44
votes
Spark plug broke off in engine - can I drive the car?
That sounds very risky to me. The portions of the plugs that reside in the combustion chamber are designed to tolerate the heat and pressure there. I don't think they will melt.
So what will happen ...
- 14.4k
33
votes
Spark plug broke off in engine - can I drive the car?
Do NOT drive a car with a piece of sparkplug inside the engine. It can (and likely will) lead to serious damage (up to a catastrophic engine failure). Get your car towed to a service and have the ...
- 581
24
votes
Spark plug broke off in engine - can I drive the car?
That's a nice car - don't be a consumer and break it because you're too lazy to fix it properly.
Sadly the "proper" fix is to tow it to your mechanic, who will take the head off and fish out the ...
- 2,838
18
votes
Spark plug broke off in engine - can I drive the car?
If this happened during a plug change
If you have roadside assistance/towing, I would highly recommend getting it towed home, then purchase a cheap USB inspection camera or a inspection unit like this ...
- 291
14
votes
Accepted
Volvo engine parts
What you have circled are the connectors for the fuel injectors (and obviously the fuel injectors are underneath of them). They have seals which protect from moisture, dirt, and debris, so in most ...
- 153k
10
votes
Accepted
Bump on the floor in the back of sedans
The hump provides longitudinal rigidity in the unibody. The fact that it also provides a place to route the exhaust is a bonus.
Notice that modern CAD-designed vehicles have much less of an obvious ...
- 1,723
10
votes
Accepted
Hood Unlatches but Won't Pop Up
I would guess that there is an issue with the spring on your latch.
Most hood latches follow the same basic design. As you push the hood closed, a bar on the hood pushes into a hook in the latch, and ...
- 3,012
9
votes
Spark plug broke off in engine - can I drive the car?
No question - running the engine will break it.
If you're "unlucky", there's enough clearance between the piston and the valves to fit the spark plug. In that case you'll have the spark plug ...
- 1,509
8
votes
Bump on the floor in the back of sedans
Anyone can feel free to disagree with me since I'm not 100% on this, but I believe those bumps are placed into the design in order to give the exhaust system a little more breathing room.
Note the ...
- 1,958
8
votes
Bump on the floor in the back of sedans
I don't think the hump is there just for the exhaust, although as was pointed out in the comment it adds ground clearance which is a nice thing. The "transmission hump" (in honor of rear wheel drive ...
- 14.4k
8
votes
Accepted
Will never charging the batteries of a hybrid electric plug-in vehicle damage it?
No, it won't get damaged. But you also shouldn't let the battery totally empty for long periods. Li-ion batteries are best stored with some charge (normally about 40% is recommended charge level for ...
- 1,188
6
votes
Accepted
What steps can I take to keep my car (V70, driven primarily for short commuting) in good condition?
Regular service and fixing what's broken will keep just about any car running for a long time. The main difference with driving short distances, is that your engine spends more time at less than ...
- 8,443
6
votes
Will never charging the batteries of a hybrid electric plug-in vehicle damage it?
The car will charge its battery while driving, e.g. when you brake. This allows the electric motor to augment the diesel engine, reducing overall fuel usage. The result is that the charge state of the ...
- 4,422
6
votes
How to release fuel injectors from Volvo T5 engine?
The trick is not to pull on the spring clip but rather to depress it by pushing it into the fuel injector in order to clear the locking tabs which then permit the fuel injector to be pulled out of the ...
- 1,768
6
votes
Accepted
Where is the XC90 V8 2007 battery terminal?
The battery in this vehicle is hidden and is not located under the hood. It is under a deck cover inside the rear of the vehicle.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTjenuS3l-w
The above YouTube video ...
- 4,455
5
votes
Can a vehicle be harmed with bad inputs via an OBD-2 port?
Just this morning I connected an ELM327 to a '05 Volvo XC90. After only 1km, the message was displayed for "Anti-skid service required", and then "Anti-skid temporarily unavailable". I removed the ELM,...
- 51
5
votes
Anyone have experience with a faulty fuel press? Regulator?
Nice engine you got there! While your issues do sound like a MAF problem (check the MAF readings via OBD!), some turbocharged Volvos are notorious for fuel pressure regulator issues. Basically the ...
5
votes
Accepted
Volvo V60 key needs new battery, will it 'forget' the car?
In most cars it's not the key remembering the car, but the car remembering the key. Your Volvo should be no different. Reading through your owners manual, it gives no warnings about taking this to the ...
- 153k
5
votes
Driving without oxygen sensor
Which sensor was removed? Pre- or post-cat? If pre-cat, it could be causing the engine to run differently. If post-cat, it's just noise and your engine shouldn't be running any differently ... it just ...
- 153k
5
votes
Accepted
Volvo XC90 8V AWD car speed to piston revolution speed ratio changed after repair
Yes, I'd take it back to the shop to see if there is something they missed. While 300 rpm at 60mph is not a huge difference, to me this is about the difference of when a lock up torque converter isn't ...
- 153k
5
votes
Aftermarket Exhaust
There is another possibility : in the UK there are companies that will make you a stainless exhaust from scratch - don't have a name to hand, but a friend had his subaru done and it is much better.
...
- 34.6k
5
votes
Accepted
Brake pedal goes to floor "sometimes" only
It's not a stupid question at all! You are right to be concerned, brakes are critical for safety and you need to deal with this before you get in an accident. The ABS light turning on while it was on ...
- 16.2k
5
votes
Accepted
How to do an amateur repair of a tiny ding on my almost new car?
What is the mistake a rank amateur at this is most likely to make?
Honestly.. it's attempting to do it themselves. You mention:
I am an OCD type
I can pretty much guarantee that the result of ...
- 9,989
5
votes
Accepted
Strange look of alloy wheel (molten?!)
From here it looks like bubbling paint caused by corrosion under the paint.
If you press one of the bubbles with a finger nail, does it "give"? Does water come out?
- 5,510
4
votes
Cheap tyres on rear of car?
Putting your best tires up front is the exact opposite of what every tire shop I've ever been to in the US will do.
You should not put your best tires in the front unless you never drive in adverse ...
- 141
4
votes
Cheap tyres on rear of car?
One of my tires will need replacing soon as well as it is almost at the legal limit. I have a good amount of tread left on my front two tires. I am going to replace all four tires as soon as the worst ...
- 7,927
4
votes
volvo ignition key
If you are looking for a method by which you can diagnose the problem to confirm your suspicions that one of your keys has failed I can suggest the following.
In close proximity to the ignition ...
- 23.5k
4
votes
Spark plug broke off in engine - can I drive the car?
I've seen this before on a Zetec Ford Focus Estate. The noise of the engine running with a missing plug made it sound like a lawn mower. Whilst the car could theoretically have been driven a very ...
- 23.5k
4
votes
Spark plug broke off in engine - can I drive the car?
Many people are not reading the question. This plug didn't fail on the compression stroke, it failed when the user broke it while trying to remove it. I'm not sure what "fell through the valve, after ...
- 181
4
votes
Where to get dashboard screws for Volvo XC90?
Could it be that you need some plastic fasteners there? There are some photos from another volvo below. Perhaps you can tell if the holes have some threads or not if you look into them with flashlight....
- 1,188
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