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Oil Continues to Leak (and Other Symptoms) After PCV Replacement S90-V90 1998

posted by  HerrGruyere on  Mon Jun 3 20:08 CST 2019
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Hi again!

I replaced the PCV and all associated hoses under the intake manifold. However, smoke continues to come out of the oil cap (when opened) and oil dipstick when the engine is warm. It’s also still leaking oil. What gives? What else could it be at this point? And wouldn’t replacing the PCV system stop the smoke from the oil cap?

I did notice that there is oil dripping from an area right above the exhaust manifold toward the front of the engine. There’s a pipe coming out right there behind the timing belt cover - kind of tucked just below the valve cover area right in front of the first pipe of the exhaust manifold. Is there a gasket for that?

The only other thing I can think of is a front cam seal. The drips come from the front of the engine.

Any thoughts? Many thanks in advance!








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    Oil Continues to Leak (and Other Symptoms) After PCV Replacement S90-V90 1998

    posted by  jwalker on  Tue Jun 4 06:46 CST 2019
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    last visit: Fri Jun 6 08:39 CST 2014
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    Just to be clear, you replaced everything in the PCV right? Breather box, all hoses and the flame trap (not sure if your car has a flame trap). Nothing old left to cause a clog?

    Couple of other thoughts:
    1. The smoke out of the oil tube and cap could be a sludge buildup in the valve lifters. Do you use synthetic oil? Conventional oil usage in the 5 and 6 cylinder engines can cause this. You can try and clean it by running Marvel Mystery oil with your oil for a short time. Or some other safe cleaner. Also doing an Italian tune up might help. Take the car out on the highway and with the engine warmed up run the engine at 4000+ rpms for at least 5 minutes. The sludge buildup can occur if you only drive in town at low engine rpm’s. High revs can burn it off. Long highway trips are your engine’s friend. This happened to my 93 850.

    2. Not sure about the leak... Is the pipe you’re referring to perhaps the EGR pipe? It is not uncommon for the EGR pipe or valve to clog on any Volvo engine with age and miles. Is the leak right where the pipe attaches to the engine? Not sure if there is a gasket there. Maybe others will chime in...
    --
    Will I buy another Volvo??? We'll see....








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      Oil Continues to Leak (and Other Symptoms) After PCV Replacement S90-V90 1998

      posted by  HerrGruyere on  Tue Jun 4 10:05 CST 2019
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      Everything is new! Box, trap, all associated hoses.

      I recently switched to synthetic and ran some Marvel. But, I’m sure all of that leaked out haha. The leak is roughly a quart every week and a half. The only reason I didn’t do an Italian tune up was out of fear that I’d blow some other seals with all the excess pressure from the bad PCV. I’ll try it out.

      I’m not sure what pipe it is. If it’s the EGR it’s news to me. Here’s a link to a picture so you can reference: https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums/download/file.php?id=7569&t=1

      It’s the pipe right in front of the exhaust manifold. That is not my car in the picture. Mine is much dirtier.

      Again, thanks for your input! Every little bit helps.








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        Oil Continues to Leak (and Other Symptoms) After PCV Replacement S90-V90 1998

        posted by  Amarin on  Wed Jun 5 10:52 CST 2019
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        last visit: Thu Oct 23 22:42 CST 2014
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        I'm not familiar about the inline 6 in your car so I referred to a diagram at volvopartswebstore.com for guidance. Its most likely a coolant pipe as your car doesn't have EGR. It couldn't be an oil pipe as your car doesn't have any turbo plus turbo oil pipe usually not that big. Yes there are engines that use oil pipes to drain oil from upper crankcase back to oil pan but thats from different make.

        Regarding smoke coming out of oil filler hole while engine is running it could just be the blowby gasses. Have you tried putting glove/paper test over the filler hole while engine is running - to check for any suction? There should be some weak suction there while engine is running (idling) BUT not to the extend that it sucks the entire glove/paper into the hole. Alternatively covering the hole with hand you should feel some suction there.

        Regarding the oil leak at front of engine - despite having replaced PCV components - firstly find the source of the leak. Open the front plastic timing cover to see. Find whether the leak is coming from the top (camshaft seals) or bottom (crankshaft seal). Poor PCV system in white block engine mostly causes bottom leaks. White block engine has their camshafts intergrated WITHIN the upper cylinder block with high pressure oil channels for camshaft. This means possibility of oil leaks from within the upper block. If upper block is leaking you might have to dismantle the block to reseal the oil channels using anaerobic sealant specially made for this.

