Hi, so just as I have thought - they say that allegedly the crankcase pressure is normal at engines that old xD. Also the oily engine is also normal at engines this old and with that many km and he said he could show me a lot of cars with similar oil leaks. He said that the likely culprits for oil leaks around injectors are valve cover seal or injectors seals leaking, however they think that the best thing would be to clean the engine and then see where the oil is comming from.

Regarding the engine excessive pressure: I asked him about that and he just laughed it of saying others have pressure too and that I will never find an engine with neutral or negative pressure. Also the lead mechanic said they would not reseal the engine even if I paid them because this is not being done for years at official dealers (yeah, they just change the oil and belts nowadays 😠).

Regarding the main crank pulley - yes it consists of 2 parts the outer and inner and they are joined by a rubber. Between inside is oil which helps dampen the torsional vibrations of the crankshaft. So the rubber was worn and it leaked oil making a mess under the hood. However this does not explain other leaks...

I cleaned the engine yesterday - the pump, around injectors etc. and I think it is clean enough so I will be able to see where the leaks are comming from.

What do you guys think? Is this a good next step or he is full of bs? What would you do?

 

Regarding the engine excessive pressure: I asked him about that and he just laughed it of saying others have pressure too and that I will never find an engine with neutral or negative pressure.

This is utter nonsense. Internal combustion engines produce blowby, which creates pressure in the crankcase. Predictably, this causes sealing problems, so manufacturers have used one method or another to evacuate that pressure for as very long time; downdraft tubes, to simple vents to the intake, to PCV ball valves, to modern diaphragm-based systems. I mean, based on his statement, the PCV (positive crankcase ventilation) system wouldn't even be fitted - if pressure is the norm, why have a system in place to actively remove it?

Find a better shop.

 

Also he said that the PCV is most likely not faulty/clogged as he have never changed it in his career.

 

Unbelievable what some shops say,his "career" must be very short.Now that your engine is clean, you can hopefully keep any eye on where your leaks are emanating from.also as stated earlier, -find another shop-, remember these motors are in ford,peugot and mazda, you may find a shop that still has a old school mechanic that is familiar with these engines, ie it may be a shop that works on peugots but your engine is the same,so they might be able to help you out.Worth a try.

 

Hi! So, as I said earlier, I had cleaned my engine enough so I could see where the leaks could be comming from. During a good 2 hour cleaning operation I have found large amount of carbon residue (black, sandy like substance) around injectors crevases so I am guessing the injectors seals/injectors have to be replaced. I have also cleaned the pump on the picture below and the back of engine. (the images are from before the cleaning)

Today (2 days after cleaning) I opened the hood again only to find the engine oily again, same as before the cleaning job. The back of engine stayed clean but the pump and around injectors is oily again, same as before. I am guessing that the pump seal and injectors (or injector seals) have to be replaced, however this still do not explain if the oil leaks because of excessive engine pressure or because of old seals.

What do you guys think? Am I guessing right?



Also I have found lots of oil in the crevases of the intake manifold as seen on the picture below which I am guessing could be because of bad injector seals or the seals of the intake manifold are to be replaced. Also based on the amount of oil pouring down the back of engine (see image above) maybe the intake manifold seals are leaky?

Anyways I will probably go tomorrow to another mechanic which I am being told knows Volvos quite well. Will see... I am starting to feel like these mechanics just suck money out of people and do nothing, unlike the old times when They could replace an engine head gasket in no time. xD

 

This is utter nonsense. Internal combustion engines produce blowby, which creates pressure in the crankcase. Predictably, this causes sealing problems, so manufacturers have used one method or another to evacuate that pressure for as very long time; downdraft tubes, to simple vents to the intake, to PCV ball valves, to modern diaphragm-based systems. I mean, based on his statement, the PCV (positive crankcase ventilation) system wouldn't even be fitted - if pressure is the norm, why have a system in place to actively remove it?

I really feel like he have never changed the pcv only because he himself does not understand the function apparently.

 

The intake manifold has "o" rings and another seal, the o rings crack with age, the intake manifold allways carbon up really bad, best solution is to buy another intake manifold off ebay THAT has the "o" rings with it, also a injector seal kit, in regards the manifold ,i suggest a "febi" branded one as they come with gaskets and are of superior construction.I would still seek out another ford/peugot/mazda shop for work, as its still the same engine,the air intake plumbing is different, and actually easier to work on than a peugot.Essentially though, you dont need a specialised mechanic brand,you just need to find a proper mechanic.

