After two months of internet searches this is becoming a familiar old song and I hate that I'm starting another thread instead of magically finding my solution in someone elses. Had the hood up, experienced a sudden squall, no start.
Checked the Cam and Crank sensors with a multimeter and inasmuch as I think I did the tests right (repeated each three times), they both showed alright. (Broke the meter shortly thereafter, so going at it again will involve getting a ride an hour away to the nearest proper hardware store).

Getting fire from the coil to the distributor. Getting fire to the little button inside the cap, but not spitting fire out of the individual points. I replaced the distrib. rotor (and cap, just for good measure), and no crank. About to go pull the plugs and see if it's getting that far or if I need new plug wires, oh yea, plugs were the first thing I replaced.. just in a "replace the most obvious thing" sort of way.

As an aside, on the very possible chance I miffed checking the voltage and resistance at the crank and cam sensors, if either of those sensors were bad, would it still be spitting 10 - 11 volts from the coil to the distributor? I was under the impression that fire at the distributor meant the sensors were okay'ing everything. (Rather, that if the EFI system wanted to cut ignition it would do it before the coil, because there doesn't seem to be the appropriate doodads to do it after.. everything past that point just being actual electrical connections with no electronic... uh... doodads. That make sense?)

 

if you have sparks, the cam and crank sensors are okay, I am pretty sure. Is this car OBDII? Which engine management system are we talking about.

Your question about the volts coming from the coil is a little strange. the output of the coil to the cap is about 30,000 volts. The output from the coil (-) terminal would be 12 volts when the engine is not running. When the engine is running, it'll cycle from some figure near 12 volts to zero, back and forth.


I believe if the ECU chooses to disable ignition, it'll cut it on the (-) side and the coil will continue to be powered, 12 volts in and out.

 

Yes, it is OBDII. Sorry, don't actually have spark, and it sounds like I checked the cap all wrong.
Just snagged another multimeter from a friend and I suppose I'll check that again.

 

I was dreadfully wrong, I'm not actually getting fire from the coil. Color me abashed. (Just ran a plug wire and plug to it this time)

 

hunhkay. I can't get more than 170 Ohms from the crank position sensor

 

Do you have a scan tool that would allow you to look at powertrain data? I don't mean codes.


This thing was running okay before it got rained on, right?

 

Thing was running fine before the rain, yes.

I just laid my hands on a Genisys EVO 4.0 that I have no idea how to use (Cousin is a diesel mechanic), that I've got to find a charger for then figure out how to work.
EDIT: Unhunh... don't have the correct memory module for Euro. sigh

 

was it running after you replaced the cap/rotor? if not, double check the firing order (#1 being at the belt end of the engine). If you suspect weather caused the fault, try inspecting all wires and connectors - spraying some wire dry may help. I had the case where the coil wire on my 95 850 looked good until I pulled it out and saw corrosion had eaten the wire by the end clip to a fray...). Not sure if the 95s will feed stats to an OBD2 reader but the port's by the ashtray (small rubber plug) - codes can be pulled from the LED diagnostics port near the front left headlight.

 

Nope; the cap/rotor replacement was part of my hackneyed problem solving that led us to this point.

Yes: Double checked the firing order (the book was wrong), finally settled for white-outing the firing order on the cap and the wires.

Wire Dry... didn't even know that was a thing... 8| . Have some mild corrosion on the leads to the crank sensor, but not the cam sensor.

Yea thats a funky one. The OBD1 flasher was my go-to before this and now it won't give me anything. I mean it won't even give me a 1-1-1.

 

Well, one of the things the rain might do is get in a connector, and maybe blow a fuse. Or get in a relay.


I feel like I overpost this, but a failure of the relay on top of the radiator that powers the fuel injectors causes the OBD1 thing to "not flash". I would look at that the very next thing. The plug on that relay is not very reliable and it may be in bad condition.


I am not sure how many power supplies to the ECU there are, but sounds like one of them got taken out.

 

You most certainly do not Overpost that.

The reason the hood was up in the first place was the fan kept running looong after the engine was shutoff, and it was proper cold that night (Christmas Eve actually).

Fuses were my close-to-first check, but I'm not too proud to check 'em again.

Can someone point me to a pic of the relay atop the radiator?

EDIT: Waitasec, the relay that powers the injectors is on top of the radiator and not just over the fuse box with the fuel pump relay and suchlike?

 

Yup. There are probably more, but that one has a bad plug and when it is unpowered, it makes the blinky light fail to blink. Looks like this on a 95:
http://www.justparts.com/Auto_Parts/...3-OEM/26372038

 

A'ights, part just came in, snapped it on. Now I've got a light on my OBD-1.

when I tried to check I got no codes, however... in fact I think I may have idiotically reset the thing after holding the test button down too long.

Edit: Wait, there are codes... I was doing it wrong
Yeeesh. Okay, here's what the friendly little blinky told me:

A1 Fault Codes
2,2,1 Solenoid S2 circuit shorted to earth
3,2,2 Incorrect gear ratio for given road speed
2,2,3 Throttle position signal too low
2,1,3 Throttle position signal too high
3,2,3 lock up slips or not engaged

A2 Fault Codes
1,2,3 Engine temperature sensor signal absent or faulty
3,1,4 Camshaft Position sensor signal absent or faulty
3,3,5 request for Maulfunction indicator lamp signal from AutoTrans ECU

kay, I'm well aware all this needs to be fixed, but out of it can I assume the CPS is the one causing the no-start? (Since the fan running on is what caused me to leave the hood open in the rain in the first place, so the temp sensor was already kiboshed). And what do you guys make of the TPS faux pas?

edit edit: Ohya, the slow-to-shift transmission has been a long standing issue I need to address come to think of it.

 

Got the CPS off and am looking at it... when the hazy gaze of someone who knows just enough to be dangerous.

I don't suppose there'd be a big, obvious smoking gun to show something wrong with what I assume to be a hall-effect sensor?

 

The camshaft sensor can be tested (good news). The little spinning metal plate is either "there" or "not there" and the output will be ON or OFF depending on that. So you can measure that with a volt meter.


Look on page 5 here, step 5 and Figure 4.
https://www.volvoclub.org.uk/tech/se...sicTesting.pdf
To get a voltage reading of these wires, you'll have to stick a shirt pin through one. it's the middle one that sends back a signal.


Since you've already got it off, use a screwdriver (or something).

 

Hunkay, the middle prong is showing 7.5 volts with the screwdriver in, and 7.5 volts without it.

Bad CPS?

 

That does not sound good.

 

kay, new cam sensor from FCP, and it still won't crank.

and I have no idea which was to jump next.

 

Do you have spark, or not?

If not, if you have a scan tool, you can read Rpm while cranking, which would be an indication whether the crank sensor is working.

 

Okay, before I rustled up the chutzpah to go out and check for spark, my dad gifts me a new ignition coil (ordered from FCP)... since he's been helping me bankroll this project, I didn't argue. (Don't have a scan tool)

...it apparently wasn't the ignition coil. If I spray starter fluid in the intake it catches just long enough to burn off the spritz of starter fluid, which leads me to assume it's getting spark... right?)