Hello,
I recently came into ownership of an 1979 242 DL that has been parked since 2014(ish) and am in the process of trying to restore it to its former glory.

Currently there is no spark or fuel, and I'm trying to tackle the fuel issue first. I replaced the in tank and in line pumps, as well as the relay, fuses and battery.
When jumping from fuse 7 to fuse 5, I can get the pumps to turn on (fuel filter disconnected, fuel comes out the hose), so I figured it must be the relay, yet replacing doesn't seem to have fixed the issue.
I've tried using a multimeter on the fusebox, and am getting a very low reading across fuse 5 from pos to neg, I've cleaned up the contacts in the fusebox well enough that I doubt its an issue with the contact itself.
Does anyone have any ideas as to what I'm missing here? I can't figure out where the power is being dropped before getting to fuse 5.

Thank you for your help, this was my dad's favorite car, and my Great-Aunt before that, I just want to get it back on the road.



Condition I picked it up in


New Relay

 

So sorry - A CIS (injection) car that has been parked for 10 years - You may have real problems getting the fuel injection system to work properly. Keep us up to date with things you need help with. If you can get fuel pressure and spark - we can help - but having done that for several customers - it may not be an easy or inexpensive process. (or actually worth it on a 1979 Volvo 240, sorry) (by the way - there is a reason why the car was parked - do you know what that was?) (over the years there have been quite a few that have dreamed of reviving an old 1974-1981 CIS car that has sat for XX years - unfortunately it seems that after a few posts and suggestions - they are not heard from again. Meaning to me - they give up)

It is fixable (but could be very expensive) Keep in touch!

 

Thank you for the quick reply, the car was originally parked due to a lack of start issue, my dad assumed it was the fuel pump but then life happened and the problem wasn't fixed.

You seem to be pretty knowledgeable on these cars so I'll definitely keep posting here. Can you think of what would fail between ignition and fuel pump other than the relay or contacts in the fuse box? When I'm home tonight I'll do some extra cleanup on the contacts.

I heed your warning about time and cost, it's worth it to get this car back. My Great-Aunt bought it new and actually passed away in it, then it was passed down two generations and now it's been passed to me. I grew up riding to the mountains to ski in the back of this thing and I hate to see family history abandoned.

Thanks again Hoonk

 

The fuel pump relay turns the fuel pumps on - when there is a spark present - so no fire, no fuel.

That is to make sure the pumps turn off if the engine is not running and the key is left on (for instance after an accident)

A possibility once you find out the CIS fuel system will cost $$$$ to replace/repair and you really want to get it to run - Volvo used carburetors in some markets on that engine (with a compatible intake manifold pictured below of course) - and that engine was also used as marine powerplant with a carb.

For the ignition system - 2 different brands used. Normal with a bosch cap and rotor and "Chrysler". The Chrysler systems use a white distributor cap and rotor and are less reliable. Both have connection problems where the ignition harness plugs into the Ignition control unit. Solder joints crack on the circuit board and create an open circuit. (#28) Or - internal parts in the distributors such as the impulse coil have problems.

 

Holy smokes Hoonk, thank you!
Thanks for giving me a kicking off point, it's got a normal dist cap, I'll start tracing the wires to find where the failed connection is. I really appreciate you taking the time to share your wealth of knowledge with me.

I'll post a new update after I do some experimenting later tonight.

Thanks again friend, when I get the car running, it will be thanks to you