Just wondering if that gas mileage seems normal for a 1996 960 sedan? It's all purely city driving, but still.. is this normal? I'm getting less than 10 mpg, and its really starting to get expensive (about 50-60 dollars per fillup agh!!) and I have to fill up every week. I'm not sure when the last tune-up on this car was... but if I was to get one, what kinds of services would you recommend I get to improve my mileage? Thanks
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I also have a side question. Is therea way to tell if my car is equipped with keyless entry? I don't have a transponder but I know you can buy them and program them, juts wondering if there's a way to see if its even possible for my car. Thanks!

 

Definitely not normal. My S60 will get 22-24 in town and 32 on highway. You have a 2.9L vs. my 2.4L but that seems way to low.

 

Thanks, I knew that didn't sound right... When I first got this car about three months ago, I was doing a little better at around 220 miles per tank... I did bypass my heater core (due to it being expensive), would this affect my mileage at all? And would a bad catalytic converter also affect it?

 

Don't know about the heater core but a bad cat would definitely affect mileage. However, if you had a bad cat most likely you would be getting a code and probably a CEL. Go to Autozone and have them read the OBDII codes and see if anything comes back.

 

Just got back from Autozone, they pulled a codeP0172, they said the engine is too rich, whats this mean?

 

That mileage is awful! I feel for you.

If you're engine is running rich then a sensor is out of whack. I would first check the air filter and replace if necessary. Then clean the MAF sensor which is right near it. AutoZone sells a special cleaner just for MAF sensors, but use what you have if you're in a bind. Drive it around and if things don't improve, it might mean that one of the oxygen sensors needs replacing (which is more than likely if you were concerned about the cat).

Hope you're able to get things worked out quickly. Gas has got to be costing you a fortune.

 

Sorry, really stupid question. Where is the air filter located?

 

Generally located in the front right part (drivers side in US) of the engine bay. If you can afford it I would replace it with a K & N airfilter. Engine running too rich means that more gas than is being combusted is being injected into the engine, hence the lousy mileage.

 

I get around 20 mpg with my 97 960. I was getting about 15 mpg before I changed the back O2 sensor a couple of years ago. It could also mean that you have a vacuum line off/broken somewhere. The best place to start with the lines is on the fire wall. Give each one of them a gentle tug, if they come free, they are broken/off. If it idles rough, it is probably a vacuum line.

 

The car doesn't idle rough at all. It starts just fine and idles fine. Where is a cheap place to find and O2 sensor, and is this something a novice can DIY?

 

I got mine from FCPGROTON.COM. It was a little under $200 with shipping. One important note though, don't buy universal sensors because they have a higher drain and won't work (after $50 on a universal that didn't work).

 

I am getting crappy MPG as well, nothing close to 20, more like 12-14. I have no CEL, and no codes, and the engine purrs like a kitten- so no vacuum leaks that I am aware of.

Typically, sensors going bad would throw a code and a CEL- but, if I have none, is there anything I can do to get this MPG up? I don't want to just randomly start replacing 02 sensors and stuff....

 

I only get 12 MPG with my '95 960. :/

 

Clean MAF, replace air filter, replace spark plugs, replace the o2 sensor, clean the throttle body, replace the little plastic crankcase vent piece, and run a bottle of fuel injector cleaner through it. I did all this when I got my 960 ~30k ago, and right now I get 20-21 doing about 65% city driving

 

I have a96 960. I get right around 20 mpg, but something recently seemed to be throwing my milage as well. I cleaned my air filter and checked the vents, after cleaning them my milage increased a bit and the engine sounded SOOOOO much better.

The air filter is on the driver side in the front, under the hood of course. it will be in a plastic box with about 7(if I remember right) snaps. remember to check all around the box for the snaps, because I was a fool and tried tearing it out after I THOUGH all of them were free. If it doesn't lift out with ease, you havn't unsnapped them all yet. take the filter out and either lightly beat it in both directions for a few minutes, or use a good air brush/vacuum. CAUTION: EXTREMELY small particles, be SURE to do it UPWIND or at least use a mask of some sort. there will also(more than likely) be a small pile of crap in one corner of the filter box. I just took a small spoon and spooned the crap out, vacuum it up if you can. Be sure to put all the clamps back so ensure a good tight seal.

 

It makes me feel better to hear about others getting such poor mileage - mine is around 12-14 city and 17-18 hwy. I've had the car since it was new and have never gotten good mileage.

The results have always been this bad and even after having the routine, scheduled maintenance performed at Volvo dealers the mileage hasn't improved. My thought is that the maintenance would have been performed correctly and no sensor, vacuum problems, etc. were found.

I made one long trip - about 3500 miles round trip - and the best I ever got was 21 and that was when I never got much over 65mph - I consider that part of the driving to have been "very gentle".

I still like the car. It's comfortable and I've become spoiled by the automatic transmission.

Pat

 

wow im getting a good 22-23 and about 29-30 on the highway with my 1996 960 sedan. i did a good tune up, replaced the crappy tires with some good tires and thats about it.

 

O2 sensors vary a lot in price. You may be able to use a "generic" one which entails some wire splicing but it could save you a lot of $.

 

My 960 seems to be running pretty good. Slow pick up in the passing gear, but my ScanGuage says that I'm getting around 12 mpg. I'm not sure because we have only driven the car around 600 miles in the past 7 months. The last time I checked manually I was getting around 21 mpg. That was when I was driving it daily. I have had it around 32,000 miles now with NO MAINTENANCE other than a plug replacement (one plug & wire to fix a cel) and oil changes.

I guess I may need to do a tune up. www.IPDusa.com does not really have a good kit for this car. When I check the maintenance information on the Volvo site (I have no owners manual) they have this disclaimer:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
SPARK PLUGS: REPLACE -

New spark plugs are specially designed and calibrated to provide optimum engine operation.
Engine is tested on special Volvo equipment after spark plug installation.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Should I be concerned with this or just replace the plugs?

 

Few things that might cause an engine to run rich.

Malfunctioning MAF-If it is the MAF, disconnecting it will cause the computer to go in to limp home mode, which makes it run fairly well, an excellent way to rule out a MAF.

Coolant sensor signal is missing to the computer or the sensor itself is whacked. It may be signalling that the engine is always cold.

Leaking fuel injectors, highly unlikely, but some injector cleaner added to the tank for the next 3 fill ups might help.

If the computer is sensing that it is running rich, I would take that as the O2 sensor is work correctly. So I would look else where.

Intake gasket leak, not likely because it idles normally, usually it cause an erratic lumpy idle.

Bad spark plugs, when were they last changed?

And the first suggestion of a clogged convertor is a possibility but usually the engine will have trouble with high rpms, like highway driving.

Look into a vacuum leak. That is most probable.

DanR '94 964 345,000 miles (111,000 on the new engine)