, not a fix once it is in there.
Good luck.

 

Hi Gents,
I've researched the option of using transmission fluid in flushing out the the water/oil mix in the motor. Apparently tranny fluid does not have the heat resistance associated with motor oil and should therefore not be exposed to the extreme heat generated by the engine block.
This water/oil mix apparently just sits above the oil and doesn't permeate throughout all the oil and will vapourise through the crankcase ventilation system when the weather warms up or if taken for an extended drive regularly. An example used by an engineer I work with, was a late 60's Peugeot that ran for 400,000km with water/oil mixer under the oil cap every winter.
My solution is to regularly check that there is normal oil on the bottom end of the dipstick and watch this phenomenon disappear in the warmer months.
Many thanks for all the help/advice.
Cheers
Mathew

 

I agree with your friend about the trans fluid. That's why you only put 1 quart in, and only for a few minutes. In my opinion, the water mix will evaporate, it's true. But the vapors will condensate on the internals of the engine as well, this is what leads to the appearance of an almost paraffin substance on the upper portions of the engine, most notably the underside of the filler cap. Anyway, good luck and please keep us informed.

 

Just for an additional point of reference, I took our Volvo to a shop that specializes in Volvos early on and they said that they used ATF to clean out the engine when doing an oil change. (They whispered it as if it was a big secret and nobody is supposed to know.)

 

Thanks for the info 99. I always wondered if it was OK. It was one of those things my Grandpa told me to do and it seemed to work. But its nice to hear from someone else.

 

Hi Gents,
I drained my gearbox oil while on ramps and extracted 1.6 liters Having seen an oil leak I was not surprised at how low it was, so I refilled the 3.2 liters stated in the Haynes manual.
The time came to 'top-up' the oil and when I unscrewed the fill screw oil gushed out. Looking at the underside of the casing while dropping the oil, the angle of the casing looked as draining would not be affected.
My question to those that are interested is, should the gearbox oil be drained while the car is level?
Cheers
Matty

 

Here is my personal opinion. Yes, it should be level. It seems to me that the system is designed to be optimized at level. The way the car is most of the time. And yes, I know it works going up and down hills. But I would think to get the most oil out, the system should be level. Not to say it won't all come out on a slope, it just seems that this way you are sure. Just like when you check fluid levels, the car should be level. I am not saying it is wrong, just maybe not as right. This is about the most vague post I've ever given. My head hurts. Thank you and good night. I'm here all week. Try the veal.

 

DO NOT flush the engine with ATF. You're much better off using synthetic motor oil (which you should be using in a cold climate anyway). I have no idea whether Castrol 'Magnetic' oil is Dino oil or synthetic. If only Dino oil has been used in the car you should change the oil with synthetic (suggest a thinner oil like 5W-30 for the winter) and then change the oil again early (2000 Km). The synthetic oil will clean out the engine and will prevent the 'creamy sludge' from forming. I'd then do one more short oil change (again 2000 Km) and then go back to a regular oil change interval (10,000 Km??) using synthetic.

 

Thanks 65mustang. The weather here insothern Sweden is warming up, so I can start some major servicing pronto. Gearbox oil will be the first to be changed as i suspect that there has been new gear oil mixed with old... I hope the over-filling hasn't stressed the seals, but there was a suspected leak in that area (that is too hard to pinpoint)
Also, thanks simul8guy. I'm gonna drop the oil and then insert a long nozzled air gun into the drain hole and give it some air pressure. My theory is that after the oil has dropped the cream sludge will sit on the bottom of the sump and the air will help extract it, as on the dipstick the sludge seems to be floating on top of the oil.
I'll let you know how it goes.
Cheeers
Mathew

 

Back again.
1. I've dropped the motor oil (Castrol Magnetic synthetic) and nooil/water mix came out. I then pushed compressed air through the dipstick tube and still there was no sign of oil/water. Another theory I have is that the dipstick tube cools much faster than the block and the dipstick handle is not a perfect seal, so this could be the combined culprit for condensation.
2. Dropped the gearbox oil whilst on stands and then leveled the car. No more oil seemed to pour out, so I replugged and refilled whilst still level. The manual says 3.4 litres, but I only got to put in 3.0 before it started to run out of the fill hole. I'm tending to believe the fill hole level is correct rather than the manual as surely the original engineer has designed the fill hole level in relation to inner gearing.
Any thoughts?
Cheers Matty