Everyone says they have never heard of an 850 cracked block. Mechanic guessed due to metal flaw or corrosion. My wife loved that car and we always took excellent car, synthetic oil, etc.

Hopefully photo uploads OK. I put it under "Technical" in the picture gallery.
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1993 240 Classic

There are messages in the 740/940 FAQs on this same problem for the early 960s. Pretty common a few years ago.

I doubt you will find a welder willing to do the job, you can't get the area clean. I would go with JB Weld after you have drained the engine, sprayed the area with carb cleaner, scuffed the outside up and applied the JB Weld. Worth a try.

If that does not work and before I dropped in a used engine I would put on some headgasket sealer (radiator sealer). What have you got to lose.

Tim

It seems that you do have a few options. RIP is the most severe. TIG welding of the aluminum alloy might work for a while, same for epoxy. Or just find a "new" engine at a junk yard.

Just keep a logical attitude, for your finances as well as your wife's safety. Both of you need to be able to trust the car's reliability.

Klaus
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Proud owner of a 1967 220S

haha great advice Klaus - always keep the car's reliability and safety in mind in terms of the wife. I am generally able to live with it if I get myself stranded because I made a stupid decision 6 months ago (or whatever) but it's pretty hard to live with myself when my wife is stranded/endangered by something I could have/should have forseen...

I don't see why there should be any problem with a used engine from a local junker.

If it were me I'd probably be thinking about springing for a head job while the engine was out just to clean everything up and make sure everything was straight and good as new. It might be worth the time to pull the oil pan and clean/inspect everything from the bottom end too. A few hundred dollars in inspections/cleanings upfront could save you lots down the road, not to mention buy some serious peace of mind.

If you decide to go this route definitely do some of the stuff that's hard to do with the engine in place. PCV system comes to mind. Also a good time to do new coolant/heater hoses. Power steering lines should be inspected. Replace EVERY vacuum hose you get your hands on. etc

BTW - I've gotten in the habit of wrapping new vac hose to protect it from heat in the places where it's exposed to a lot. Either I'll split an old hose up one side and wrap it around the new one like a clamp with the 'un-split' side facing the heat, or I'll slip a piece of heater hose over the whole thing. It would probably be easier to buy silicone hose, but there's no where local to buy the stuff and rubber is easy to find anywhere. Plus this is pretty easy to do and seems to be effective.

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1998 V70 AWD Turbo 195k+

That looks like a piece of cake to weld. Take off the knock sensor first. Welding aluminum really isn't that big of a deal anymore - just find a welding shop that TIG welds.

...Lee

Others are saying "no way" to welding. I guess you can weld it but the real question is will it last?
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1993 240 Classic

What do you have to lose?

If it is just sepage through a die casting that has become porous because of corrosion, I would bet a good solid chunk of change that a high quality of epoxy could be batched-up and carefully applied and solve your problem.

Again, what do you have to lose, but fear itself?

I agree Ken. Mix up a batch of the best metal epoxy you can find and work it in there. Just be sure to drain the block and clean the heck out of it first.

On second thought. Torque, check in the 700/900 FAQ for the 960 Porous block issue. It's under the heading of "960-90 Series Information". Perhaps some of that would apply.

-Will
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854 - 244 - Mini

BTW, I would go the welding route but, as a backup, I would go the epoxy route. There already is someone who has posted a response stating that he does this kind of welding, and it sounds like his only concern is that the project be in a convenient location. In this case, it is!!!

If you are going the epoxy route, do NOT go to Home Depot and ask the teenager in the Paint Department which expoy he/she thinks is the best for this application.

I would call 3M, or some major chemical supplier, and ask their opinion. These places sell thousands of applications-specific chemical and I can guaranty there is a specific chemical for repairing aluminium castings.

If I lived around the corner from this guy, I would snarf this car up in a minute. Torque, your firm trust in your mechanic(s) is misplaced. There are plenty of great doctors out there who are out of their field when diagnosing illnesses outside of their familiarity. You have to recognise that most mechanics have a range of knowledge limited to what they can make money at. This is a very unusual sitation that most mechanics would rather not be bothered by. In this case you have to find someone who can do the job.

This is a no-brainer to me.

I will second this opinion. Weld it if you can but if you can't.... Epoxies are magical things in the right hands.

I have a hard time believing a real welder wouldn't jump at the chance to do this up.

3M would definitely be a good choice for the chemical route. Talk with them directly if you can.

Ken gives good advice for all of us - never forget that the professionals you deal with have their own motivations. Your plumber is trying to make money, your electrician is trying to make money, your investment advisor is trying to make money, and your mechanic is no different. YOU on the other hand are trying to SAVE or even MAKE money for yourself - these goals are sometimes aligned and sometimes opposed. It's important to learn to make decisions that benefit YOU rather than playing into the 'easy way' decisions many service vendors will choose if given the chance. Ditto when said vendors try to pick the 'expensive way'.

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1998 V70 AWD Turbo 195k+

Good advice all. Trust but verify comes to mind. I like the point about not asking the kid at home depot for some epoxy (no matter how many pins he has on his vest).

With all this advise, I feel this car slowly rising from the dead*. BTW, my wife spent a day in my 940 turbo and she doesn't like it so she's back in the 850. The coolant level hasn't even gone down an inch after two 100 degree days. Just a slow drip and a little distinctive smell.


* "Reports of my near demise are greatly exaggerated."
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1993 240 Classic

850s are common at junkyards now, there must be one with a solid engine in your area.

What is the overall condition of the car otherwise? That would be the deciding factor for me.

850s are solid, they're worth fixing up. Just had my 95 painted.

The rest of the car is in great condition. My skills, and availability, don't go beyond oil changes, minor tuneups, and brakes, and even then I want to start subcontracting some of that out.

However it would be tempting to drop in a good used engine. Any idea what parts and labor would cost? My two regular mechanics said "don't bother, it used to make sense with a 1967 Mustang but not with these "modern" engines"

There is a junk yard in the area that specializes in Volvos and I had great luck with buying a 240 auto transmission from them for $300 and paying them another $300 to put it in.
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1993 240 Classic

This place sounds like the perfect place. A local volvo junker is the ticket. Go speak to those guys and find out what they have to say. I'm sure they'd love to see your crack too!
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1998 V70 AWD Turbo 195k+

Hrm, it looks a little wet, but it's hard to tell much else, no?
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854 - 244 - Mini

Yes, hard to tell much more. However I do have confidence in my mechanic and his diagnosis.
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1993 240 Classic