I have a 1987 240 wagon with 223,000 original miles. Several months ago, I began to smell burning oil and actually have droplets blowing up on the tailgate when driving at highway speeds. I naturally assumed the flametrap was stopped up, so I cleaned it, along with the idle speed nipple in the intake. Yet I continued to have a very oil front crossmember, oil spots on the rear of the car, and a strong burning smell when I'd get out of the car after parking. I also had oil blowing out over the valve cover, coming from the cap. I replaced the gasket on the cap, but still have oil blow out there from time to time. Not long before this problem began, I'd changed the timing belt, and the seals around the cam, idler shaft and crank, but those are the seals where the oil is being forced out of the engine, and then running down on the front crossmember, the blowing back on the header pipe to smoke and stink. Depending on the type of driving, I'm going through a quart of oil every couple of hundred miles - not burning it internally but blowing it out. I've cleaned the flame trap and replaced it at several other times, and it's always partially clogged - maybe one-fourth to one-third of the holes in the trap. Perhaps I'm too close to this problem for the last several months to be able to step back from it and view it from a distance. I don't think I have compression coming by the engine rings because I have a pretty smooth idle, and until this point, never used even a quart of oil between 3,000 mile oil changes. Can anyone help me out on this, tell me how you solved a similar problem, or help me to see something I've missed. Many thanks.

"I don't think I have compression coming by the engine rings because I have a pretty smooth idle"

I get a bit of exhaust in the blowby, actually it smokes out the filler cap if the engines been running. The idle is still pretty smooth though once it's warmed up. Run it with the hoses removed and see what actually comes out the blowby, look for a bit of smoke when the engine's cold.
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Drive it like you hate it

If oil has soaked into your timing belt, you'll need to change it. It softens and teeth shred off.

Check the oil pressure sender, when it leaks it has a habit of oiling everything around.
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1980 245 Canadian B21A with SU carb and M46 trans in Brampton, Ont.

You might also very carefully clean the passage from the breather box leading down into the block/oil pan. Someone posted here on that process a few weeks ago.

This is actually a rubber tube or hose that is likely brittle by now. You need to be careful, because I've read here that if you damage the hose you need to do all kinds of tricks to get the oil pan out to repair the damage.

Anyway, it's the forward of the two openings that the breather box base connects to.

I ran a 3/8" or 1/4" synthetic rope down that tube to clean it. If I recall, I first dribbled in some Gunk brand internal engine cleaner. Since it ran freely, I dared to probe with the rope. Of course if you use anything like Gunk you'll need to drain and change the oil afterwards.

If you're going to all the trouble to replace a breather box, I think it makes sense to ensure the passages below that are clean also. Or else you'll be going in there again.
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Sven: '89 245, IPD sways, electric rad. fan conversion, 28+ mpg - auto tranny. 850 mi/week commute.

That rope was definitely not 3/8 inch!

Either a 1/4 or 3/16 inch rope.
It was a "poly" rope, that is made up of thicker strands, not made up of fine hairlike strands like nylon rope usually is. A bit stiff, not so floppy like the nylon rops usually are.

And, before sending the rope down,
I FIRST trickled in some GUNK engine cleaner via a funnel,
THEN sent down a not-too-stiff wire (which of course I pulled out).

The wire was one split of a household electrical cord - you know, one wire of the 2-wire cord. I cut the end off with no wire extending, so only the insulation was contacting the inner wall of the rubber drain tube/hose.

Be gentle. You DON'T want to damage the tube.

Then the poly rope. It felt little or no resistance, then I knew the passage was clear.
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Sven: '89 245, IPD sways, electric rad. fan conversion, 28+ mpg - auto tranny. 850 mi/week commute.

breather box. the flame trap is useless, get rid of it. the blockage is that black plastic box on the block (you cannot service it either). This will solve your problem.

I had all my oil blow out on I90 2 summers ago; found out when I stopped for fuel and checked the oil - empty. Added 3 quarts and it was fine; I just couldn't run so fast.
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Stef (81 245 B21A SU M46 3.91) 327000km my volvo pages

this is not a blowby problem...blowby refers to the passing of gasses between the piston and cylender wall...I would bet dollars to donuts that you have not cleaned out the oil accumulator...that is the part that the flam trap is attached to...You are definately having crank case ventilation problems....if oil is escaping the valve cover at all that means that the crank case is pressurized...remember volvo valve covers have vacuum in them when opperating correctly...thats right...vacuum...therefor oil should never leak...check the oil accumulator...if it is full as my 345k miler was replace that and the o-ring that seals it to the block along with the flame trap and all the hoses as they tend to clog too...I had nearly identical symptoms...did the preceeding and had a new car in 45min...parts will run about $50 if I recall. Also the other guy has a point...check the cam plug and see if it has moved...additioanlly reseal that valve cover as the blown portions will now be vacuum leaks which will make the thing run like crap. good luck

Check the plug in the back of the valve cover, with excess pressure it can be pushed out. Check the breather box that the flame trap mounts onto, I once had one that was almost plugged.Luck.