Anyone have any experience with flickering oil lights in super cold weather? i add two quarts and the light is still coming on. Engine sounds clacky. I am worried that there is a leak but have not seen any evidence. Is it safe to drive or should I just tow it in to the shop and have someone more expert look at it?

I just thought of one more thing.

Did you use a genuine Volvo oil filter? Some aftermarket oil filters have problems:

1) some don't have a proper checkvalve -- this keeps oil in the filter from draining out between running periods, and results in starting the engine with an empty filter, so pressurizing the oil channels of the engine block is delayed.

2) I've also heard that certain filters (I can't remember the brand, since I didn't bother noting it -- I only used Volvo brand) cause a problem in pressure (maybe poor filter material) that results in such erratic idiot light flickering. I think the post said that he suffered such problems until he changed his filter.

Of course, any such problem will be exacerbated in very cold weather. I hope these possibilities help you.

Regards, and happy holidays.

You added 2 qts of oil? Was it that low, or did you just add the oil without first checking the level on the dipstick?

First, the pressure sensor might be bad. Second, the oil pump might be bad. But I've had almost about a million miles of redblock ownership over several cars and never had a problem with either of these, so I'd be inclined (personal opinion) to consider the oil itself as most likely. Consider:

1) if you overfilled the crankcase, you may now have oil foaming (when the crankshaft whips up the oil into a foam), which pumps the foam, instead of liquid oil, and results in very low pressure (and little actual lubrication) which might make the idiot light flicker. Adhere to the maximum mark on your dipstick, and drain out what is excessive pronto!

2) if you needed to add 2 quarts because you were that low, maybe you've neglected your oil changes, too? The oil may have deteriorated, which causes thickening eventually -- and cold weather just makes matters far worse. Sure, thicker oil usually results in higher pressures once it starts to circulate, but initially on a cold startup, it takes a while to pump up that thicker oil and you may have too low a pressure (causing the flickering) until the thicker oils starts to circulate properly.

thanks for your replys. in the morning light i spotted a half inch trail of oil up the street and into my driveway, and a further puddle under the vehicle. obviously i am getting a tow into the shop as i doubt there is any oil left in there. One friend suggested that i blew a cold-weather freeze plug, something i have never heard of, but from the size of the leak/drip seems more like a hole or damaged line of some sort than anything else. do you know any sources for manuals online to look thru?

the thing about the 16 valve engine is you have to check the oil cold. if you check it hot, the oil is pulled into the engine and it seems like there no oil. i have overfilled it twice when i thought it was too low. but so far the oil light has been accurate and has only come on when there it is actually low. But I am glad i kept putting oil in it this time!

I did just have it in the shop less than 3 weeks ago. It smelled hot, so i pulled over and checked the oil. no oil showed on the stick, even after it cooled off, so i added 2 quarts. still would not start. had it towed to the dealer, where they got it to start right up but as it was overfilled with oil, it smoked like crazy. they told me the car was a goner and i should HAND OVER THE TITLE!!! I asked them to have someone else look at it who was familiar with older models and they came back sheepishly saying that they had NOT looked at the oil, it was overfull (that is what was making it smoke like crazy,) and all it needed was a water pump, which was causing it to overheat. (my friends suggested a lawsuit over this one...) The dealer said they had to drain out quite a lot of oil, which makes me think they didn't actually re-fill it properly. but they said there were no leaks in the pan or hoses and the car did seem to run fine for 3 weeks until it was 7 below. but i probably should have checked the oil myself after that fiasco.

And now i have no faith in the dealer at all and am going to a small mechanic with a great rep for this next try.

Hi again.
You certainly have a problem with that dealer -- "hand over the title" tells me that they want the car more than they want to help you!

Anyway, first of all, the freeze plugs have nothing to do with oil passages or leaks -- they're for coolant. Freeze plugs can be described as gaps (round holes) in the side of the block that, instead of being solid, thick metal walls like that rest of the block, are actually just covered by metal caps -- it's hard to describe, but perhaps imagine a boat whose hull has portholes (the portholes being the metal caps, rather than windows). Their purpose is to be sacrificial in case the coolant freezes -- the pressure of expanding ice will hopefully just push out the caps, instead of literally cracking and bursting the block. These freeze plugs do occasionally loosen and leak, but as I noted above, the result will be leaking coolant, never oil.
By the way, they can readily be removed and replaced -- e.g., a block heater that Volvo sells for cold climates is installed by removing one of these freeze plugs and installing the heater in its place: it's just a small coil that would then be immersed in the coolant that fills the voids behind the freeze plugs.

Well, I confess that I know little about the 16-valve engine -- I had no idea that it had such a unique oil level checking protocol -- nor its sump capacity, but needing 2 quarts seems quite low, nevertheless. But my comment about overfilling is still valid -- you never want to do that.

Good luck -- I hope you find a more trustworthy shop for your car's care.
And Happy Holidays.

"Their purpose is to be sacrificial in case the coolant freezes -- the pressure of expanding ice will hopefully just push out the caps, instead of literally cracking and bursting the block."

Fortunately for many, over the years those plugs have popped due to freezing, as you describe. However their real purpose is to plug the holes left when the sand core is removed after the block has been cast (as in cast iron). In the trade they are called "core plugs".

The freeze protection is purely serendipitous, and should not be relied on in lieu of anti-freeze.
--
Bruce Young, '93 940-NA (current), 240s (one V8), 140s, 122s, since '63.