First Volvo 850 Turbo and having pains
 

Hello all.

I am new to Volvos and just got my first one the other day, a 1995 850 Turbo. At first what seemed like a good deal for $1200 at 150xxx miles has become a bit of a headache. I bought the car knowing it idled a little rough. In all other regards the car seemed fine. Good history of maintenance records and the second owner had only used it occasionally. The steering is solid, shifting is seamless (aside from reverse), and acceleration was very nice. I chalked up the bad idle to sitting too long and later found three vacuum issues that I was able to repair. This seemed to improve the issue but not address it entirely. After running to the gas station to inflate the tires, the car seemed to get worst. I lost power and now the idle is much worst. The car accelerates/revs erratically when the gas pedal is pressed. I am worried I am in for more financial pain than I can handle but wanted to seek the advice of others.

So far I have done the following:
- Cleaned the Idle Air Control Valve (IAC). Seemed to be in good order prior to cleaning.
- Replaced vacuum hosing leading from just below IAC to vacuum control devices. One near radiator the other near the turbo.
- Replaced vacuum hose for third pipe just below brake booster

My thoughts:
- As it may relate to sitting, I think new plugs, cables, and rotor, and cap are in order.
- I have also heard something about a faulty thermostatic device, but the car is not showing a check engine light yet.

Any advice or thoughts are welcome.

Update:

After spending the day thinking about the Volvo, I figured out how to test the issue. If its ignition system related, I can simply pull the wires from the distributor cap one by one. If the performance is effected then I am on to replacing the ignition components. If not then I am on to the next possible issue.

Again, any advice or tips from senior members is always welcome.

Second Update:

I got around to looking under the hood again. Seems the intake piping separated from the intercooler. This caused the erratic issues with the idle.

With regard to checking the ignition system, the diagnosing did not go as planned. Pulling one plug at a time did little to show issues with the 5 cylinder engine. Aside from the test being a flop, I discovered the rotor and wires are relatively new. I will assume the other components are as well.

I pulled apart the intake hosing and components again to clean out the IAC valve and the throttle butterfly valve. The IAC is in good condition and actuates freely as designed. Caked with soot, I cleaned the throttle around the butterfly valve. This did little to remedy the issue.

Still looking for the problem I came across more vacuum hose suffering from dry rot. I pulled one pipe directly from a vacuum actuated device and the idle became stable as a result.

Next step, sorting out what this vacuum device is and why it is causing an issue with the idle.

Third Update:

This is the device that seems to be causing issues with the cars idling.
Attachment 27168

It appears to be located just under the throttle body. I am not sure what this component is called nor what it does in this application. Any insight would be helpful.

Welcome to the forum :D

Please don't post questions in "New Member". It's just a place to introduce yourself and your car.

Moved to 850 section.

Looks like the EGR valve and the vacuum line is missing. Hopefully it's plugged and not just hanging loose some place.
https://www.google.com/#q=volvo++850+egr

Kiss4afrog, thanks for the input and redirection. After spending hours finding vacuum leaks I found a leak and pulled the hose from this device. All idling issues stopped after that. Is it an EGR issue or the pneumatic actuator?

Hi and welcome to the forum.

These cars do not run well on aftermarket ignition parts. The plugs should be Volvo or whatever else the owners manual recommends. The wires should be Volvo or Bougiecord, if they are, they have a date on them, week/year (28/95). Cap and rotor should be Bosch.

The EGR and PCV system may need to be cleaned/serviced/replaced. Are you sure the CEL works?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQxENePivS0&feature=youtube_gdata_player

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIRoc0VxLd4&feature=youtube_gdata_player

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=523wh5gjthM&feature=youtube_gdata_player