HELP... 97 v70 head gasket?

[steve the post]

Got a 97 v70awd turbo, have been losing coolant recently and now got a sump full of mayo, plugs all clean, engine runs as smooth as silk, have noticed strees marks on the expansion tank, also high pressure in the tank as well, is this a head gasket or have now read that it could be the radiator, i have no oil in the cooling system. Any ideas you guys

[daza-b]

Got a 97 v70awd turbo, have been losing coolant recently and now got a sump full of mayo, plugs all clean, engine runs as smooth as silk, have noticed strees marks on the expansion tank, also high pressure in the tank as well, is this a head gasket or have now read that it could be the radiator, i have no oil in the cooling system. Any ideas you guys

unfortunatly if the system is pressuring up then more than likly yes its the gasket, but could also be the rad, has it over heated at all?

[steve the post]

not according to the temp gauge, as soon as the coolant level light came on i topped it up, am not driving it since i found the mayo in the head and dipstick, compression test showed all cylinders equal,but it runs so well, thanks for the reply

[daza-b]

not according to the temp gauge, as soon as the coolant level light came on i topped it up, am not driving it since i found the mayo in the head and dipstick, compression test showed all cylinders equal,but it runs so well, thanks for the reply

no probs bud, i had a bmw 325i that did the exact same thing, no compression issues, ran a dream and turned out it was the gasket, sorry to be the bearer of bad news lol

[bigrotch]

If it's only Mayo on top of dipstick it's condensation as temp has droped etc but if u got it in the sump I'd say gasket and u can't see where the water is going but u are loosing water I'd say its mixing up in the oil not good

[steve the post]

oh well, will rip out the rad n test, have noticed that there oil cooler lines going to the rad so it must have a internal oil cooler other than that i'll have to take the head off...looks like a crap job to do. thanks again for your input

[daza-b]

oh well, will rip out the rad n test, have noticed that there oil cooler lines going to the rad so it must have a internal oil cooler other than that i'll have to take the head off...looks like a crap job to do. thanks again for your input

where abouts are u from bud?

[steve the post]

And yes its loosing coolant, but not chucking barrel loads of smoke out the exhaust, car had a short engine fitted by a Volvo dealer 6 years ago under a extended warranty....Cost over 5 grand to do. The head was skimmed and valves lapped in at the time..Its done 53k since.

[daza-b]

And yes its loosing coolant, but not chucking barrel loads of smoke out the exhaust, car had a short engine fitted by a Volvo dealer 6 years ago under a extended warranty....Cost over 5 grand to do. The head was skimmed and valves lapped in at the time..Its done 53k since.

thats a weird thing really, maybe check for air coming into the coolant pipes as it should have been good for at least 200k!!

[t5 stealth]

is the oil level rising, ?
if the water is going in the oil then it will make the oil level wrong,
sounds like the common fault of rad/oil cooler failure,
if the engines running good then thats usually a good sign,
is the water bottle full of mayo too ?
difficult to guess without seeing it really .
as dazab asked........where you from ?
maybe someone close to you will take a look .

[steve the post]

im in Kingston Surrey

[Dangerous Dave]

compression test showed all cylinders equal,but it runs so well, thanks for the reply
My headgasket has gone twice on my volvo, compression test each time showed one or two of the cylinders were down on compression. So not sure if your is the HG. I had no mayo in the sump, just the tank overpressuring/loosing coolant.

[daza-b]

im in Kingston Surrey

too far away from me lol

[steve the post]

expansion tank is clean, no oil in coolant, oil level seems the same but its now a creamy colour, i thought about that but presumed the engine/exhaust burnt it off.

[steve the post]

The other thing i thought of is there any chance the oil/coolant is being mixed by the turbo, have noticed a very slight dampness in the turbo area but no drips, put a white card on the floor on no drips of anything, will flush the motor tomorrow and refill with oil, have 3 spare oil filters and check the rad for leaks (internal & external). to all that have replied, THANKS and will post with findings......Think ive got the Volvo bug as this is such a clean wagon and drives like a dream.

[merc85]

The other thing i thought of is there any chance the oil/coolant is being mixed by the turbo, have noticed a very slight dampness in the turbo area but no drips, put a white card on the floor on no drips of anything, will flush the motor tomorrow and refill with oil, have 3 spare oil filters and check the rad for leaks (internal & external). to all that have replied, THANKS and will post with findings......Think ive got the Volvo bug as this is such a clean wagon and drives like a dream.

There is a rubber pipe that comes of the Main water pipe which runs behind and below the turbo.

This Pipe is very coman for bursting! it my seep coolant before it blow's check thatn pipe out buddy you can see it better from under the car it goes directly to a steel water pipe about 10mm which feed the turbo.