JV40
Hi all. Got our first ever Volvo a few weeks ago...2002 V40. Love the car but fear I have a head gasket leak. Thought I'd post to say hi before posting for some technical help :)
Ex850R
Welcome!
We need pix , we love em!
What symptoms are there that lead you to believe it's a HG gone?
JV40
Thanks mate. Here is all that I have at the moment
It's the 2.0 Turbo with 175k km on it. Good service history with everything always done.
All was fine until a couple of days ago when I noticed a drop or 2 of oil on the garage floor. I took a good look around and noticed some seepage at the back around where the head meets the block. Also coolant is slightly cloudy. Taking it to mechanics today to confirm....
Ex850R
It can be the radiator as it has oil coolers inside it so when it fails the coolant has oil in it.
A seep of oil could be the cam seals .
Both simple fix.
Take it to Volvo independent shop not just any mechanic. They may be good but I guarantee they don't know these cars.
Someone here knows an Indy one in QLD , @Rob ?
Philia_Bear
Pcv is clogged is 95% likely cause for the oil
Cloudy coolant is likely that someone ran water for a while in the past
JV40
Thanks guys. Yeah I'll take it to Suncoast Volvo they have a good rep and are local to me here. I hope it's not the HG...not had the best of luck with those on past cars (non Volvo). Will keep you posted
I should add that theres been no sign of overheating despite a couple of 200km trips on the highway
Ex850R
And as Philia says , the PCV with certainly need replaced , do it as a matter of course.
Get them tobflush and put proper coolant in.
Change the thermostat , water pump , PCV , plugs , leads and dizzy , all oils and filters no matter what the PO has done.
Timing belt done? If not do that as if it goes then the engine is toast.
JV40
Thanks. Timing belt was done a year and a half back at 155k so should be ok
Ex850R
Yes. See if they did the idlers and tensioner too.
Nice car , I love how they drive , never drove a turbo one though .
nickm
If the PCV is blocked it can blow the cam seals. 4 of them 2 front and 2 rear.
Do the glove test.
Can you post some pics of the oil leak?
JV40
Thanks Nicko. Local mate mechanic says its cam seals (you were all correct) and not the HG. Reckons the timing belt and seals will all need doing even though TB was done 20k km back. After reading what youve all written, I think its likely that the PCV being blocked has caused pressure to fail the seals.
Of to Suncoast Volvo to get them to do the work. We are a financially challenged young family which is why we bought a cheap but solid car. My question is whether it would be essential to do the belt again or could we get away with pcv and seals? Thanks
Ex850R
Nah , the TB is good for some time yet!
Cam seals are easy if you are handy?
So is the pcv if you want a learning curve!
JV40
Pls ignore the above. Just spoke to the Indy Volvo guys and they said timing belt should defo be done. Once covered in oil they have an unknown lifespan. He's going to do the water pump and pcv too...reckons about $800-1000 which is high but on the bright side it could have been the HG ☺
Ex850R
Depends where they get parts from.
You could get the parts and just pay labour.
@iceton1975 can chime in on the quote and supply parts too , great shop to deal with.
I seem to have spare new stuff here I can see what and do it cheap. Same motor less one cylinder in the V70R/T5/T etc.
Ex850R
I don't have pcv tho.
Mark may do or get from USA in a few days cheaper than anything here.
JV40
Thanks mate. I think I'm good for them to do the parts on this occasion as I need it done relatively quick. That price was for the coolant flush/change and something else (oil pump maybe?) too. Hopefully in future I can be more proactive with the maintenance and source my own parts...I have another passion which is air cooled VW and am used to finding parts cheap in the US for those, just need to familiarise myself with everything Volvo in the meantime. Thanks to info on here I managed to diagnose my slow start problem last week to the fuel pressure reg which was an easy fix...again the part wasn't cheap at around $250 but I needed to get it done.
Philia_Bear
Fcpeuro.com ships fast
Order on Friday aus time and have during the week on the following week
Ex850R
Rockauto is super fast too.
nickm
$800 for cam belt seals water pump and pcv is reasonable.
But that depends on what is being done to the PCV system. Check if they are replacing the oil trap.
To buy a complete cam belt kit, water pump and complete PCV kit will run into about $500 US for the parts.
JV40
I just had a call and it's not good news. They said that the CVVT hub needs to be replaced and I'm looking at $800-900 for that. Any thoughts? Is it worth investigating a second hand CVVT hub?
