posted by
someone claiming to be 747
on
Thu Jan 30 03:10 CST 2003 [ RELATED]
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Hello fellow Volvo gurus!
I have a series of questions regarding oil and oil filters for my 89 760 (6 cylinder). I hear that Amsoil is the best, however Mobil 1 is more readily available. I was considering using Mobil 1 0W-40 for my car in addtion to a Mobil 1 oil filter. What are my advantages over, say using a 0W-30 and or a 5W-30/10W-30? Also does anyone recommend using 15W-40 in the summer months, it can get very hot and humid up here (northeast). I was just concern that 0W-40 may cause my engine to burn more gas? Are the viscosity index numbers too far off? Will the Mobil 1 0W-40 give me more protection? I would be willing to dump it/replace filter every 5,000 miles. I have some oil build up on the top of the motor, possible seals, and or distributor o-ring? And my last question what type of gas mileage could I get out of this V6 motor? The engine is very smooth.
Thank you
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I doubt very much if you would be able to notice much difference between Mobil 1 (or AMSOIL) xW-30 or xW-40. And you can use the same viscosity all year long, especially using AMSOIL which has a 25,000 to 35,000 mile or 1 year drain interval. AMSOIL 15W-40 would also be fine, though the recommended drain interval in this case is 15,000 miles or 1 year.
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posted by
someone claiming to be Herb Goltz
on
Thu Jan 30 03:56 CST 2003 [ RELATED]
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Hello:
I use non-synthetic 15W40 diesel oil in my 760GLE year round-- no complaints thus far. Most folks here seem to prefer Volvo or Mann filters. My concern with Mobil 1 is that you already are reporting leaks-- I would expect them to intensify with synthetic. If you are planning on fixing the leaks anyway, then synthetic is undoubtedly the way to go! Also, clearly, if your car burns any oil then synthetics are a total waste of money. In my experience oil burning is not a problem with the B280F, which have a very robust bottom end capable of going 250K+ mi. I doubt that any particular modern oil would result in a significant change in mileage.
Where is the oil accumulating? Is it in the V? The usual suspects for the B280 are the timing gear cover (25 bolts, 2 piece gasket), the valve covers and front and rear mains. Often they will leak from the cam access covers at the back too.
The mileage on these beasts is not outstanding-- I think the window sticker in mine said 24 hwy and 17 city. I can tell you I am getting way less than that right now (-20C nightly!).
Enjoy your GLE!
Herb Goltz, London, Ontario, Canada '89 760GLE w/171K mi
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posted by
someone claiming to be 747
on
Thu Jan 30 06:16 CST 2003 [ RELATED]
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Hello Herb,
The oil was building up around the front timing casing area (yes your are correct), in addition to the top of the engine. At one time it looked as though it was spraying/vapors on the fan/belt area at one time or another. It appears as though the previous leakage was never cleaned up. I was told that it also may be my distributor O-ring (cheap fix), but how about the labor/access. I just aquired the car. The oil is not sludgy its clean. It looks as though they just replaced a gasket at the top from of the engine. However the oil seems as though it has ceased from any further leakage. I believe the oil that is at the top of the engine is past residue oil, prior to the gasket replacement? The books say that this beast holds 6.3 qts of oil!!! The oil light lights up as it should and goes out within a second. Herb do you think I should replace the timing chain upon reaching 200,000 miles? Right now I am at 156,450 miles. Also how often do valve adjustments need to be done on this engine? The book says every 30,000 miles. Could one gone beyond this if they are not making any noises? So diesel oil,wow! I have heard of this, but I have yet to try it. So Amsoil 15W-40 diesel oil would well? Would it cause significant engine drag during the winter? I will more than likely consider it for the summer. One other thing, at what point will the engine be in danger oil level wise, 2 qts, 3 qts? I mean would my oil light illuminate it the levels got dangerously low?
Thanks in Advance
Best Regards
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posted by
someone claiming to be Herb Goltz
on
Thu Jan 30 12:40 CST 2003 [ RELATED]
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Hello:
I haven't had a distributor out on a B280F, but just getting the cap and rotor off is a bit fidgety-- fairly tight quarters, but really no worse than on a rear mounted B230...
As for the leaks, Simple Green or Gunk followed by a high pressure wash at a DIY carwash helps you to pinpoint problems (just don't spray electronic components).
The diesel oil formulation is high detergent-- I think the recommendation stems from the B28 days when narrow oil galleys clogging in the heads contributed to cam failure. I think it is cheap insurance. Mine runs very clean-- the oil looks honey brown for many, many miles!
I have heard of one timing chain breaking at around 200K mi. If you decide to tackle this, you might as well wait for a valve adjustment, because the valve covers have to come off anyway for the timing chain replacement. Even valve adjustments are a big deal because the compressor has to come off the left valve cover to do the adjustment. Too bad, because otherwise the adjusters look just like an old air cooled VW-- no shims! It would be a good time to do water pump, belts and hoses as well as the front crank seal. I haven't done one, so I can't offer much advice. There appears to be two kinds of timing chains, one with a tensioner and another without...
30,000 miles between valve adjustments amounts to every couple or 3 years. Noisy valves are often less dangerous to engine health than tight ones-- the tight ones stretch stems. I haven't heard anything in particular about B280s being prone to this, though...
I wouldn't knowingly let any motor of mine run below the hatched line on the dipstick-- that corresponds to a whole quart. If I had to add more than a quart over 5000 miles due to leakage or burning, I'd be wondering what was up!
Good luck!
Herb Goltz, London, Ontario, Canada '89 760GLE w/171K mi
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posted by
someone claiming to be 747
on
Thu Jan 30 16:06 CST 2003 [ RELATED]
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Thanks again! Now that I have got the hood opened,I just discovered my alternator belts, in fact all of my belts to be semi coated with motor oil run off. The pulleys seem ok, the tops of the belts seem to covered the most. Also my alternator got somewhat of a dose too! I am wondering how long before it fails? And my oil plug apears to be an allen wrench type? Could I just go and get a regular plug to replace this one?
Thanks again for all of your responses.
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