2010 C30 needs replacement engine, which engine should I get

[aimeecakes01]

Hey guys, I'm new to this but needing some advice. I own a 2010 C30 1.6 diesel.

I bought it little over 6 months ago and was in fact blinded by its beauty and didn't realise how many issues I was buying it with. Absolute rookie error I know.

So after white smoke pouring out the back of the engine and the poor baby spending two weeks at a Volvo specialist it's come to light that I need a new engine.

Unfortunately I spent a lot on the car and plenty since trying to fix a problem that turns out cannot be fixed. I don't have a lot of spare change left!

I've heard through the grapevine that a ford psa engine is the same as mine and that with a little tweaking, it should go straight in. This is the cheaper option for me but I've had no clear guidance on whether it will actually work.

Does any one have any idea whether it would and how much work it would take to do it?

Thanks ☺️

[Bloders2]

interested to know what is wrong with the engine in it.
But i can confirm that the psa engine will fit straight in - it will involve swapping some parts, but the actual engine itself will fit no bother.
just make sure you get the correct one, i think yours is 16 valve though not sure. Its easy to tell from the EGR layout on them.
good luck

[Sasha94]

I'm guessing it's a 5 speed box so it'd be a 16 valve engine. The code is DV6TED4, DLD416 or W16 depending on what car you get it out of. These engines are used in Suzuki's, Mazda's, Ford's, Citroen's, Peugeot's, BMW MINI's and Volvo's so there plenty to choose from

[aimeecakes01]

Originally Posted by Bloders2

interested to know what is wrong with the engine in it.
But i can confirm that the psa engine will fit straight in - it will involve swapping some parts, but the actual engine itself will fit no bother.
just make sure you get the correct one, i think yours is 16 valve though not sure. Its easy to tell from the EGR layout on them.
good luck

Thanks for the response. I like that answer! With regards to the engine I'm not sure what's wrong with it. So we took it to one garage and was told the dpf was causing the white smoke so we had it removed. It didn't help at all and we also now have the engine management light on for dpf fluid. The Volvo specialist tested the head gasket and said it definitely wasn't that so I then paid to have the turbo taken out and stripped only to find its not that either so they've said there's probably oil leaking into the engine somewhere and the best thing to do it replace it 🤷🏾*♀️
By any chance do you happen to know what parts I'd have to swap from this engine to the psa?

Thanks

[Sasha94]

So is it burning oil? Is the oil level dropping? If so, someone should know where it's going. Taking the DPF out will never fix anything, only add to your problems unless the ecu is coded to be told the DPF and fluid tank has been removed and new engine map written. Turbo damage is usually black smoke anyway, not white. If it were a dodgy DPF you'd smell it as the smell is unmistakable. Was the car ever hooked up to Volvo diagnostics? You can force regen the DPF and see soot loads and fluid levels in the program as well as all the fault codes. Also worth noting removing the DPF is illegal and the car will very soon fail its MoT as we move away from simple visual inspections of the DPF so unless you know a tame MoT tester you may want to put the DPF back anyway.

Does the car drive OK or is it down on power? Is the fuel consumption really bad? Is the oil level rising? If the MPG is crap and the oil level is rising the DPF system could be trying to do a regen, failing, and dumping the diesel into the sump (not uncommon on these engines).

There's a lot more to test before condemning the engine IMO. The easiest way to do things really is to get a short engine, so just a block and a head and transfer all the old ancillaries (turbo, manifolds, EGR, coolant system pipes, ECU etc) from the old engine after testing them to ensure they work. The safest way is to have a complete donor car that you know runs and go from there. Whatever happens, should you swap the engine over, ensure you have a new cambelt fitted at this stage and have the cam chain inspected at this point to ensure it hasn't stretched which will cause problems down the line.

[aimeecakes01]

In all fairness this is where I have to trust what people are saying to me because although I have a small amount of knowledge about cars it's not enough to know whether what they're suggesting stands.
It's confusing because other than the smoke it drives really well. There's no loss of power and it's not burning oil and ive not had to top it up since it's last mini service.
The dpf issues has riled me if I'm honest. I was assured it would fix all my problems when in actual fact they've probably caused me another one. The white smoke is intermittent. It's not happening the minute the engine turns on but I also couldn't tell you when it decides to happen. It's not once the engine has been running for so long or if I reach a certain speed of rpm. It's so odd. Diagnostics have been hooked up but the only thing showing is the dpf fluid being empty.
If I can help it I'd rather not replace the engine so long as it doesn't cost me the same amount in trying to resolve the problem! I'm at a loss

[Sasha94]

So the only fault showing is the low fluid in the DPF? What's the mileage on the car? The fluid needs filling at 37.5k miles and the DPF should be changed at 75k. Most live longer than that but if the cars done constant short journeys it can shorten its lifespan. If it's been on a scanner what codes are coming up? Has it been scanned on VIDA or just a generic scan tool? Only VIDA is really up to the job of reading all the marque specific fault codes.

An engine that is running well, with no power loss, no fluid loss and only intermittent smoke issues doesn't sound like a terminally ill engine to me.

What's the situation with the DPF right now? Has it been gutted or does the car have a DPF?