Hello, I am a beginner at diagnostics of my 1993 Volvo 240.

Previous to my current issue, my 1993 Volvo 240 would not start unless I cleaned and used Deoxit on the connection between the MAF and the wiring harness to the MAF. It lasted a few weeks until it didn’t start again. I had knee surgery and the car sat but was started and ran ad idle for 5 minutes twice a week for two months. I’m back on my feet but not fully recovered so to do work myself. Anyway, there were two codes: one for the faulty MAF and the second was the MAF wire burn off fail, or 3-2-2. I replaced the MAF with what I now suspect was a bad choice on a new Volvo MAF. Upon installation and disconnecting the battery and resetting the codes, the new problem presented and one code remained; 3-2-2.

Recently, the car has been stalling only on cold starts after a heaving/chugging idle unless I keep the gas pedal depressed but I know it’s not a solution, but maybe an important detail to include?

Ever since replacing the mass airflow it’s been doing the stalling on cold starts and the 3-2-2 code persists. I don’t know what this particular code means despite the hot wire isn’t burning properly. I’m not sure what the cause of the code, “wiring break between FI terminal 8 and AMM #4” means as far as what I should do or ask my mechanic to do? My mechanic gave me the car back the other day after replacing some vacuum hoses that were damaged and told me the car was fine whenever he started it but told me to let him know how it runs over the weekend and today I went out to start it and it’s 20° cooler than it was yesterday and it did the same: crank, start, heave/chug, stall. Second time starting it it stayed on without needing the gas pedal depressed. My dad and I cleaned the connections to the MAF and thought that might have been the issue but no change. I’m going to wait until tomorrow to record the issue on camera so my mechanic is aware of what it does. After the first rough start and stall I can get it to run and for the rest of the day it runs fine and starts with no issues so it’s frustrating to have to wait until the next day to start it in order to observe the problem. It’s perplexing because I have taken it on multiple “test rides” through traffic and on highways and no problems, everything sounded normal.

I’m well aware I’m not adept at mechanics but I’m home resting after a recent medical procedure and have been researching this all day. It’s been like this for about a month. Any advice is appreciated. Can I drive it without harming it further in an emergency or would driving it at all cause further detriment?

I would like to go find an old mass airflow at a junkyard and put that back in because the problem only started after putting the new mass airflow sensor in so a part of me feels like maybe I got a faulty one? I have been reading around and a lot of people say that the new ones aren’t good. I spent almost $300 on a new one and it’s frustrating that it’s not working.

 

Question, once it starts and runs fine and you shut it off, how long before you try to restart it? Reason I ask is if the only time it sits for an extended period of time is overnight, it might be your fuel pressure check valve by the main fuel pump is faulty, and allowing the fuel system to lose pressure and drain back Granted if both pumps are working properly (the in tank and the main pump) this should not be happening.

My suggestion is check the fuel pumps to see if they are functioning, and consider replacing the fuel pressure check valve. I tend to think if the new MAF was the problem it would run bad all the time, not just on a cold start, however the hot wire issue needs to be addressed. Just my .02 so take it for what it is worth........

 

Yesterday after it died I started it again and it stayed on but I didn't take it anywhere. Typically if I "make it work" by depressing the gas pedal and take it out for my appointments, it can sit anywhere between 15 minutes and three hours. No performance issues taking it on the highway, stoplights, coasting, hills, etc. I did have the in line fuel pump changed two years ago as well as the fuel pump relay, but not the in tank fuel pump. I will add the "fuel pressure check valve" to my list for the mechanic when I give up trying the easier options first (I am rather limited from surgery in what I can do and I only trust my mechanic to do any work on the fuel system).

This may be a stupid question, but is the MAF wire burn off signal a component in the MAF or in the wiring harness that clips to it? I have decided to purchase a rebuilt BOSCH MAF to rule out the MAF since this only happened after replacing the MAF before moving down the list.

I have spoken to some people on the Volvo 240 subreddit and one person told me that the new MAFs aren't built with the platinum and can affect the efficacy of the MAF on some cars.

I also reached out to a YouTuber Involvo'd who suggested the temperature sensor (the one for the ECU that's under cylinder 3 part of the inlet manifold" could be the fault and that it's a common reasons for cold start issues.

Everything on my list of could be's after ruling out the possibility of a bad MAF:

1. Wiring to the MAF
2. Coolant temp sensor
3. Cold start injector/valve
4. Idle air control valve
5. In-tank fuel pump (the one that wasn't changed previously)
6. O2 sensor

There are no other codes so this is the best I have come up with in a day's research. I know there'd be corresponding codes for some of these which is why they are down the list.

I appreciate your input.

 

check out volvotips.com - there's an online shop manual there with some trouble shooting guides.

 

After I first posted I considered mentioning the coolant temperature sensor. I've had 2 go bad on an 850 and an S70. The way the failed they sent basically a "engine warm" signal to the ECU causing the fuel mixture to be too lean for a decent cold start. The way I was able to determine it was a bad sensor was that at the first start of the day, the temperature gauge needle was at mid scale as soon as I turned on the ignition. In both of my cases though, it took several starts until the engine actually warmed up enough to run properly.

Here is a crazy question......have you tried starting it with the MAF disconnected? I have heard of several people with MAF issues doing that and it improved the issue until they could replace the bad MAF. Anyway, it is just a thought.

 

you can test the ECT with a VOM. you can google for a temperature to resistance chart but the general idea is the colder the engine is, the higher the resistance. I'd expect something in the 3K ohm range for a cold engine and 200-300 ohms for a warm engine.

 

So we bought the Bosch re-manufactured MAF and I noticed it looked quite different than the “Genuine Volvo” one and since installation it’s been back to normal. Lesson learned. Expensive lesson. My parents told me to sell the “Genuine Volvo” one on eBay or something but I don’t feel comfortable with that knowing it lacked the platinum hot wire necessary for my car to operate. Company won’t acknowledge it doesn’t work in my car so I’m stuck with the expensive lesson. Never buy “new Genuine Volvo” cause that doesn’t exist anymore. Haha.