I have an 88 244dl. while driving yesterday I watched the speedo travel from 35mph all the way up to 120. Now when I turn on the key it goes right to 120 and stays. Is this an issue with the console itself? I noticed the odometer is not moving either. Any ideas would be great

 

well, if it was the speedo pickup (rear axle) or the wire, it would have dropped to zero.

the pickup is a magnetic coil that sends pulses to the speedo... the speedo counts how many pulses/second and turns that into a voltage that moves the needle. it also sends lower speed pulses to the motor that runs the odometer.

so its probably the speedo itself. I'm not 100% sure, but I think you can use the speedo from any non-ABS 240 thats 1985(?) or newer. ABS cars have a different tone ring, more pulses/turn, so their speedo will be way off when used with a non-ABS rear end.

 

Do I have to purchase the entire console or just the speedo? do you know of a place that sells one reasonable? Ive seen some on ebay but not to sure of that

 

the speedo is a module that is attached to the console.

this page on odometer repair shows how to remove the speedo module.
Volvo 240 Odometer Repair

and more on the electronic speedo:
Electronic Speedometer Notes

if you or a friend are competent with electronics repair, that last page will likely enable you to fix it. if its that UAF2115 chip, I think those are available on fleabay. Its pretty easy to bench test the speedo as that 2nd page shows, using a audio generator to simulate the signal from the sending unit, crank up the frequency and watch the speed change.

Short of that, your second choice is likely finding a 86+ 240 being parted out locally on craigslist, or at a pick-n-pull type junkyard.

Caveat Emptor applies across the board here, including ebay.... now, I've gotten many very usable parts off ebay in the past... rear tailgate wiper motor for my wife's Mercedes wagon, was $40 instead of $600 for anew one from the dealer, works perfectly.

 

Thanks for the info. I'm not that tech saavy so I think i'll go the ebay route. I found a refurb console for 129.99 so I think i'll do that.

 

if you're replacing the whole instrument panel, there may be more year to year changes, like I'd not be 100% certain a 1992/1993 dash would fit a 1987/1988 car without a lot more checking. also there's dashes with clocks and dashes with tachometers (our 1987 240GL came with a tach, and has a small clock in the center console upper left corner, just below the upper radio/pocket slot).

if you do NOT have a tachometer, DO NOT HOOK UP THE WHITE/RED WIRE!!! if you hook that up, you can fry stuff, its the tach timing signal directly from the ignition coil.

 

oh, and the tach and large clock modules are removable and interchangable between instrument panels.

 

If you end up swapping the cluster - be careful to not get the new/used one from a 240 with or without airbags (if you car has airbags or SRS - get a cluster that has the sensor for it or vice versa).

Putting non SRS cluster into SRS enabled vehicle will give you false speedo readings and also not let your cruise control work (if your car has it).

$129 is expensive for a cluster - they have been on ebay always. Try to find one in a junkyard - they are less than $40

 

yeah, an 88 240 is pre-airbag. but, I thought the speedo tick rate change was for ABS not SRS?

 

thanks for everyone's help on this. I was able to get a replacement on order and hopefully know how fast im going. LOL

 

My '91 has airbags and came with the SRS sensor in the cluster. But the speedo didnt work and neither did the odo.

I swapped with a cluster from an '87 245 from the junkyard. No more cruise control, my speeds are lower by 4 mph. This one had no "SRS" light at the bottom. Put back my old speedo and SRS light is all light up. Had to reset it and got one from a '92 244. All problem solved.

So Pierce, I think speedo tick rate is different due to SRS and ABS. But then again, ABS was optional in 91 and standard on 92 & 93 (dont know what it is on the 1990 models). So I would guess that the speed ticks would be common on '91,'92 & '93 and which is why it caused issues for me.

 

AFAIK, ABS wasn't even an option in 87/88. with decent tires and well maintained brakes, a 240 is pretty easy to control even on slippery surfaces without it.

 

+1 on that. Its pretty decent in the snow given its RWD. But yet, I have a 2000 Outback for the snow. That way nothing will happen to my beloved 240 and also less snow and less salt contacting it and worsening the rust