General: You pay your money and take a chance!

[Bits]

I bought a 2006 xc90 D5 Auto last month for £1800 off ebay.
Just drove from Tewkesbury to Stoke and the clutch is slipping. I suspected something was wrong prior to this and changed the gearbox oil and it seemed to make a difference.
The car is an Irish import with 133km on the clock but I suspect it is at least double that.
I noticed yesterday a slight engine oil leak between the engine and the gearbox so I suspect the crank seal has failed and that's causing the clutch problem.

Thing is what to do with it now?;
Stick it on ebay as spairs or repairs and take the hit.
Get the engine/gearbox out and sort out the problems - gearbox refurb, new clutch and crank bearing. £2k+? (Feel this is throwing good money after bad)
The lower front arms also need replacing and so do some of the rear wheel suspension bushes. I can do the suspension work myself but the engine out would have to go to a mates garage.
The body is totally rust free but the paint needs a good w/e to make it shine.
Cam belt was done 2 years ago.

[john langrick]

Hi, the question is really, do you like the car?

Selling without fixing will only get a smal return as clearly looks like engine out.

But you have a mate with a garage so perhaps 'mates rate' on removal? My engine swap labour was £1000 from a good indie, yours probably less

With engine out you can replace crank seals (no doubt you have steel core plugs, but can check that). Replace clutch (assume yours is manual) and then swap engine mounts etc. You could check/clean turbo and all those kind of things with engine on floor. And get engine bay nice and clean!

But after that you should have a very fit car engine that you know has a new clutch.

Your other problems seem just wear and tear, normal for us older XC90 users.

My only caveat is that you do not know the car and could be other hidden nasties, but we are all in that boat.

People tend not to sell of an older age that are 100%

Cheers

[gmonag]

I bought a 2006 xc90 D5 Auto last month...

The auto doesn't have a clutch. When you drive an auto (have you done that before?) it does feel as though it has a slipping clutch, but that is normal.

The leak may be the crank seal, but if it has failed I would expect a large leak.

[Bits]

Thanks to you both. I do like the car - its fairly quiet and comfortable.
My only other auto was a 1992 BMW 850i with 180k miles which was a joy.
My understanding of auto boxes is zero as you have found out!
I need advice and hope to call in to my mates garage Wed morning as it's still derivable, to see if the oil leak can be found while I have the under tray removed.
I have spoken to Horton cars and from the description I gave them they say I need a new valve body fitting @ £1200 inc vat & fitting, which takes 4 hours so can be done in a day visit.
This is carried out with the gearbox in the car so I suggested I take the car to my local garage to remove the box and while I take the box to have the valve body fitted, the garage can sort the crank seal (if that's what is leaking).
So - will call in to my local tomorrow.

[oragex]

The auto should not slip, that's a bad sign of worn clutch packs unless it's missing oil (or has the wrong oil type - usually takes 3309 type). That's not the valve body, it's internal. Given the amount of wear of other components, this is going to be worth only for someone who likes to spend time repair it himself - also need to use quality parts because less expensive ones are good for few years if not months. Otherwise, at 250km with lots of wear it's time to let it go

[Bits]

Just been to a auto gearbox specialist nearby.

He drove the car for about 5 miles and recommends a software update which will cost between £120/200 as they have to buy the specific software from Volvo.
If this does not work then renew the valve body.

I still need to also find where the engine oil is coming from. My mate at the garage said to check if it coming from the top of the engine and round the back of the block instead of out of the drain hole between the engine and the gearbox - if only it would only stop raining i'd be out looking.

[Bits]

Had a good hour cleaning the engine and looking for oil leaks.
Will get back under after a good run - but suspect it is coming from the cranc bearing.

[Bits]

Well,
4 new tyres,
2 x gearbox oil change,
new front o/s wheel bearing, lower control arm and ball joint,
new right lower engine mount, (this was causing all the problems)
deep, deep clean inside and out, (It was mank)
3rd seat removal,
4k miles later all is well - can't believe the differance. Now steers 95% (still need tracking) gearbox is a lot better so will get the Volvo oil later this year.
looks like both ends of the crane has a minor leak.
Now enjoying it.

[gmonag]

Originally Posted by Bits

new right lower engine mount, (this was causing all the problems)

Where was the oil leak coming from?

[Bashy]

Originally Posted by Bits

2 x gearbox oil change,

gearbox is a lot better so will get the Volvo oil later this year.

This does not fill me with confidence, what did you use then?