So I take 2005 V70 2.4 in for a timing belt replacement and my mechanic tells me there’s an oil leak around the cam shafts. I get a quote from him and it’s $1900! I figured it would just be seals, but the quote says, “Replace the timing belt, tensioner pulley, and idler pulley; along with the intake and exhaust Cam Gears.”

the quote breakdown includes front exhaust cam seal, rear camshaft seal, AND EXHAUST AND INTAKE CAMS!

WTH? Seals I get, but why in the **** would the cams need replacing? That’s $750.

please, someone explain this to me!

 

They are recommending the VVT cam GEARS to be changed. Have seen a few leak. Problem is when there's oil everywhere under the timing belt cover it's impossible to tell exactly where it's coming from. Oil can leak from the seals, or the gears, or even simply the oil cap seal then run down the front of the engine. Sometimes the leak is caused by a clogged crankcase ventilation system, from internal pressure in the engine pushing the oil past good seals. Has your pcv system been cleaned/replaced? You would remember, it's expensive to do it correctly. Has synthetic oil ALWAYS been used in the engine? (pcv systems last longer with synthetic)

So - your shop may have been burned (had a comeback) when they replaced front seals and did not replace the gears. They are making sure it won't leak, trying to make sure you will be pleased, and not leave a bad review. It's better to be known as expensive than incompetent. You could try only seals without the gears - (my shop did it that way hundreds of times) as long as you understand the gear/s might be leaking. To do the gears later is almost the same job again. The timing belt will be covered in oil and unusable, and the exact labor is needed again (4-6 hours). The only thing that would be reused would be the new front cam seals and the two bearings.

The pcv system better be perfect or those new seals will leak. On a 15 year old car - I would look closely at that system - first.

The tensioner and idler pulleys are always replaced - they are usually the first thing to fail.

 

Thanks for the reply, Hoonk.
I just don’t understand how the gears could leak. I’m assuming the gears on the end of the camshafts can’t be replaced, so it’s the whole cam or nothing?

This is a Volvo only shop, highly regarding in the city. They kept my 940 Turbo running until the wheels almost fell off, so I trust them. Lie I mentioned in my original post, replacing seals makes sense, but the whole camshaft(s) just boggled my mind.

There was an oil issue and I just dropping $1300 on having the pan removed, cleaned, and the oil trap diaphragm replaced. If there was an issue with the pcv, I’m sure they would’ve said something.

again, thanks for the insight.

 

The VVT gears use oil pressure piped through the end of the cam to change the cam timing. The VVT solenoids on top of the head send oil pressure to the gears when needed and can move the outer pulley that the belt touches ~15 degrees in relation to the inner pulley. There are seals and a gasket in/on each gear that can leak. Some engines have VVT on both cams, others on just one. Earlier Volvos have solid pulleys. The first Volvo VVT was ~1999? And all pulleys/gears VVT or not unbolt from the end of the cams. Your shop is not talking about camshaft replacement.