I posted this on another forum, hoping to get more eyeballs.

So I'm having problems with my 1989 240 wagon.

I drove it across the country last summer after replacing the timing belt and muffler, and it did fine. Not a single problem for 5,000 miles. I left it with a friend for the winter in Santa Barbara, and he left the lights on for about 6 months, completely killing the battery. I don't know if this is related to my problems. In April, I put in a new battery, and it runs great. Drive it to Denver with no problems, and leave it with some other friends there.

Now, these friends have driven it on short trips around town a couple of times. Last week, they were driving it again to the store, and it turned off. Apparently, the gas gauge fell to empty, so she thought she'd run out of gas. They filled it up, drove it about another mile, and it died again, and this time they couldn't get it started again, and so it was towed home.

The other night, just to see what would happen, they started it in the garage, and it started up fine, and it idled for a couple of minutes. But as soon as he put the accelerator pedal down (still in park), the car stalled out.

After doing some research, my first thought is it's an electrical problem, perhaps the LH fuse or the fuel pump relay. This is one of the sites I've seen referencing that: Volvo Relays

Anyway, the problem is my friends who have the car are not at all car-inclined, not even to the point of taking out the fuse. And I am unfortunately 2,000 miles away, and when I get to where the car is, I need to drive it. I intend to have it towed to a nearby Volvo dealer, but I want to make sure they don't go trying to replace a bunch of very expensive parts when it's possibly something simple. Anybody have any thoughts? What's weird to me is that it idles fine but then cuts out when the accelerator is pressed.

Thanks for any help!

Edit: Also, if anyone knows a great old Volvo mechanic in Denver, I'd appreciate the reference.

 

That sounds like a MAF sensor to me. Not cheap new...

 

Yea, the Air Mass Meter is on my list. Hoping it's something cheaper.

 

best way to test/eliminate the MAF/AMM as the source of the problems is to swap it with another working car. if the other car then exhibits the symptoms and yours doesn't, ahah! its the MAF, so swap back and start looking for one.

avoid cheaper rebuilds/refurbs, the quality on them is all over the place, mostly not good.

 

How likely is it to be a failure in the fuel pump itself?

 

my experiences with dying fuel pumps to date, they may stop the car from starting, but once its started, they tend to keep working until shut off.

of course, flakey electrics in the fuel pump path could cause intermittent problems, be it the fuel pump relay, or the wiring.

a failing primer pump (the pump inside hte gas tank) will often cause fuel starvation under high throttle at higher RPMs, especially as the gas tank goes below 50% full.

 

So for the AMM, the best I'm finding is the Bosch OE Remanufactured. Are those generally good quality?

Thanks for all the help.

 

Depends on who is doing the rebuilding. In the past I have tried everything from a $50 Chinese unit (didn't even have an CO adjustment screw) to 'cheap' $125 Bosch rebuilds (first was bad out of the box, its replacement went bad after the first few days) Sadly, I haven't been happy with anything less than something in the $300-$400 price range.

I am sure someone here can recommend a vendor (possibly a site sponsor)... personally I 'usually' go with IPD if they have quality units in stock, but at times I have seen them carry some cheap units... So I hesitate to give that my full backing.

When you change the unit, you may want to check your air box thermostat (in the air filter housing). Make sure you are not always sucking warm air through the AMM (it can shorten the life of the unit).

As a side note: I must say that the Chinese AMM "worked" (i.e. the car did run - at least for a few days before I changed it out for a bosch). I couldn't possibly trust it for daily driving, I keep it in my spares box for emergencies.

 

I have had good luck with OEM junk yard ones... But still, may be 50-50 chance. New ones are what, $300-400? Non starter for me, that's what I pay for a whole car...

 

I know what you mean Lev, the last running 240 I bought was $500, parts cars i've paid even less...

IPD's summer sale is on and they have one for $342 ($403 if LH2.4) - (Less $55 core), one year warranty. That is about what I paid for the last one I bought for my wife's car (peace of mind may make up for a lot of that price).

Since they are so easy to swap, might be worth buying 2 junk yard units and keeping one in the car as a spare. Looks like they go for about $50-75 on eBay.

 

I also have an 89 wagon. When my in tank pump failed a few years back,it would start and idle,but when you put it in gear and tried to drive it,the engine would stall.
With the fuel gauge falling to empty,it sounds like it could be a power supply issue with the fuse or relay as you mentioned.
It would be nice if you could have someone get the fault info. from the diagnostic unit before shelling out 3 or 4 hundred on a mass air sensor.

 

You don't need anything to read the codes on LH2.4 cars (1989+ non-turbo ro 1990+ turbo), there's a button and LED on the diag block under teh hood

see Engine and OBD Diagnostic Codes

 

Correct. My explanation was lacking :If someone in Denver could use this simple procedure, and communicate the information back,it would give a better idea of whats going on.

 

Just keep in mind that the OBD1 is far from fool proof, and it may or may not indicate what the issue is...

 

indeed, OBD1 mostly concerns itself with smog related problems.

 

Thanks to everybody that chimed in. Just thought I'd post an update.

Turned out the problem was the alternator voltage regulator. Replaced that, drove 1600 miles with zero problems. A lot cheaper than the AMM.

 

I pick them up in the junkyard as well. I found one that still had a dealer parts number sticker on it. Got it for $35. The junkyard I go to will allow me to return it - but not for cash - strictly exchange for another. I always install it right in the parking lot and test it right away.