        Amarin.








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          Oil Continues to Leak (and Other Symptoms) After PCV Replacement S90-V90 1998

          posted by  jwalker on  Thu Jun 6 06:35 CST 2019
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          last visit: Fri Jun 6 08:39 CST 2014
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          Good response except for one point. I have owned 2 white block Volvos and have never heard of them leaking from the block. If the PCV is clogged on the 5 cylinder engines the excessive pressure normally causes them to leak through the rear camshaft seal, front camshaft seal, distributor shaft seal or oil cap.

          OP - I’m not sure if your engine has ignition coils or uses a distributor. If it is coils you can ignore the distributor shaft seal idea...:)

          Based on your responses my best guess is the front camshaft seal is leaking. Definitely try removing the timing belt cover and check the the front camshaft seal. If you don’t find a leak, clean your engine so you can pin down the source of the leak. Bear in mind that if you still have a clogged PCV and replace any seals without resolving the clog the seals will leak or blow out again.
          --
          Will I buy another Volvo??? We'll see....








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            Oil Continues to Leak (and Other Symptoms) After PCV Replacement S90-V90 1998

            posted by  HerrGruyere on  Thu Jun 6 19:46 CST 2019
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            No distributor on this car!

            I can’t imagine the PCV is still clogged. I checked each of the ports on the engine for sludge and saw (and felt!) nothing.

            My money is on the front cam seal. I’m guessing I need a special tool to hold the cams in place while undoing the bolts? Or could I just hold the timing belt really tight/jam a screwdriver in there somewhere?

            Granted, I’m gonna drive it a bit and see if the leak dies down. Maybe what I’m seeing is residual oil from pooling up at the top by the coils. It’s wishful thinking...








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              Oil Continues to Leak (and Other Symptoms) After PCV Replacement S90-V90 1998

              posted by  jwalker on  Fri Jun 7 05:39 CST 2019
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              last visit: Fri Jun 6 08:39 CST 2014
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              Don’t know for sure as I have never needed to replace one, but I don’t think you need a special tool for front camshaft seal removal. At the very least, you should be able to simply look at it by removing the cover. Then you should be able to see if the seal is dislodged or simply leaking. Do you have a good repair book? That will guide you.

              Good plan to drive it for awhile. If you just recently changed to synthetic your seal leak might initially worsen for awhile (a month or so) and then it should improve. Give it some time. Good luck!
              --
              Will I buy another Volvo??? We'll see....








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                Oil Continues to Leak (and Other Symptoms) After PCV Replacement S90-V90 1998

                posted by  HerrGruyere on  Sat Jun 8 16:18 CST 2019
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                Hi!

                My intake cam seal is leaking. The seal is moving around in its spot, and oil drips from there when it’s running. However, I can’t tell if the exhaust cam is or not since there’s something blocking my view. It’s like a turquoise circular thing. Is there some sort of variable timing mechanism on the exhaust cam?

                If so, is there anything specific in removing that? The intake looks easy. I’d like to knock out the exhaust one while I’m at it, but I don’t wanna goof something up by removing something wrong. Some Googling didn’t really yield me any answers. Just checking here.








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                  Oil Continues to Leak (and Other Symptoms) After PCV Replacement S90-V90 1998

                  posted by  jwalker on  Sat Jun 8 18:25 CST 2019
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                  last visit: Fri Jun 6 08:39 CST 2014
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                  Guten Tag Herr,

                  Bear in mind I’m no expert on your engine! I’ve owned 2 - 850’s (5 cylinder) and a 240. The 5 cylinder engines are basically your engine minus 1 cylinder. Modular design. One difference is that 850’s are distributor driven not ignition coil driven. 1999 models (S70/V70) were the first year the 5 cylinder engines got ignition coils and VVT.

                  That said, the circular turquoise thing is probably your camshaft sensor. Is there an electrical wire attached to it? If so, it could be the camshaft sensor. Don’t think your engine has VVT (variable valve timing). The sensor was fairly easy to remove on my 95 850. It was awhile ago, but as I recall I was able to gradually work it out with no special tools. If you remove it, I strongly suggest replacing both the exhaust camshaft seal and the camshaft sensor while you are in there. My goal was to replace the camshaft sensor as I was dealing with a no start situation.

                  J
                  --
                  Will I buy another Volvo??? We'll see....







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