So, about a year ago, my brother and I were out at the bowling alley. When we got back to the car, we started it up and everything was fine. About 3 minutes into the drive, the car started jerking and shuddering and eventually shut off. We turned it on and off and it would run for a minute or two and do the same thing. so finally we called a tow truck. We got it home and the next day we went outside to try and start it up and the battery was dead. Thankfully, I got a new car that week and we used that for getting around. Well now, I'm in the navy and I have to go Florida for 6 months. So last night we started working on the car. I changed the spark plugs and replaced them with some Bosch platinums and gave it a jump. I also changed the air filter and checked the fuel lines. Keep in mind that it's been sitting for a year. The car ran for about 10 minutes connected to my car and ran pretty well when I disconnected it. Until my brother pressed the break pedal, then it shut off. same happened with the heat and headlights. any ideas

 

Sure sounds like a ground issue (with it dieing when the brakes are pushed).

The original problem may have been a poor connection between the battery and the alternator. If you jump it with your car, and then turn your car off (so the Volvo is running on the batter in the 'donor' vehicle) you can get better info. If you have access to a volt meter, place it on the battery and see what your voltage reading is with the car running, and then watch the reading when you press the brake.

Post your results here.

Also (go back a year) when the car died, was the check engine light on?

 

Actually, right before the car died, the check engine light came on for a second or so...