 

Hi, so I have talked with 3 other Volvo repair shops/mechanics & I have cleaned the space around injectors with brake cleaner and a cloth and I have found out that the oil likely leaks from injector seals no.3 and 4 (the ones on the passenger side).

The mechanics confirmed our suspicion regarding the leaks and excessive crankcase pressure not being normal. They all agree on engine running too rough and the likely culprits are bent crankshaft/camshaft, cylinder valves leaking or that the engine has been in a diesel runaway situation in the past (note: they have just listened to the running engine and neither of them has actually tested/done anything to it). They suggest replacing the entire engine OR replacing injector seals, valve cover seal, pump seal. One mechanic have said that the rough sound/vibrations of the engine could be because of poorly installed oil filter???

I should add that if I would decide to replace seals rather than replacing entire engine, I would also clean/replace the intake manifold. I also think that we could takeoff valve cover and clean inside/between the valve mechanisms - it is probably filthy there.

What do you think? Should I replace the engine or take the time to replace seals etc.

 

I think maybe do the injectors yourself, (seal kit is really cheap), if you have a ultrasonic cleaner you could do the nozzles , just try that first,it will just cost you a little time to do it yourself, there are plenty of videos, ensure you use a socket (15mm?) for replacing the rubber seal (should be in the video).see how that goes before you start spending money.Cleaning the injectors and new seals can make a world of difference if they are pretty gummed up

 

So, I took my engine apart, meaning injectors and intake manifold. I cleaned injector holes, injectors and around them and cleaned the intake manifold. I replaced injector seals (3 seals per injector) and inlet manifold o-rings. I assembled all together again and bled the fuel -> the car started. Then I took the car for a test drive and the engine quit on the road. I poped the hood open and there was diesel everywhere. I tightened loosened injectors screws and the engine started again. I drove home and parked. Next day there was a pool of diesel underneath the car. Great.

I tried idling the engine/revving it and checked with dry wiping cloth the fuel lines for any leaks but I for the love of god cannot find the leak. I suspect either the injectors seals which I replaced are leaky, however this is unlikely because there is no oil, just diesel, or the fuel lines leading to injectors are leaking.

Also it seems that when I turn off the AC, the liquid (maybe water or AC coolant) starts squirting from somewhere around the turbo.

What are your suggestions guys? Is it a blown engine and a money nightmare or am I missing a simple fix?

The Volvo mechanic who I talked to and who has years of experience have told me the injector fuel lines are leaking or the fuel return lines are leaking.

 

Certainly sounds like a fuel line problem is the most likely cause (either feed or return). I have no experience with the diesel engines in these, but tracing the fuel lines, checking the connections, and then inspecting while running would be my plan. Unless there's damage to a line, I'd think the connections would be the most likely spots to leak.

 

Do you think maybe I have tightened the fuel lines too much and destroyed the sealing properties of threads? It seems to me the fuel is pouring from injectors themselves (the injectors consist of multiple parts). Could the injector body be leaking fuel?

 

Overtightening in general can cause problems, but if there's damage as a result, you should be able to find it by inspecting the threads, mating surfaces, and/or seals (I don't know how they seal). Could be the injector itself, I suppose. Can you see any active leaks with the car running?

 

Fuel return "o" rings that go into top of injectors probably, if you clean it up, you should see a film of diesel leaking down on to the injector.If it was on the high pressure line it would be squirting out like a fire hydrant.I assume when you replaced the injector seals (the big black o ring) that you installed it correctly?, using the 15mm socket so that the seal went in correctly?,

 

Did you actually take the whole injector lines off when you removed the injectors?, (so unscrewed the injector lines off the diesel rack) or did you just bend the diesel injector lines (i hope not)

 

Overtightening in general can cause problems, but if there's damage as a result, you should be able to find it by inspecting the threads, mating surfaces, and/or seals (I don't know how they seal). Could be the injector itself, I suppose. Can you see any active leaks with the car running?

Injector fuel lines do not have a separate seal (meaning o-ring or copper washer) & fuel return lines do have a tiny o-ring. I am unable to see the leak in progress, just the end result - diesel around injectors.

Fuel return "o" rings that go into top of injectors probably, if you clean it up, you should see a film of diesel leaking down on to the injector.

I did clean the injectors on top near the fuel return lines and it seems to me the o-rings on fuel return lines provide a good seal - though it is interesting the injectors bodies are a bit wet.

