Hey guys long time no see,

A few weeks ago my vehicle started to have issues when I try to get it going. The electrical is fine and once the vehicle is going there are no issues, on the highway or otherwise. There is no stuttering, stalling, etc. I have a feeling it's the starter, but as I'm not a mechanic any word of advice would help. The vehicle has 133k on her, but she's hanging in there!

To be more specific, when I turn to key to ignition the engine starts to crank and attempt to start but it quickly just makes a stalling-esque noise and then refuses to keep firing as I hold the key to the right. i.e. It dies. It takes about 10 tries at this before she starts up and I give her a little gas to get her going which seems to marginally help. I hope this is clear enough. Please ask questions if I haven't been specific enough.

Thanks, from an avid DIYer.

 

133k is low miles...
The first thing I'd do, is look at the battery... make sure it is charged, holding a charge, etc.
Is the problem with Cold engine or with Hot engine or does it matter?

 

The battery still runs my CD player and 400w amp when the vehicle isn't running so I wouldn't think it would be the battery. How would I actually go about testing the strength of the battery's charge? I wouldn't use a multimeter, would I? At what amperage(?) should I replace the battery?

In terms of temperature, I live in Maine and this past winter, during some storms, she had difficulty starting up, but it wasn't the same as this current issue. It wasn't anything a bottle of ISO-Heet couldn't take care of. Recently the weather up here hasn't been particularly hot, mild I'd say. High 60's to mid 80's.

 

Sure, with multimeter... -should be over 12 volts sitting, close to 14 charging... Just measure at the posts. And even with those readings, I'd still change the battery before anything else-Volvo are funny that way...
What I meant was, the difference in starting with cold engine, like the first time of the day you start it, versus restarts with a warm engine.

 

It seems to have trouble starting after it's been run. For example, it has no trouble starting up in the morning before work but tends to have this issue when I'm leaving work to go home. The voltage tests run fine. DC 12.78 cold and 13.86 running.

I think it's worth noting that I changed the battery about one year ago. I'd hate to throw away 60-80 dollars just to find out it didn't help. If I could return it, that'd be great but I don't think auto places allow parts to be returned. What do you think? Any suggestions are welcome, thanks.

 

Battery is fine... Look at the fuel pressure regulator and associated hoses, and/or the idle control valve.