Bought my 245 used 26 years ago and have finally gotten it to a point it can be repaired with nothing but a rock and a screwdriver.
When the fuel metering head failed a couple hundred thousand miles ago I replaced it with a Marvel downdraft carberator from a farm tractor. Picked up an additional 2 miles to the gallon and moved closer to a true minimalist machine.
With 570,000 miles and a drivers seat that has collapsed exactly to the shape of my butt, it's my favorite daily driver.
Can't say enough good about the 240 series!

 

LOL!!!! Did you know that these Volvo models are nicknamed as TRACTORS in Sweden because they are so slow on the roads and very durable just like tractors? Cant believe you have driven 570000 miles in 26 years!! Congratulations!!

 

That's very cool.

 

what did you do about the fuel pump? the pump on a K-Jet (you said 'fuel metering head, so I'm assuming this is what you have) is like 65 PSI or something.

 

Proper fuel pressure was attained by using the return line to the tank and t-ing off that and dropping the pressure to about 8 pounds. The pump runs constantly. I bought the lifetime guaranteed one from Auto zone and it appears to last about 4 years before having to take it back for a new one. They've never complained and just hand me a new one. The fact that I look like I belong in an assylum helps greatly "He looks crazy, just give him the pump and get him out of here". I've considered this my motto in life, that a little crazy goes a long ways.

 

you probably could remove the 'main' pump, connect its input to its output with a bypass tubing, and just run on the 'transfer' pump that's in the gas tank, as this is quite low pressure.

you probably should remove your catalytic converter too and replace it with a straight pipe, as the carb probably runs a little rich over a good part of the driving range (throttle vs RPMs) and will likely foul the cat eventually.

of course, if you lived in an area with emissions testing, this car wouldn't pass on a bet.

 

Actually, as long as I've had the car the convertor has been missing. I've got the carburator leaned out as far as I can and on long hills and take offs from the light I actually have to engage the choke ever so slightly or it'll feel like it's running out of gas. On the hi-way with the choke all the way in it runs very lean. If I had to compare this to something, it would be a Cessna 152 where you continuosly manually adjust mixture for performance and economy. Something you'll notice in the picture is a tube wrapped around the manifold tee'd off the heater hoses. Like small aircraft, this carb setup is prone to carb ice and required a manifold heater to properly atomize the gas.
You're probably right about using the pre-pump, but I'm not sure it could do the job and supply the volume over extended periods of time? Maybe though?

 

the prepump supplies the volume that the main FI pump pressurizes, so I don't think there would be any issues there.

 

Well, then a good science project will be, when the external pump go out again I'll re-plumb and give it a shot.

Funny, the reason I got on this site was to ask some questions about a XC70 that is up for sale here that the owner believes needs a transfer case. He's yet to respond to my letter asking for the symptoms it displays (people by nature seem to be fatalists). From what I've read so far there appears to be some issues with these units (2000 model year)...but even if I needed to replace the transfer case, it still would be a good inexpensive driver for my wife.
Any thoughts? You seem to be a Volvo Guru with a good deal of knowlege.
Let me know....
Ken

 

I've heard those AWD systems are a pain in the a$$ but have zero experience.

owned a 850 turbo wagon for a couple years (my son still has it). fast, but rough ride on the bad roads we have around here, and it really didn't handle as well as the stiff ride would have made you expect. the 850 'whiteblock' motor is expensive to maintain and repair. I replaced it with a 1992 740 T wagon, and am MUCH happier.

 

I'll go to another posting about the xc70 question. I'm just so not into technology and wish my wife would drive a 240 series. There's a ton of them left around here for cheap money...best of all, no rust!