If it was on the high pressure line it would be squirting out like a fire hydrant.I assume when you replaced the injector seals (the big black o ring) that you installed it correctly?, using the 15mm socket so that the seal went in correctly?,

I think so too. If it was on high pressure fuel lines it would be squirting like hell, though there is a drop or two of diesel underneath the threads of high pressure fuel lines, but not enough to cause such a massive diesel leak. I tried installing the big black injector o-ring using a socket, however I was unable to get it into the tiny hole, so I installed the 3 seals on the injector and screwed the injector itself into the injector hole (like my mechanic said is ok). I mean, if the black o-ring wouldnt sit correctly the injector wouldnt be screwed all the way in... right? Also if the o.ring wasnt sealing properly I would be seeing an oil leak (as before the reseal) rather than a diesel leak, right?

Did you actually take the whole injector lines off when you removed the injectors?, (so unscrewed the injector lines off the diesel rack) or did you just bend the diesel injector lines (i hope not)

I did actually take the whole four injector fuel lines off completely, rather than bending like on some video on YouTube 😂.

Guys, I uploaded a video showing the current state of the injectors and leaks, though I did clean diesel off a bit - it was way more messy before, meaning also a quite big puddle of diesel on the parking spot underneath the car (the video does not show the full extent of a leak).

 

Its good to hear you are having a go trying to fix it yourself, you will get there in the end

 

Fuel puddle in the parking lot: video.

So. I have cleaned all diesel from around injectors and engine, wrapped the high fuel pressure lines and fuel return lines in toilet paper as seen on the picture:

Then I drove the car for around 20-30min (it got to operating temperature). Then I removed the toilet paper and it (toilet paper) was completely dry:

This can only mean one thing - the fuel lines are not leaky at all.

I noticed during my inspection, that the threads where injector nuts are bolted, are wet - meaning the screws which you screw the injector nuts on are bolted to valve cover and it seems to me that these screws (which do not have any seals) are leaking (as shown on the picture below), however this might also be leftover liquid from other leaks.

If you look closely on the picture below and video (this is on the drivers side) -> I cleaned the fuel from these crevases and they were completely dry, but after driving the car there is diesel in them which could have not come from injectors/fuel lines. In my opinion diesel could have only gotten there if it sipped from the nearby screw (on the picture).

Also it seems to me that fuel is leaking less now than previously (when it quit on the road).

Do you guys think the fuel could leak from these screws where injector nuts are bolted on? These screws are not sealed by anything...

Have a nice day all!

 

Your carpark "fuel spill" was pretty darn big, i was expecting to only see a little,so something has/had come undone big time.
When you put the manifold on, it came with 2 different sizes of "o" rings, and a sort of cupped washer?.
The injector studs can loosen up, usually they are replaced when you do injector seals, tbh i dont know if they could "leak" or not, the injector stud nuts were torqued down?,as it takes a little bit of driving for them to settle,and retorque to specs (it was a bad design fault by volvo,which was rectified in later models/motors)

 

Try the paper just around the studs/nuts , to help narrow it down, also the fuel return line (green plug) is that fully connected properly.

 

When you put the manifold on, it came with 2 different sizes of "o" rings, and a sort of cupped washer?

Yes indeed, I replaced 8 o-rings of two different sizes and there were cupped washers, however they can not be bought separately and so I did not replace them.

The injector studs can loosen up, usually they are replaced when you do injector seals, tbh i dont know if they could "leak" or not, the injector stud nuts were torqued down?,as it takes a little bit of driving for them to settle,and retorque to specs (it was a bad design fault by volvo,which was rectified in later models/motors)

The injector stud nuts were torqued down. Then I drove the car and they indeed came loose and I had to tighten them once again.

Try the paper just around the studs/nuts , to help narrow it down, also the fuel return line (green plug) is that fully connected properly.

Will try this. I am pretty sure the fuel return lines are connected as they should be, but I could replace the green o-rings cheaply.

I am seriously thinking of just seeling the car, dont know. 🙃

 

Well something is leaking obviously, because its fuel you are probably better putting some strategic bits of tissue paper around the top of engine (cold engine) and watch it as the car idles and see if you can determine where it is misting from,there is NO need to drive it,or get up to operating temp,as a hot engine and fuel soaked tissue paper may inadvertantly help your decision to sell (fire sale !!) There are only the fuel supply and return lines on top, so its a case of narrowing down exactly where the leak is coming from (or conversly ruling out where it is not leaking)

 

So guys. After some time figuring out where diesel is leaking from, I gave in as I was unable to pinpoint where exactly it is leaking. I decided to sell the car and sold it for 1400eur, making a loss of a 1000eur (I bought it for 2300 + car parts/work).

Will maybe call the buyer and ask him what was the issue as he said he will repair the issues (I had been fair enough to tell him the true state of the car).

Thanks for all the help, it is a great community!