Hi all,
I just joined the forums and I have a question about my 1989 Volvo 240 DL. My car had been overheating quite often while driving last winter and had to be taken off the road while I troubleshot the problem. Initially I thought I had a blown head gasket because of the amount of smoke that was produced while driving. I replaced the air filter and spark plugs and I was looking at it today and I noticed that a hose was coming from underneath the large fan in the front of the car, I pulled the hose out a bit and I noticed that the hose was broken and I saw the bracket above it where it had gone previously. It looked like it was supposed to be attached to the engine via an intake/exhaust intake which I noticed right above the bracket on the engine underneath the spark plugs. It's hard to explain, but I was wondering if that is where the hose goes and it looks like I am going to need to remove the skid plate to reach one side of the hose. I am curious what it is called so I can get a replacement. I can take a pic if needed but I'd love to work on my volvo as much as possible and get this car back on the road. Thanks in advance for your help!

 

Here is a pic of the hose I am missing. It looks like it is aluminum hose, very flexible.

 

That can be taken off and tossed in the trash. Just an air guide. Tape it up, repalce it, trash it, not a big deal.

Now for overheating... That is the best way to destroy an engine, other than driving it with no oil or water. When you let a motor overheat you run the risk of warping the motor (head) and blowing the head gasket. Probably the #1 reason a car over heats is the thermostat fails. Either is breaks, stops opening properly, whatever. The 1st thing I would do is remove or replace the thermostat, drive around and see if that cures the over heating. If it does, get and install a new one with new gasket. That will cost you less than $20. The #2 reason for a car over heating is a failed water pump. Most of the time the water pump will leak to let you know it is about to fail. I recently had a water pump loose it's perpeller causing it to NOT circulate the water through the motor.


Lastly, sad thing is, if the car is smoking, it is likely that you have already damaged the head gasket. Check the oil for evidance of antifreeze (usually causes oil to look milky on the dip stick from what I have read), or the antifreeze for oil. They say you can look in the antifreeze overflow bottle while the car is running and you will see swirling in the reservior.

Hope this stuff helps.

 

rspi, Thank you for your response! I removed the skid plate and removed the other end of that hose and I am planning on doing a bit of a cooling system overhaul and I will be replacing a number of parts including the thermostat and asap the head gasket. Where do you usually buy your 240 parts? I live in maine and there is a volvo dealership and quite a few volvo mechanics here, but money is an issue right now and I am going to attempt to do some of the repairs myself. Do you know of any how pages for Volvo 240 that might walk me through my repairs? I know I am asking alot here but I love my 240 and right now walk everywhere on foot , thanks again!

 

Without this hose my 89 240 runs like crap, stalls frequently, loses power, and contaminates my oil. When it pops off the engine I metal tape it back on and all my problems go away. I wouldn't ditch it.

 

The aluminum hose is a preheater for the intake system. It provides warmed air from the exhaust manifold to the air cleaner box. This is to warm up the air going into the MAF and throttle body and into the engine. It is to improve cold starts and there is a therm sensor in the air box that closes off as it warms up. I don't believe this would be a significant contributor to a poor running engine.

 

These engines do NOT take well to overheating; different materials for the head and block. It is possible you have a damaged head, hopefully not

Arm yourself with a Bentlys Repair Manual for information and repairs. Check out the sponsors of this forum for parts http://www.fcpgroton.com/.
Phone number: 877-634-0063
50 Schoolhouse Road
Old Saybrook, CT 06475

I think they also supply the Bentlys Manual.

Good Luck