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In my opinion the fuel pump relay should be changed every 10 years.

 

Well, it's a part that cost less than $50 and leaves a lot of people stranded and scratching their heads. Less than a car battery that is usually changed every 4 years.

 

Here is a bad fuel pump relay in action. As you watch you can see the pressure build then when the car starts the pressure drops off. Worked sometime which you will see happen in the video.

Fuel pressure - YouTube

 

Thanks for the directions for the fuel pump too. I'm going to take a listen and see if that's the problem or (hopefully) it's the relay. Just curious but how hard is it to replace the pump? I'm somewhat mechanically inclined, but far from a mechanic, and I am willing to take the time out of my day to do it if that means not taking it to a shop.

 

I believe a bad relay can ruin a pump. Just think, if the relay is turning the pump off and on several times per minute or hour, sooner than later the pump will go out because it keeps getting shut off and turned on so many times. Just a thought.

 

I have a 93 850 volvo, almost 200,000 miles on it. The previous owners took somewhat good care of it so its in pretty good shape. About 6 months ago I went into a Starbucks and when I came out she refused to start. AAA towed her to my house and eventually to a mechanic who charged me 600 to put in a new fuel pump. Then about a week ago it started doing the same thing, not starting. It was weird, she would start just fine at first, I could go wherever I needed to go, but if I turned her off and then tried to start her up again within like 10 minutes or so, she wouldn't kick over. Just turn and turn. Finally I looked up the issue on this forum, found this thread and ordered a new fuel pump relay for 40 bucks. BAM. She works fine, in fact I think she runs better now. I also bought a tune up kit with new spark plugs, wires, and distributor cap and plan on putting those in as soon as I have some free time during daylight hours. But thanks to this forum and thread I saved a ton of money. So THANK YOU.

 

Great info! My 850 just died at the gas station yesterday. Starting fluid fires it, do definitely a fuel problem. "Pokey" test on end of fuel rail test port yields no squirt, so no fuel pressure. Strapping across relay terminals yields no pump run, either.

However, when I put my ohm meter across the coil contacts of the 103 relay I get an open reading. I was expecting to read in the neighborhood of 100 ohms or so.

Question: Is this a simple relay with a simple coil, or is there some circuitry inside that would cause this reading?

Thank you.
-Gary-

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Car-Door-Pan...739106&vxp=mtrHi, Guys,

I got my Volvo running again, thanks in part to great info found here. Here are some helpful things I learned and would like to pass on:

1. The 103 pink relay is NOT a regular relay. The 2 pins facing each other are not a coil, and you will not read coil resistance across them. Also, bench testing the relay with 12 volts across these 2 contacts (not the ones you short at the socket when testing) will not yield a "click", or change of relay states. From the drawings I have seen, looks like the fuel pump power is routed through the relay coil somehow, but I didn't get that into it.

2. I will thank a Swede next time I see one, as I did not have to drop the fuel tank to get to the pump assembly! The access cover was the most beautiful thing I saw all weekend!

3. My trusty door trim removal tool worked wonders on the 2 fuel line fittings. See attached picture for an example. They are cheap and available at any auto parts store, or on ebay. I had read of others' frustrations in getting these off, after struggling with them myself and not wanting to break things.

4. My fuel pump was the culprit. It read anywhere between 1 ohm and open circuit at the conector (unplugged) I had connected 12 volts from a battery jump box for testing (too much noise to hear fuel pump) to try and narrow the problem area. The pump would work sometimes and not others. I must have pulled the assembly a half a dozen times and re-soldered every connection.

5. The replacement fuel pump ($130 at auto parts store, $30 on ebay, but I didn't have the time to wait for it, not the luck to trust a used one- ouch!) was much smaller than the old one, and required some fitting work. I ended up cutting the fuel line a little shorter than I would have liked. It takes careful test-fittings to get a good measurement.

I hope this helps the next "poor b_stard"! Good luck!

 

 

I just took out the pump after reading this post and one I found here: http://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/for...?p=56515#56515 Great pictures and my 93 sedan was virtually the same as it looked here.
I first did the listen test and then acessed the tank to do a relay over ride test with a 12V battery. No noise. Pulling the pump assembly was easy using an oil filter wrench. There was one guy (stillgar) here who used a door trim tool, good idea. These are the tools I used and some backgrounds of the parts:
[IMG][/IMG] I think I will need to redo the electrical connection protection on the assembly.
Once out and removed from the assembly I tested it again, wondering why, and nothing. I took a small screwdriver and turned the pump from the bottom and it started and ran until I removed the power (I did this outside in well ventilated conditions) It worked like this several times and then dead. Turns out the pump must have a dead spot.
After reading this I will replace the relay as well. I already changed the fuel filter.
The one issue I have is one others may encounter so I hope I get an answer and will report my result here. I have found there seem to be two types of pumps. One has a rubber covering and the other looks like the bare metal one I have. ****Which one is right? ****** [IMG][/IMG]

 

Replacing fuel pump is easier than changing spark plugs. There are a lot of instructions on line, just google " Volvo 850 fuel pump replacement". If you buy the whole module, which is almost never necessary, it will take you ten minutes. Replacing the pump in the module should not take more than 30 or 40 minutes if you have any mechanical ability at all.

 

I was having a problem with car running then stalling. I took this advice and made sure fuel pump was running. Then I removed fuel pump relay and took advice on this post and connected with a wire and car ran fine. I went to a junk yard and pulled a relay for $5 and put it in and the car runs great! It's great to have this advice, probably saved me hundreds not taking to a shop!

 

As long as it's open, check for a blown fuse before you anything!