Hi ,
I just bought a 1996 850 turbo wagon with 104,000 miles on it. I got the price down considerably due to it needing brake work and some hose replacement work done on the turbo. I was aware that there was some white smoke coming out of the exhaust but after buying it, taking it on a trip (500 miles ) and returning home, we were driving around town and after climbing a steep hill we noticed a lot of white smoke (as opposed to some smoke) coming out of the exhaust. It seems once the engine warms up it really smokes now.
It mostly sat for the last three years with the exception of the last owners brother taking a road trip. My mechanics are cleaning out the oil and hoping that it is just from being gunked up that it is smoking.
I've invested all the money I have in this car (the typical poor single mom story here) and am worried sick that I have some big problem. BTW the car runs fine otherwise, no power loss it seems.
I'd really appreciate any suggestions of what to have my mechanic look for.
thanks :crying:

White smoke is an indication of burning coolant, which usually indicates a bad head gasket. You're mechanic should be familiar with this problem and its symptoms.

If that's what it is, I think the labor guide calls for about 10 hours to repair it but I don't recall exactly. Multiply that by the hourly rate your mechanic charges, and add about $200 in parts and machine shop fees, assuming the head needs to be resurfaced.

This is the worst case. What I find curious about is the fact that it was blowing a little smoke, and yet it made it home from a 500 mile trip. If it were a head gasket, it likely wouldn't have survived that trip. Ask your mechanic if he has done a compression test, and tell us what the numbers were. That will be a good indicator.

Another thought....does anybody know if the '96 has a water cooled turbo? The part about smoking after going up a hill got me thinking, since that would generate boost.

i think your 850 turbo(US) is our 850 t-5(UK) which has a water cooled td04hl 15g

So if the turbo is water cooled, that could mean your problem is somewhere other than the head gasket. This is where the compression test results come into play. Let us know.

+1 :clap:
internal coolant leakage, cracked cylinder bore or head. have your cooling system pressure checked also.

Yep. What he said. Get the cooling system pressure tested, and a compression test, then let us know.

Hi again, the mechanic says it is bluish white smoke and it is oil. I am finding this very interesting there seems to be something new to address every day with this car.
After the mechanic flushed out and cleaned the engine and put very heavy weight oil in it it smokes less but now going uphill slow seems to make it much worse.
Also the RPM surges, revs when in park. then on the freeway during a storm the windshield wiper came loose.
Gee wiz my 1991 aerostar is less fussy!
I do love my volvo though.

This is going to sound like a broken record to those who have been around for more than even a couple weeks. It seems to have come up a lot lately.

Have the mechanic check the PCV system. I've come to realize that this is a very often neglected system, and can cause lots of oil to be burned, but is fairly easy to fix.

Read through this thread, or better yet, have your mechanic read it. Also, with the engine running, unscrew the oil filler cap and see if it makes a hiss like your opening a beer or a soda. If it does, that's your main indicator of a clogged PCV system. For more explaination on why, read this thread

Let us know how it goes.

I am new so sorry for the repetitiveness here. Also a lot of you are much more hands on than I can ever be, I want to know everything I can about the car but will leave the hard work to those who won't destroy the car. Thanks for getting me started.

Hmmm, sounds like a familiar thing.

When in idle, try pulling out the dipstick from the chute. If smoke is emitted from the chute like a smoke train would (OK, an exaggeration), i would think its the internals, most likely the piston rings.

Using a heavy oil may be able to reduce that.

Some people might even suggest going all dino-oil for this purpose. Cause later on, once you are ready to have the engine totally overhauled, you can begin with using your choice type of oil...

I just want to share something i got from VADIS on this.
But after reading your post again... Well, lets just say there are a few possibilties. At this juncture, you may want to keep the causes broad and narrow it from there...

Cheers.

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CAUSES

-Overfilling. If the oil is filled to a level above the recommended maximum level, a large amount of oil is thrown up against the cylinder walls and oil is thrown out through the crankcase ventilation. Do not fill the oil level above the MAX line on the dip stick.

-Oil grade. If an oil grade other than that recommended by Volvo has been used, this can result in increased oil consumption. If the oil is too thin, it will contain a larger proportion of volatile molecules. It becomes even more difficult for the oil to maintain an unbroken film around the cylinder walls at high temperatures, leading to increased engine wear and consequently increased oil consumption.

-Hard driving. Long, continuous driving at high engine revs leads to high oil temperatures, which in turn leads to the oil being thinner and consumption higher. Hard cornering at high engine revs results in the oil being thrown against the side of the cylinder block and against the cylinder walls, leading to increased oil consumption.
The same conditions arise during extended periods of driving at high revs in low gear on level roads (no inclines).

-Driving in mountainous areas. Frequent and extended engine braking heats the oil in the engine; it also results in more oil being sucked into the cylinders because of the high partial vacuum in the intake maninfold.

-Idling. If the car is used in urban traffic, getting caught in traffic jams etc., the engine can be running for a number of hours without covering much distance. This does not necessarily affect oil consumption, but the measurement result - liters of oil/road distance covered - will be misleading.

-Climate. In countries where very high temperatures are the norm, the engine also runs at a higher temperature, leading to increased oil consumption.

-Mechanical causes.
Leaks - Worn crankshaft and crankshaft seal, external leakage, e.g., leaking gaskets, etc.
Crankcase ventilation Overpressure in the crankcase caused by blocked crankcase ventilation.
Pistons and piston rings Worn piston ring grooves. Fatigued, worn, scored, broken or scratched piston rings. Fouled oil control rings. Incorrectly installed rings.
Cylinder wallsWorn or scored.
ValvesWorn guides or valve stem. Worn, damaged or valve stem seals missing.
Cylinder headInternal leakage between oil ducts and leakage into the combustion chamber.

Conditions
A new, improved type of piston ring was introduced into engine production in week 50 1994. Cars with engine number 396323 and later have the new piston rings.
A car that has an engine with the new piston rings can be expected to use 0.01 - 0.1 litres of oil per 1.000 km.
A car that has an engine with the previous piston rings can be expected to use 0.1 - 0.3 litres of oil per 1.000 km.
Complaint limit is if the engine consumes more than 0.4 litres of oil/1.000 km.