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Engine rear seal 850 1996

posted by someone claiming to be Gustafkalle on Sun Dec 14 06:02 CST 2008 [RELATED]

Got an 850 5 cyl NA, auto tranny, with the engine rear seal leak, supposedly started a couple of months ago, after car had been standing a few months (I recently acquired this car). Have some experience with vacuum pumps where they seem to leak at shaft seal, but you can restore seal function by running pump coupla mins with kerosene. Anyone tried something similar in the 5 cyl, like draining oil, filling with kerosene, a few turns on the engien with starter (plugs out), then letting it soak? My hunch is that these seals somehow become "dried out" from some organic component, which they need to maintain their sealing function. Does the same hold for the Volvo engine?

Am I totally in the moon here?

Gustafkalle

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Engine rear seal 850 1996

posted by KlausC on Sun Dec 14 07:38 CST 2008
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last visit: Fri Oct 24 10:15 CST 2014

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Anything is always worth a try :)

But, history is not on your side. The PCV system was probably clogged causing excessive pressure on the seal and pushed it out a little, allowing for the leak. If dino oil had been in use for a long time, sludge might have coated the seal and helped dry it out - this is what you would try to remedy with the kerosene treatment. AutoRx will also remove the gunk.

Your best treatment would be to replace the breather box and piping first to relieve the pressure on the seals. If that fails, you will eventually have to replace rhe Rear Main Seal, which is quite costly.

If the RMS only drips a little oil, you might luck out with just the oil separator replacement. Using synthetic will help clear out the sludge after about 10-12,000 miles and you will find other leaks. A poorly maintained engine will not fix itself with just a better maint schedule.

Klaus
--
Volvoless. Sold the R. There is now a void...

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Engine rear seal 850 1996

posted by someone claiming to be Gustafkalle on Sun Dec 14 08:51 CST 2008 [RELATED]

Thanks, Klaus! Think you might be right. I am new to the 850, but it is a 5 cyl NA 170 HP engine and it has an EGR system on rear drivers side of engine. Could that give overpressure as well, and how do I check that out/fix it? (found some pages on how to do the PCV).

Gustaf

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Engine rear seal 850 1996

posted by KlausC on Sun Dec 14 10:09 CST 2008
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last visit: Fri Oct 24 10:15 CST 2014

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EGR will NOT add pressure to the crankcase. Turn the engine on and when warm, remove the dipstick. At idle, a small strip of paper placed over the dipstick opening will probably be pushed away, indicating positive pressure.
Remove the vacuum tree at the throttle body and inspect it for dirt, take out the PCV valve and throw away the screen - checking the small hose making sure it is not plugged up. If all looks good there, you will need to remove the intake manifold and replace the breather box.

Klaus
--
Volvoless. Sold the R. There is now a void...

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Engine rear seal 850 1996

posted by someone claiming to be Gustafkalle on Sun Dec 14 11:18 CST 2008 [RELATED]

Thank you! I take your advice as indicating the screen is not necessary. OK?

Gustaf

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Engine rear seal 850 1996

posted by KlausC on Sun Dec 14 12:28 CST 2008
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last visit: Fri Oct 24 10:15 CST 2014

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All the screen does is clogg things up, totally useless.
--
Volvoless. Sold the R. There is now a void...

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Engine rear seal 850 1996

posted by someone claiming to be Gustafkalle on Mon Dec 15 08:12 CST 2008 [RELATED]

Klaus,

I did the dipstick test. Not a whiff of gas flow when idling, testing with a thin piece of paper over dipstick hole. Car has only 120 000 kms (that would be about 75 k miles I guess) on odo, so I don´t expect there to be much crank-case pressure from wear, so that sort of fits with outcome of test. Do you still think I should dig into PCV system?

Gustaf

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Engine rear seal 850 1996

posted by KlausC on Mon Dec 15 08:44 CST 2008
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last visit: Fri Oct 24 10:15 CST 2014

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Then all is good with the PCV. Because the car sat for a while, it could be in need of gentle driving to get the RMS back into shape.
It is very expensive to replace the RMS, and if it only leaks a little when parked, I would place a piece of cardboard under the car to keep the oil off the garage floor. Of course, if it leaks too much then your only option is to replace the seal. Let's hope it doesn't come to that.

Klaus
--
Volvoless. Sold the R. There is now a void...

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