So, I've been trolling this and other forums about the situation I find myself in. I just purchased this 88 240 DL wagon 5 speed a month ago. it was stalling intermittenly but after cleaning the wires around the battery posts and the coil it seemed to start and stay running fairly well. It stalled out on me one night in the rain but started right up again. then it stalled the next day. I sprayed some starter fluid in the throttle body and it started right up and I drove it home. I drove it to work the next day 35 miles RT with no issues, in fact it drove awesome on highway at 75 mph with a big grin on my face knowing that I got a great deal on the purchase price and I love the car until it stalled out 3 times at the tail end of my commute. started right up with starting fluid. I borrowed a car to finish out my commute this week and spent today tearing it a part. this is what I've done plus what's been done by previous buyer. new in tank fuel pump, new fuel filter, fuel pump relay, fuel pressure regulator. the middle pump under the car looks old and I haven't replaced that one yet. apart from other misc. repairs I'm not sure what else to do. when the car is running I can hear the in tank pump hum but it won't make any noise if I turn the key to the one position. I'm about to run out of repair funds and patience. I bought the car at auction so I don't know the previous owner to ask what else that they did but the car was well taken care of and they spent good money on it before they donated it to our local charity that helps with disabled kids. there seems to be plenty of pressure but I can't figure it out without more knowledge and better tools. any ideas? Should I drop it off at our local volvo garage? it's gotten to be a pain to spend my weekends under the hood when I have kids and a wife and other projects that need my time. please point me in the right direction. thanks

 

vaporlock is nonexistant with fuel injection.

sounds like it could be the main fuel pump and/or the fuel pump relay, but would take some testing and diagnosis to determine that.

why were all those parts replaced? were they tested bad, or were people just throwing money at it hoping to fix things?

 

Hello Pierce, thanks for your response. the parts that I mentioned to you, in tank fuel pump, fuel filter, fuel pressure regulator, fuel pump relay were all installed by previous owner. I think i will buy the exterior pump that's under the drivers side of the car near the filter as it looks original and I will also check for continuity at the fuse panel. Since I don't know the previous owner I can only assume why they replaced those items but the notes that were left on the car for the auction had listed "vapor Lock". The car was well taken care of too. I feel like i have good pressure at the fuel rail but without the right tools i'm only guessing, which translates to buying parts without knowing if that's the problem. Hopefully, i've given you enough info that you will be able to point me in the right direction, even if that's to the volvo garage.

 

well, when the car is running, its got good fuel pressure or it wouldnt run well at all. but sometimes it stalls or won't start, which could very well be due to the fuel pump freezing up. my daughter's car did this, the pump wouldn't start when it was hot, but once it did start, it ran fine. my daughters car was really hard to diagnose til finally one day it wouldn't start at all, hot or cold, so we had to tow it, and then I could diagnose it. a volt meter confirmed the fuel pump was being powered when the car was being cranked over, but the main pump simply wasn't spinning til we gave it a hard knock with a hammer. when we pulled it, it was completely full of flug, as was the fuel filter. ah HAH! that was it, new pump, new filter, all good.

but every car is different.

the fact that yours starts with some ether (starter fluid) does seem to say fuel pump to me... when it starts from the ether, the vibration is sufficient to get the old worn out fuel pump to turn over, then it keeps going once its going.

 

hey Pierce,
well I think we are on the same page with our thoughts. I was under the car and had not heard the ext. pump working so I hit it a few times with the hammer and later that night I sat in the car and I could hear both pumps humming nicely. I drove around the block and came home and as I was slowing in my drive it stalled on me again. sprayed some ether and it started up and I parked it. I let it idle for 15mins. with no issue so I took it to work today which is about 15 miles and at each stoplight and stop sign my heart froze waiting for it to stall. I decided to keep the engine revving at each stop which allowed me to make it to work without it stalling but still stressful. whether or not it's fixed I'm not sure. I will return the cheap generic fuel pump from auto zone and will go to my import place and get a good fuel pump and replace that exterior pump and filter and hopefully I will be in good shape. I will post back once that's been done or if I end up stalling a bunch of times on my way home tonight but I think I know what to do. thanks for your input.

 

FWIW, the /real/ Volvo fuel pump PN 9142044 or 1389449 for your car is $246 at tascaparts.com ...

1988 VOLVO 244 Parts - TascaParts.com

the Bosch OEM replacement pump is $109 at fcpeuro,
http://www.fcpeuro.com/products/volv...ain-0580464068

these are /probably/ the same part.. FCP llikely would ship faster.

 

ugh.. stalled out twice on way home and it was not a good night to be working under the car in the dark. I will order the new pump tonight and hope I make it back and forth to work while I wait for the new one to arrive.

 

Oh, I forgot to ask why it is that my 88 240 DL shows up as a 244 when I go to order parts for this car. Are they both interchangeable?

 

244 is a 4 door 240 (sedan). 245 is a wagon (5 door). all same thing. that same pump fits ALL the b230f non-turbo bosch LH injected cars, 240, 740, 940.

turbos get a pump with higher capacity. regina injection uses a in-tank pump only.

 

Well, 3 days with no stalling. New exterior fuel pump humming nicely. Drives really well...........I stalled again. Go figure. Sprayed ether in and it started up nicely and continued on my way home. although with a pit in my stomach each stop light. I find that it I keep the engine revving while at light or stopped it wont' stall but could be unrelated. I'm not sure what else to check or replace anymore. I guess I need to buy a fuel pressure gauge for when it does stall out to check for PSI while stranded. I don't know if that will make a difference because if I dont' spray ether the car will start after just a few mins. waiting. Any other ideas?

 

when its not starting, turn the key off, then on and see if you hear the fuel pump humming for a second (windows down). if not, I'd be verifying that the fuel pumps are getting power... maybe cliplead a 12V test light to the fuse that supplies power to the in-tank pump (I forget the fuse number and don't feel like looking it up), and the other end of this test light to ground. when you turn the key on without cranking, that light should come on a second then go out. when you crank it should come on again, and stop a second after you stop cranking unless the car starts, then it should stay on steady.

 

looks like with the storm coming I won't have a dry day to test but once I do I will check and post back.

 

Thanks for getting me thus far. It turned out that the external pump was the problem. I still don't hear either one come on with the key in the "on" position, so I will crawl under and have my son turn the key to see if I can hear it. Other than that as long as I keep the engine revving a little bit higher than it's idle it hasn't stalled out in over a week. I will adjust that this weekend and I hope to be good. Thanks again Pierce.

 

I read through this entire thread and was surprised that there was no mention of checking the fuel pump relay. All of your symptoms are very common to a failing fuel pump relay. The fuel pump relay is behind the glove box and can be accessed by removing the felt panel under the dash.

If you have any more stalling issues, I would check this. There is a small circuit board within the relay where the solder joints get cracks over time. If you have a soldering iron you can re-flow the solder joints to solve this problem. I usually replace it and keep the old re-soldered one as a backup

 

I had already replaced the relay. Fuel pressure regulator too. In tank fuel pump too. In the end it was the exterior fuel pump. Hasn't stalled in a week and crossing g fingers it won't ever more.