a real bummer. Anyone have any suggestions on fixes?

 

If it is an automatic, the neutral safety switch is the likely culprit. The little pie slice to the right of your gear selector...
It is either dirty, or just needs to be adjusted and lined up correctly. When you are in reverse, try pushing the selector up into park without pushing the button to actually go into park. Does the light go on, if so, then adjust the neutral safety switch with the two screws. You'll want to place the switch farther back so the contacts on the wiper make contact with the reverse light metal portion.
Here are some details as to the parts I'm talking about -http://cleanflametrap.com/neutsw.html

 

As a caveat to what Burn Stains said, is there any any free play in your shifter? If yes, you may need to replace the missing grommets in the shifter linkage. This will also cause the reverse lights not to work.

Good Luck

 

also might be that the electrical circuit on the back of the back-lights is ripped.
you`ll have to take it out 2 of them and check.
was my problem with the back lights.
ilan

 

To add to the other suggestions, when this happened to my 960, about 2 weeks later other lights stopped working. It was my light switch on the dash. It was coming apart inside and causing all kinds of problems.

 

...or the bulbs are burned out.

 

Bulbs look ok, pulled out the pie thing and cleaned the contacts....now my car wont start....FML.

 

Yeah that can happen. You just don't have the metal plate on the pie slice clammed enough. Try pressing on the plate and starting the car. You'll have to get some pliers and really clamp that together good, or else one day, it wont crank. That happened to me and I just barely touched the shiftier to the right and it turned right over.

 

Like any good volvo owner i duct taped the bejesus out of it and its working now. But still no revers lights even when it was making a good connection.

 

My experience with failing backup lights has always been failure where the connector clamps onto the circuit board within the left side (driver side in US) tail light assembly. Basically the flexible circuit board folds over a tab and the connector clamps over it. Over the years the connector rubs off most of the copper on the plastic circuit board and no longer makes the connection.

In the past I have fixed it by cutting bits of tin foil that fold over the connection where the wire for the backup light connects to the circuit board. You have to be careful to make sure it doesn't cross to other connections. This worked successfully for my '91. On my '90, it only worked for a while. It is currently failing again. My next solution is to toss the circuit boards and rewire the tailight assemblies soldering all wires. My next rainy day project.

Good luck

 

So i go out with my dad to show him the problem i turn the key to the run position put the car in revers and behold, one reverse light works, before i have time to get back in the car, the other one wakes up.



i hate my volvo

 

Never underestimate the power of a Dad. As you have learned, their presence alone makes problems go away!!