I went through the 700/900 Faq and did the "jiggle" test only to have my Oil Cap slightly jiggle around and not blow off. I just got a little oil all over the Valve Cover. I went back and read it again and the "jiggle" test ONLY applies to the earlier models with the Metal Oil Cap, not the Plastic cap. My car runs GREAT. I am one of those preventive maintenance guys who does not like things to go wrong. My 1990 245 has about 182,000 miles on it. Is there a simple way to test the Oil Separator box? I am so terrifed of taking it off because of the hose that goes into the oil pan. Like I said, my car runs great, gets a consistent 25-26 mpg and uses NO oil. Please help and advise.
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'90 245 180k

The black round gasket on the capo gets very hard and you will get leakage even if all is well with the Pressure. Get a new gasket at the dealer. I'm due for a new one myself.
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'75 Jeep CJ5 345Hp ChevyPwr and two motorcycles: it wasn't Volvos safety , it was Longevity that sold me

Hi Tony,

Is the black "roundgasket at the capo" the black O ring I see on Mike Ponte's page ? I am also leaking oil there, not much, but it's all gunky and I'd like to inspect my breather box up close. I did replace the flame trap recently.

http://www.mikeponte.com/volvo/oiltrap.htm

Also are they just these 2 13mn to remove and that's it? How do you pry off gently the oil box so that the long tube doesn't fall in the oil pan?

Thanks.
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'89 244DL M47 159K miles

the gasket I was talking about is on the Oil Fill Cap.
All could be good with the Trap, the Box and the Hoses to and from and because the Fill Cap gasket gets very hard, you will still get a nice shiny, oily Valve cover.

I have 240K on my car and I haven't had to pull the Breather Box off
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'75 Jeep CJ5 345Hp ChevyPwr and two motorcycles: it wasn't Volvos safety , it was Longevity that sold me

Thanks for clarifying that Tony.

I actually did replace the gasket on my oil fill cap because I was getting a bit of oil on my valve cover, the old gasket was dried up as you said. This little thing did eliminate the oil on the valve cover for a while, but now the oil is coming back, nothing serious. I changed the gasket about 3000 miles ago. So I am going to look at the oil separator box soon.
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'89 244DL M47 159K miles

I just replaced the oil separator on my 87 245. It was an easy job with a socket wrench, a 10" extension, a socket universal joint and a 13mm socket. I got the new separator at my local Volvo dealer for about $35, and the gasket was $4. I removed the accordion air tube between the air mass meter and the throttle body in order to get my arms down into the space below the intake manifold. I'm kinda tall and skinny, so it was easy for me.

I too fretted about the tube dropping down into the oil pan, but I just carefully lifted the oil separator while making sure the tube was not unseated. Things went without incident, and now everything is back in place and working fine.

kourt

Hi Kourtney,

How did you make sure that the tube was not unseated?

Did you use your wrench going from under the throttle body after removing the air intake hose? How were you able to see anything down there?

What about this O ring, did you put in a new one? Is that the same as the gasket you mention?

Thanks.
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'89 244DL M47 159K miles

Howdy again,

I did the job on a bright Saturday monring, with lots of light, so that the sun (in the southern sky here in Texas during the winter) shone directly into the engine compartment. Having lots of light really made the difference. The first time I started on this job it was dusk, and I soon realized that it was not the right time of day to be working on the car, especially on this job.

After unbolting and removing the two 13mm bolts, and removing all the flame trap plumbing, I managed to get both hands down into the area under the intake manifold. I carefully wiggled the oil separator while at the same time gently lifting. When I had lifted about 1cm, I stopped and looked under the oil separator (with what little room I had, I found a perspective somehow) and saw the "lip" of the top of the oil return tube. I noted how the oil separator had an extension which was still halfway inside the return tube, but I continued to gently wiggle the oil separator while still gently pulling up and watching the return tube. The tube did move just few microns but still stayed in place. Once the oil separator was free, I simply maneuvered it out of the cramped space and set it aside (on a side note, it weighed a bit more than the new oil separator I was about to install).

I set up the wrench so that I could work with the long extension through the spaces in between the intake manifold passages, up above the manifold, but I removed the air intake hose so that I could see and also to grab the 13mm bolts once they came loose. Once again, lots of light helps.

The o-ring I bought at the dealer is a little green OEM o-ring which goes on one of the returns under the oil separator. That is the only o-ring I replaced.

Getting the oil separator back on was the harder part--manipulating it around underneath the intake manifold was not easy. I had to use more force to put it back in place than I did to remove the old oil separator.

kourt
87 245
Austin, Texas

When you get to cleaning the flame trap, be sure to check to make sure the breather box that it connects to is not obstructed. I'm reposting a description of one way I have used to do this check. There are other methods too.

Here is good test of the PCV system. Do this with the engine off and cool. Get a two-foot length of 5/8 ID hose. (If you buy PCV hose, you can use it later, in conjunction with a three-inch section of 5/8 OD copper pipe from a plumbing store or building site, to relocate the flame trap if you want.) Pull the flame trap assembly off the breather box, and push the new hose over the nipple on the breather box. Take off the oil filler cap, and try to blow by mouth through the hose that you just connected to the breather box. With a new or super clean breather box, you'll be able to easily blow through it. The easier you can blow through it, the easier your crankcase will breathe. Your breath will come out the oil filler cap hole in the valve cover. This test just checks the breather box. Also, check all the hoses and fittings downstream (above) the breather box, and clean or replace any part that is sludged up or clogged. This includes the brass fitting in the manifold where the little hose connects.

Sometimes people fail to check the breather box when inspecting the PCV system. If it's clogged, a new flame trap with attached hoses and fittings won't do much good. My breather box was totally clogged so I replaced it, although some people do clean the dirty old boxes out. Whatever you do, let it breathe.

Good luck.
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Thanks to everyone for the help, Doug C. 81 242 Brick Off Blocks, stock, M46; 86 244, 140k , auto.

On the Flame Trap, I bought a kit from somewhere, probably Groton. When I inspected the holder for the flame trap with the little nipple on the side, no air would go through it. It was not plugged, I ran a paper clip (or tried to) through it. It was just a closed hole. Is this normal for the later model Flame Traps 1988-1993?

Any help would be greatly and always appreciated.

I am looking for a simple test. I could not begin to build Don's Pressure Tester. I am not that handy... :-)
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'90 245 180k

All fittings on the Holder should be OPEN.
I have two sets of Traps and Holders. One is on the car and the other is cleaned and ready to be swapped in. The Holder is tough to get out sometimes and I have broken the small nipple on it. It makes the Job a snap to pull off the Holder/trap and replace it with a good set. Then after the car is buttoned up you can play around and clean out the holes in the one you just took off Plus you have the insurance that if you broke the nipple, you have one handy.

This is just one of the anal things I do.
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'75 Jeep CJ5 345Hp ChevyPwr and two motorcycles: it wasn't Volvos safety , it was Longevity that sold me

If you want to test the separator, find a piece of hose that'll fit over it, then blow. If you can easily blow through it and feel air coming out of the oil fill cap hole, then you're fine. THat's a good cheap test. As for the flame trap holder, yes, both of the outlet ports on it should be open. I suggest buying one from FCPgroton or someone....they only cost around a dollar. Even the dealer couldn't be too expensive on this. But yes, both outlets should allow air through. Hope this helps,
Nate Gundy
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'86 240DL sedan, 260K miles, M46, K cam, 25/21mm sways, 260 front and wagon rear springs; http://valvespringcompressor.weblogs.us/