Gentlemen, perhaps you can help me with some info, as both of you appear to know everything about the valve system in the 850.
I have a 1994 850 NA that has started to use a lot of oil all of a sudden, to the tune of a quart every 500 miles. I replaced every thing related to PCV and there was absolutely no change. Before and after the PCV there were noi signs of excessive crankcase pressure.
However, last year I had the cat replaced and when I disconnected the downpipe from the exhaust manifold, I saw that there was some oil in the exhaust manifold. The car has 180k miles on it and runs well. Poer is good and smooth, and there are no funny noises in the engine. No valve clatter at all.
I suspect the valve seals may be bad and in need of replacement. The only circumstances in which I can see a signal of oil burn are in hot starts, when I see a very light puff of smoke out of the tailpipe and when I rev up the engine above 3.2K rpms and bluish smoke comes out of the tailpipe.
I am a little reluctant to have somebody do a valve job as in my country as it is very difficult to find a good mechanic that is familiar with volvos.
My question is related to the valve seals. Do you think it might be the culprit?
Do these seals wear out at this mileage? Can the seals be replaced by just taking out the valve cover, without removing the engine head?
Thanks for your input.
Icelandic
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