Hello All,

I am reposting this query, because I am changing the question(s)/issue (s) I would like to receive advice and comments to. I purchased new, a red 1996 850 GLT wagon with a 5 speed manual in April of 1996. That was the first Volvo my wife and I purchased shortly after we got married. My 3 girls all learned how to drive a stick on it. The youngest girl, who is 4 years younger than the red 850, drives it on campus at William & Mary College in Williamsburg, VA. She was allowed to take that Volvo, because I knew none of her friends would borrow it because they wouldn't know how to drive a stick. I was right. Recently (with 430,000 miles, original engine and transmission, the check engine light came on and the car ran rough, like there was a misfire or it was running on only 4 cylinders. A local garage did a compression test and found that cylinder #1 only had 20 psi compression while the rest of the cylinders were fine. With the fuel injector to cylinder # 1 disconnected, my daughter drove the red 850 440 miles back to CT, where it presently rests. I assume the dead cylinder is due to a failed exhaust valve. This has not been confirmed yet with the removal of the head. I see several options:

1) Obtain a used engine. I am limited to late 1995 850, 1996-1997 850s and the 1998 S/V models. All of these engines are over 20 years old. Some I have seen listed at salvage yards have between 150,000 to 300,000 miles (a lot are over 200,000). The idea of putting a used engine with that type of mileage doesn't make sense to me. I have no idea how they were maintained and what their present condition is? Regardless of their condition, I will have to pay the labor to have my old engine removed, and the replacement installed. A significant expense. This uncertainty of the quality of a used engine causes me concern. If anyone can suggest a reputable salvage yard where I can find reliable, low mileage used engines please share it with me.

2) See if I can find a company that sells remanufactured Volvo 850 engines. A local garage here in CT had a vendor in NJ that it would purchase remanufactured Volvo engines from, that arrived in a crate and were installed into customer's Volvos. Unfortunately, that vendor in NJ has gone out of business and the local garage has not been able to find an alternative source of remanufactured Volvo engines. Does anyone in the Brickboard community know of reputable companies that sell remanufactured Volvo 850 engines?

3) I have the engine rebuilt by my local garage. The engine block would be disassembled and the head and other components would be sent out to a machine shop. Internal components would be replaced. I have been told that cost would be between $6,000 to $7,000. Of course, this would eliminate any of the uncertainty of using a used engine.

4) I have told my local mechanic, that prior to the valve failing, I noticed that when I was accelerating from a dead stop, I would see blue smoke coming out of the exhaust. Once the car reached cruising speed, the smoke went away. I assumed it meant the piston rings were worn. He said not necessarily. When he removes the head, he may discover the oil seals may be worn and cracked from age - they are original. If the smoke is due to worn oil seals and not piston rings, he recommends just fixing the valves and oil seals and leaving the lower half of the engine untouched. In his experience (over 25 years) he has only seen issues with the upper half (the head) of the 850 engine. If blue smoke is due to worn oil seals, he recommends doing a valve job only and leaving the rest of the engine alone. That would spare me a significant expense. I welcome comments on this plan of action.

5) The last choice is just to sell the car and cut my losses. Of course, just before the valve failed, I invested $2,000 in this car between unrelated mechanical repairs and new tires (the repairs were driven by regular maintenance dictated by the mileage - no catastrophic failures). Still the timing kills me.

Well folks, I welcome all suggestions and comments. I hope with your help to make the "right" decision.

Hugh


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