Hey Guys, I have a very good Volvo 240 1998 which is in great condition, but I suddenly cant get the engine to start. I have read various recommendations on this forum and found it very helpful. The car has been loosing power suddenly when driving, so have followed instructions on Fuel pumps, relays etc. As i plan to keep this beauty, I thought id change the 2 fuel pumps, relay and even replaced the Ignition control module (Second hand) but still no joy. Ive also disconnected air flow meter too. The problem of a no start happened after I changed the Water pump due to failure of this pump!. When I replaced the water pump a fair bit of water spilt over the alternator. After installing new pump the engine started straight away, but then very suddenly died a few seconds later. I have checked fuses, and sparkplugs which fire up ok. Can anyone of you guys help?? What else could I check?? Could any of the engine sensors cause engine not to start?

 

Before replacing parts you should diagnose what's wrong with the car. It gets very expensive replacing stuff you don't need to.

For an engine to run you need:
Spark (at the correct time)
Compression
Fuel (correct amount at the right time)

You need to determine which one of those is not working rather than randomly replacing stuff.
Not knowing any specifics other than the engine spins over but does not fire -
Simple things - Is there a spark at the coil wire, and at a spark plug?
Does the fuel pump run when you bump the key?
What's the fuel pressure?
What's the compression, is the timing belt still attached and timed correctly?
25 amp fuse under the hood for the fuel injection (if you have one) what does it look like?

What type of ignition system do you have - if you have one of these - the connections where the pins are soldered to the circuit board crack - and prevent the ignition control unit from working - you can see the cracks with a magnifying glass (through the rubber coating) after you carefully remove the circuit board. I'm certain you wiggled that wiring during the water pump replacement. Volvo made sleeves that fit on the pins in the connector - to make a better connection - make sure those sleeves are there. What does it look like in the distributor cap? Rotor button resistor not exploded? The wiring to the distributor pickup (depending on the type you have) shorts out sometimes, or the pickup itself goes bad. For most of those there is a simple test ( you only need a paperclip)

 

Very helpful. I have checked most of these things, but jst trying to figure out a simple way of connecting my fuel pressure kit to the fuel line, as there is no connection on the 240 (cant see one anyway) I do have spark to coil and spark plugs, fuel pump runs and timing belt attached. The 25 amp fuse is battery is OK. I do have the Ignition control module as shown in your picture. Can you mend pins if they are cracked?

And I agree, its better to continue with fault finding, rather than replace just the parts!

 

You have to use a t fitting where the flexible fuel line attaches to the fuel rail -

 

I have managed to attach it after the fuel pressure regulator on the return pipe. I only get a reading of 1.5 psi. Fuel gushes out. I have renewed both pumps and inline filter. Could I be having trouble with the FPR....

 

Sorry, you are not measuring fuel pressure - that's tested Before the regulator. You are just observing the FPR doing what it is supposed to do - release excess pressure back to the tank. I guess you could clamp the return hose after your gauge and see what the pressure goes up to - but that's still not testing the fuel pressure, just what the pumps are capable of.

The original questions:
Do you have compression?
Do you have spark at a spark plug?
Do you have fuel? Are the injectors pulsing? ($5 noid light, or listen to click with stethoscope)
Are the plugs wet with fuel?

If you think your FPR is releasing too much fuel back to the tank and that's what is keeping the car from starting (they don't fail that way) - clamp the return hose off most or all of the way - that will raise the fuel pressure (to over 100 psi if the fuel pump are working normally)

That still won't help if you don't have compression or spark or fuel injectors spraying.

OK - this happened after you replaced the water pump - was the wiring the goes to the ignition control unit disturbed/moved/touched during the water pump replacement?

Or - have you tried to start the car using starting fluid? If it tries to run with a squirt of ether - then the ignition system is working and the fuel system is not.

 

I am having the same issue. There is power to the ECU, "Brain" and Coil (on both sides) but no spark. There is no power to the distributor in ignition position one either. I realigned all of the timing marks again today and it seemed as though TDC was achieved. However, a Volvo guy informed me that there is Exhaust TDC and another TDC which escapes me. But still, no spark and fuel. I am baffled to say the least.

 

You can take the distributor cap off - there is a notch that the rotor button lines up with for #1 tdc. If you line up the crank mark, the cam mark and the dot on the jackshaft gear to backing plate/distributor rotor-and north on top of the distributor housing- that will have the cam and distributor timed to the crank.

I don't have ideas without seeing the ignition system to remember how to test stuff - it's been a while. There is a simple way to test the distributor pickup on some cars - using a paperclip - unplug the distributor, and use the paperclip to ground two of the three wires together momentarily - that simulates the distributor pickup signal and will create a spark from the coil (on some cars, as I said It's been just a few decades) Sorry I don't have access to those old wiring diagrams.

What color cap, Chrysler white or bosch brown?