After being stored in my garage for several months my volvo would not start. had triple AAA. They changed the battery. Still no luck so had car towed to gas station. They called and said it needed a new fuel pump. They replaced it and it still would not work so they said it needed the other fuel pump replaced. they did the work. I drove the car a total of 25 miles over the next couple of days and then it started to decellerate to 20 miles an hour. I let the car rest and then would drive again and after a few miles same issue. I did not have great confidence in the garage that did the work so i looked for a volvo specialist. had the car towed there and after trying to figure out the issue for a week they said they discovered the first place had put the wrong pump in. They replaced it and then said that having the wrong pump in may have impacted the other new pump since there was still an issue (or it was defective from the get go). I worked out with the first station to refund me my money as long as brought them the parts and the paid receipt from the vovlo specialists so I thought things will be ok. Today I picked up the car from the volvo specialists with its new pumps. I drove 4 miles and as a started up a hill the exact same issue happened - loss of acceleration and also I noticed it was backfiring. would not go over 20-25. I am bringing it back in tomorrow. Any ideas. Thank you in advance.

 

have you put fresh gas in the car since it was stored? modern pump gas with ethanol doesn't age at ALL well, even a few months in storage can cause all kinda problems

 

Thanks for your quick reply. I actually realize that I said it was an 1984 - its a 1985 if that matters. As for the gas. It was stored with about a 1/4 tank. Since it was towed we did not put new gas in until right after we picked it up from the first place. I noticed when I picked it up today from the second place that the tank was empty. I know they took it for several test drives to see if they could find the problem. In the beginning they were having an issue trying to create the failure that I had. I filled the tank up today 500 ft from the repair shop so it did have a full tank when I left there and had the problem a few miles later. I feel so depressed. I have spent over $1000 and am right back where I started two weeks ago. Any ideas would help.
Thank you

 

well, the volvo shop probably SHOUDL have put a new filter in when they changed the main fuel pump, ditto a new 'sock' when they changed the tank pump.

at this point, its time for some diagnostics and I'm not sure where I'd start. the fact thats its failing up a hill and seems to have good power on the level certainly sounds like it could be a fuel pump problem to me, but it could be lots of other things, including bad wiring (mid 80s 240's were notorious for biodegradable engine wiring harnesses), bad/flakey fuel pressure regulator (does this car have KE-Jetronic or LH-Jetronic fuel injection? KE is 'mechanical' or CIS injection, while LH is electronic injection).

 

Based on my experience, and the fact that the cost of troubleshooting when done at a shop can add up quickly, I would definitely do research and ask questions before you allow them to throw parts on your vehicle. While I know just slightly more than a little about automobiles, I know that almost anyone is capable of doing simple things to troubleshoot their vehicle themselves. At least take some basic steps to try to figure out what the problem is, or at least attempt to rule out what it is not, that way the shop is not wasting your time and money. I just went through a week of headaches attempting to figure out why my 85 245 would not start. Basic troubleshooting did not result in the determination of the problem, but I was at least able to realize that the problem was out of my reach and I did not spend a dollar getting to that point. In the end, I made the wise choice to let a thirty-year old car go, rather then throw possibly more money at it then what the car was even worth.

 

never give up on a car you love..esp.a volvo this car has two pumps one inthe tank and another under the drivers side rocker panel