I had a problem with my daughters 93 240, it would just die while driving down the road. One of the things I noticed when this happened was some of the indicator lights would flicker after this sudden death. I replaced the radio suppression relay and now it doesn't die anymore but after driving it around for a day the battery went dead. Not charging. It has a fairly new charger, I tightened the belt and still, no charge.

I noticed that the same indicator lights that where flickering when the car was dieing while driving, (before I changed the radio suppression relay) are not coming on when the key is in the on position. The check engine, service engine soon, SRS, high beam, shift arrow are all coming on but the oil and charge light are not. These are the same lights that flickered before changing the radio suppression relay... Boo hoo hoo, What to do???

 

Maybe a weak battery or the alternator is failing to charge the battery. I had a similar problem before and when I bought my '82 245. The guy told me the lights never went off while driving and I suspected that it had sat a while prior to purchasing it. He said he thought it was due to a failing alternator, but when he got it tested it was fine. Then he suspected the battery, reluctantly I still bought it, I took the battery to get charged, but it exploded. I bought a new one, threw it in and was on my home, about 2 or 3 hours into the trip the lights started to flicker, and they gradually completely faded and went off. But during the 8 hour trip the lights went on and off 2 or 3 times, and after a little more time driving/charging the battery the lights never came back on after start up.

 

I've charged the battery several times, it seems fine and it's a fairly new. It's less than a year old. Same with the alternator... The charge and oil lights don't come on. Even when the key is on and the car is NOT running. Before I changed the radio suppression relay the charge and oil lights came ON when you first turn the key on and then would go out when the car started. They where the ones flickering when the car would die, before I changed the radio suppression relay. Now they never come on. I get all of the other indicator lights, not the charge and oil... This has to be a factor...

Why would the oil and charge lights not come on when the key is in the on position and the motor not running?

 

Volvos generally have to have the alternator light ON, then when the car starts the light goes OFF... Or the alternator won't start charging. Weird Volvo thing, that makes for an incorrect bad alternator diagnosis when in fact that light bulb is the sole culprit.

 

What?

 

Really! I'm going out on a limb and gonna say your daughter's car has no voltage light, only the idiot light. Assuming the alternator is outputting 13.5 volts or so then most likely the tiny "excitor" wire on the back of the alternator has broken with age and errant hands changing oil filters. Without the excitor wire functioning, the alternator will not begin charging until revs get somewhere between 2000-2500 rpms. With an automatic, it's possible to run errands all day long and never get the r's up to that threshold. Typically, when the car is started and the light stays on blipping the throttle a couple of times will get the alternator charging and the light will go out. The oil sender wire is right there in the same vicinity...these wires tend to disintegrate from heat and oil. The oil light will stay on if the wire is broken. Volvo's in general are sensitive to poor connections; corrosion, oil scum and loose connectors often drive you nuts until you find the simplest of things. The alternator is mounted w/ rubber bushings; these effectively isolate the alternator from ground. So...there is a small case ground wire as well that if it fails will cause issues too. I always install a nice fat 12 gauge ground wire from the case to chassis like this...it's the yellow wire in the foreground...

 

I will reground the alt but I think so far everyone is missing the bigger issue here. The OIL and CHARGE LIGHTS don't come on when you first put the key in the on position. They should come on in the on position. ALL of the other indicator lights come on. The OIL and CHARGE LIGHTS did come on in the on position before this charging problem.

As I said before, these two lights flickered when the car would die while driving. They flickered together in unison. They would go on and off vigorously as if they where connected to the same source. Together... Almost as if a plug on the back of the instrument cluster was coming off. Or maybe a harness connector was coming apart. I just don't know where to start and thought someone else might of had this same OIL and CHARGE LIGHT malfunction...

 

That's a pretty sweet looking power plant you got there...

 

Hey, gimme a break! Fixing cars on the internet while drinking beer and lounging in boxers is tough work! Well, since the lights acted appropriately before the relay was installed possibly the relay is incorrect or DOA. Here at the shop we are seeing more and more defective, new electronics coutesy of the People's Democratic Republic of China!!
Here's the container that power plant is stored in...

 

Sweet ride... I did put the old relay back in to see if the lights would come on as they did before I changed that said relay. Still no lights. Maybe something on the back of the instrument cluster? Maybe something came unplugged under the dash somewhere? I DON"T KNOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW... I'm a bit baffled...
bid"D"®

 

LOL , I love it. I bet it's better then us sitting here in the snow.

 

Well that's helpful!... I think I have a wire rot problem. People talk of a gray connector that is the connector for the alt, temp and oil back to the instrument panel. Dose anyone know the color codes for these 3 items so I can find them in the harness? I'll run a new heavy wire to the starter from the alt... Then reroute a new set of wires from the harness to the alt.(exciter) oil and temp...