I have a 94 850 Turbo with about 150,000 miles. All of its life it has had synthetic oil (Mobil 1) changed at every 3,000 miles by me and I use Volvo filters. It also uses no measurable amount of oil. The engine looks very clean from what I can see on the inside, but it has what I am assuming to be a lifter pecking at idle.

It pecks for about 5 seconds and stops for about 15, then repeats over and over.

Is this something that I need to be worried about? The car runs fine, I just hate pecking engines. Are there adjustments, or are they hydraulic lifters and I have to live with the pecking?

Thank you in advance for any info.

James

I had the same ticking sound at 140K miles but only after a fouled up radiator replacement made all my oil drain from the engine. I had it towed back to the shop that did the reapir and when I picked it up- no ticking...... until 2 weeks later when it started again, bad. I took it back in and they put in an oil treatment which to this day has worked so far. They claimed it was a sticking lifter but I'm sure it had to do with thier repair.

By pecking do you mean a mechanical ticking sound similar to a sewing machine when the engine is cold, that gets louder if you lift the hood, and is directly proportional to rpm?

I don't personally know an Volvo I5 engine that doesn't. I haven't heard the S60's I5 yet, but I suspect they do as well. But with what you've described I'd say you have nothing to worry about. Your assumption was correct, it is the lifters.

My only other suggestion is to find a way to run the oil pump before starting the engine. That should take all the noise away. Is it worth it? How much do you hate the noise?

The noise is a lifter. Happens as the miles pile up. If it goes away when you drive it's not too much of a worry. If it doesn't it (they) need to be replaced. I understand Volvo has a lifter upgrade for the 850 motors becuase some of them were noisy. Soft lifters can affect valve timing and also make the idle uneven.