I'm going to change the oil on (my first time) my friends turbo wagon. She informed me that there is an oil trap that needs to be cleaned each change. She found this out the hard way, as the result of $800 worth of damage for not doing it. The local dealer said it's on the side of the engine and needs to be serviced every 10k miles. I didn't see anything about this thing in the car's manuals. any advice on this? Also- any recommendations on oil weight and brand, filters, and frequency of changes?

Ray N. and davidm I want to thankyou for replying to my inquiry about this thing and the oil, and also brickboard.com for a "Great" website! I did check with volvospeed.com about the traps location. Very good pix and step by step instructions! I found out that my friends' had been removed. I wonder how long she had been paying to have her previously removed trap cleaned! One thing I did forget to ask before, what is the pupose of this thing? I presume it doesn't hurt the cars operation without it being installed?

I forgot: You will need 6 quarts of oil (it will take about 5.5
quarts to top it back up). Pour about half a quart into the new
filter before you spin it on to help get the oil pressure
up fast when the car is first started (optional but it makes you
really look like you know what you are doing).

I've never heard of an "oil trap". There is a flame trap. See
this site for general maintenance inclduing the flame trap:

http://volvospeed.com/maintence.htm

Note that some dealers/techs remove the flame trap so it may
not be there once you get it all apart. By the way, turbo
models do not have a flame trap.

The manual calls for 10/30 oil. I use 10/30 Mobil 1 in my 850 and
98 S70. Use only Mann or OEM filters. www.volvoparts.com sells
discount parts including the filters. I change oil about every
5K miles but you can go longer or shorter depending on how
the car is driven.

You will need to replace the aluminum crush washer under the oil
drain bolt. Some dealers will sell you a copper one. You want
the aluminum one. (Most dealers probably remind you of this when
you purchase a filter from them.)

Ray, depending on the season, my owner's manual recommends different drades of oil: basically 10W-40 in the hot seasons, 5W-30 in the cold. Mine's a 98 S70 T5....is it different for 850s (or normally aspirated)?
--
(98 S70 T5SE misc mods - mostly lighting - and red calipers) (92 940GLE)

Ah, you are right. My 98 T5 manual has the same info. I live in mild
California and I think I've just had 10-30 on the brain since I
use 10-30 all year round. Thanks.

Around here, we can expect our first frost within the next four weeks.
--
David (98 S70 T5SE Black, misc mods (mostly lighting), red calipers) (92 940GLE)