Just thinking...fuel filter...if it has not be changed for centuries that can be a problem..check also for in-tank pick up pump..(should hear buzz with ear to the tank entrance..)

The lack of running with Quickstart is odd...if you have a spark you should get the engine to run if the ether got into the intake..you could unhook the Mass airflow sensor from the trunking and squirt the stuff directly into the intake trunking..

Without actually measuring your line pressure it is not easy to work out if it is OK, but you did say you got fuel pumped out when you disconnected a line I seem to recall..

I can't see your injectors being a problem..

If you can find an old-style strobe timing lamp that would help, but only when you get the thing started..

Check inside the distributor...you might find the insulation on the rotor arm is cracked as could be the cap...worth checking, but if you have a strong spark on cranking that must all be OK...

apart from that, do the usual check on every wire you can find..

Mike

 

The distributor is not even 2 months old... Plus I have a pretty strong spark.
If the fuel pressure was bad, it should at least start for a few seconds and then sputter and die right?
As you said, without actually starting the car, hard to check the fuel pressure and timing.
With Fuel, air and spark, the engine should start at least.
When I start the car, it sounds like there is no compression for a few seconds and then the engine slowly catches and there is compression. The compression will come and go if I keep the key in trying to start the engine.
When there is that "no compression sound", it sounds a bit like the end of this video;

I found that video interesting as well:

 

sounds like intermittent compression, which should not really happen...the only way to be sure you have compression in all four cylinders is to find a compression gauge and hook it up to each cylinder and crank for a few seconds...the compression specs are on the net..if you have no compression in one cylinder, that could be a damaged or broken valve...in two adjoining cylinders, blown head gasket...as the engine is not an interference motor your timing belt might have slipped..check the marks on the engine for TDC..just the standard ways to tell whether the valve timing is correct. If the distributor was new and it was running before, then the ignition timing should not be that far out that it won't start..

what you are describing does sound more like valve timing issues...maybe go there before you buy anything else..check timing belt alignment marks etc first..if that is OK, then it may be time to find a compression guage or borrow one from somebody...

I have taken my front strut off and removed the three pieces of what was left of the spring..damned Volvo rubbish..its only 18 years old, just barely run in. The 940 exhaust hanger on the rear box fotted away and I had to make a new one..getting major stick from the wife about old cars-my great escapes (using the dead aircon matrix as a heater as the heater core had failed was just not appreciated..)

 

this is a tough one, but as Trotsky et all used to say, 'the worse, the better'..as the problem has loomed so large that you will eventually find it so keep at it, it sounds like you are close

 

I was pretty close indeed! So here is the update:

After thinking and thinking about that bloody no start issue, I decided to get help as it seemed to be out of my knowledge. A guy showed up, saying he had a lot of experience with redblock engines. And it turned out that he was really experienced!!
Here is what we found:
The guy comfirmed that is was definitely not a problem with fuel, spark or air.
So he checked the timing... And he found that it was wayyyyyy off!! At least off 4 teeth!
He also found that the harmonic cylinder was worn (the rubber part) and the woodruff key was missing.
He said he'd never seen a timing so off and that was why the car would not start and the compression was intermittent.
But what caused that?
It appeared my timing belt cover (the one behind the pulleys against the engine block) was slowly breaking down and bits of plastic were falling into the pulleys which litterally made the belt jump! That is why my timing went off and probably why the car was underpowered.
I got the parts today but rockauto forgot to include the woodruff key for the HB.... So I have to wait...
Redblock engine owners, be careful about the timing belt plastic cover!
I will let you know how the repair went, but for now, I can only wait...
Thanks again guys for all your help! It looks like it is finally coming to an end

Here is a picture of the engine:

 

excellent!!! persistence pays off..looking at your motor it is lovely and clean so if the rest of the car is like that it is definitely worth the effort. You can extract 300 horses out of those engines so when it gets going right it will be a tyre melter..

When you are done with that you can hop over and help me put my s40 back to gether again after a neighbour drove into it when it was parked outside my house at such speed it was pushed back two car lengths....

I really don't know why I bother to work on it, its hit by a truck a deer, a drunk woman and now the neighbour...each time I put it back together...AAREGH!!!

 

A very late answer but to make it short, it look a long time gathering the parts and getting it fixed. Fortunately, (karma maybe...) I started a new job in a trucking and excavating company, and a professional mechanic who works there too did the job for me for 40 bucks
It took longer than I thought also because we found out that the crankshaft gear or sprocket was broken... So it took another week to get the part and the car fixed.
So now, I have a brand new timing belt, sprocket, harmonic balancer and the timing is SPOT ON. All this covered by a new plastic cover.

I took the car for a spin and... OH MY GOD!! This thing is a absolute BOMB! I was really amazed by the power. I think the original owner sold it just before it went wrong.
But it all makes sense now. The car was underpowered because of bad timing. And the timing was off because of the plastic falling into the gears which made the belt jump. It was the timing all along...
But at the end of the day, all the time and money put into this car was worth it! I love it now and it should last for a long time.

Thank you Mike for your patience and time, if I ever go to England, I will let you know and bring the wine for you
So I guess this post is now solved and closed
What an amazing Forum!

 

Really pleased you fixed it and it is a monument to your persistence and it has paid off....yes they are fast as the torque is not far off 200 ft lbs and they are not very heavy cars, so they can shift a bit- now just enjoy the fruits of your labours!

I have a few jobs on my cars, such as the exhausts which are nasty but necessary...my wife hates my 940 but unless she buys a new car herself, its either that or she walks....(hee hee)

If you fancy coming over to the UK, hopefully there will be a day when it is not raining...

MIke