I just complete the purchase of a 98 V70 R with 95,000 miles. I am trying to work all the bugs out, and this forum has been a great help! The most problematic issue I have is an oil leak.

I cleaned the top of the engine and it does not appear to be the source. I then started checking underneath. The oil appeared to be dripping off the edge of a box just behind the oil pan plug.

Today I changed the oil and checked and cleaned that area. First impression was that there was oil all over the place (but you can't detect that from above). Second thing I noticed was that that the oil was dripping from the area where the oil pan attaches.

I put in new oil and let it sit awhile and no leaking was detected.

I idled the engine briefly... still no drips. Then I went for a 10 minute drive.. afterward I noticed a drop coming off that box again. Jacked it up and oil was definitely dripping from around the oil pan seal I just cleaned. The problem is that I cannot see the area above the pan to see if it is dripping from above or not.

Any ideas on what could be causing the leak?

 

It is usually the turbo return line o-ring that is bad and causes the leak like that.

Being AWD it is kind of a pain to get to.

Get back under the car safely. look up there is a decent size pipe(about the diameter of a dime) it goes from the turbo to the engine block. where it goes into the block the seal usually wears out and leaks.

There is 2 either T-30 or 5MM allen screws holding the pipe to the turbo.

I believe the parts are like $5.00 or so.

 

Thanks Tech. I read all our other posts on oil leaks and I was hoping that this was my problem too since it is a cheap fix. I will get back under there today and see if I can locate thatreturn line.

 

I, too, just bought a 1998 V70 with oil leak. Inspector said it was power steering hose. Is it easy to replace this one? Would it cause the CHECK ENGINE light to come on?

Also, can anyone tell me how to create a NEW post on volvo forums.

thanks

 

The power steering hose isn't that bad to replace.
No it won't cause a light.

To start a new post go to the V70 section from the main page.
Then on the top is should have a button that says start new post or something like that.

 

I just bought a 1998 V70 with 116,000 miles. It was leaking oil from the Rear Main Seal and the transmission case.
I took it to a very good transmission shop that replaced the rear main seal the pump busshing in the transmission and resealed the transmission.
I now have a wonderful car that does not leak any fluids.
This forum is a wealth of knowledge on these cars. Thanks to all of you who share you knowledge and experiences.

 

I bought a 98 V70 wagon with 120,000 miles on it. When I first looked at it, salesman told me the smell of oil burning was due to power steering hose that was loose and had been tightened as part of Maryland inspection. I had lots of oil in my driveway, so called salesman and he had me take it to Shell station that had done inspection. Mechanic there seemed very good. He took (forgive my lack of knowledge of what is what) big cover on top of middle of engine off. Replaced gasket with Volvo part plus O-rings. He showed me what he was doing. This took care of most of the severe oil leak but not all. I still get some oil under car in driveway.

I guess I should never trust a used car salesman, but when he said cause of oil smell was fixed, I believed him. It turned out to be more of a problem than that. I would not have bought a car with an oil leak.

My question is: should I continue to pursue getting salesman to fix the oil leak, or did I just buy someone else's problems?

Also, when I was driving car home from day of purchase, the check engine light came on. Error code is P0172 which has to do with emissions. Should I expect him to repair this as well, or am I once again on my own?

And more: Car was advertised with cruise control which doesn't set. Is he responsible for this, too?

Sorry for so many questions in the oil post, but the oil problem was my most important one to get advice on. I need all the help I can get from those of you who have been in this position before.

thanks

 

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