Hi,

I have a '94 850 which refused to start today. Checked the on board diagnostic sockets and the only codes I found were on A1 (transmission) and A6 (Ignition).
Both read 1-1-1 which comes up as "No DTC set". Anyone know what this means and could it relate to the non-start. The engine turns over but does not fire. The car sat outside since last thursday. It ran ok prior to being parked. Any input would be greatfully received.

Mac

When you turn the key to pos II, listen for the fuel pump whirring. If you do not hear it, the relay is no longer working. If you hear it, the check the codes in socket A2 - engine.
You could crank the starter for about 30 seconds, without your foot on the gas. But consider trickle charging the battery befor you do that. Make sure the radio and heater fan are off.

Klaus
--
1975 164E running? 1995 854T sweet 1998 V70 R work horse

Your camm rotation sensor could be going bad. Mine didn't fail suddenly. The car just became very hard to start every so often. Finally died after about two months.

that means everything is okay with your codes.. the 1-1-1 code is the all okay code.

Look at your fuel rail.. at the end is a little valve inside the cover on the drivers side of the rail. Put a rag under this and press the valve pin while the car is off.

If fuel comes out of it then you know the system is getting fuel.

If its not ..then it has somethign to do with your fuel pump, fuel filter, one of two relays for the fuel pump, or the injectors.

If fuel is coming out of it... close up the system and remove the rags.

Take one of your spark plugs out..attach it to the lead and put it on the top of the block of the engine so its grounded. Stay clear of the engine bay and have someone crank the engine. If you notice a spark on the plug it is getting voltage.

These are the two basics to start on.. could be one or the other thats causing your issue!

Thanks for the quick response CarVolvo. There is pressure on the fuel rail and a spark at at least one plug. These were the first things I tried. The fuel pump and filter were replaced a few months ago. I have had problems in the past where, if the car was cold and started up and not run long enough to warm up and then switched off it would not start the next morning. It would eventually start after cranking for two or three minutes. The car was warm this time when it was parked ( wife had been to the store) so I didn't think it was the same symptom. I will try cranking it in the morning.

Mac

Had the same thing once. Did plugs, rotor, dist cap, cam sensor, had no codes, etc. Talked with my indy and he suggested to just grind it for up to 2 minutes without stepping on the gas before I had it towed in.

Took over a minute for the first cough and about 1 minute 35 before it started and I let off the starter. The only thing I did was have another car jumping the battery as it ws low after all my failed attempts.

Nothing similar has happened in about 1 year & 40k miles.

Explained to me as one of those 850 quirks.

I had an awful time restarting my '94 850 after starting it cold and moving it a few feet to cut the grass. That short time of running did not get the spark plugs hot enough to avoid fouling at the next attempt at starting. This may be your cold-start problem..you need at least a couple of minutes of running to get the plugs hot enough to not gas foul.

On the hot start, check socket A2 for codes. My 850 also did this and in my case, it was the cam sensor...but there are any number of sensors or problems that could cause this, and the best bet is to check those codes first. I agree with everyone that suspects the fuel pump relay, but since you say you have fuel, I am more inclined to think of a sensor failure.

My car behaved this exact way last night. It will not start, even after trying to jump. It seems only to turn over once or twice after 20 seconds or so of cranking. The car has sat for 2-3 weeks, but I did move it up about 10 feet about 5 days ago.
So should my car start up today, or do I have to change the plugs now?

Well, it depends..doncha like that!

If the plugs have a many miles on them, just change them. They're not that expensive, $2.50 each, or if you're broke, pull them out, heat them with a propane torch to burn the wet gas off ($19.95, or $1.00 of propane, if you already have the torch) and put new ones in later. It's really not enough gas to be worried about, but enough to keep the car from starting.

In either case, my experience is that you need dry plugs, and no amount of trying with wet plugs will clear them enought to start ( Disclaimer: This is based on 1 problem with one 850, and the same thing with one Passat, one time. Your results may vary :-) )

Well, I replaced the plugs. They were all wet, all had normal wear, and were due to be changed. After changing, car still would not start. Finally after trying to crank repeatedly over half an hour, car started. Now it runs fine. On a positive note, th new plugs cured the hesitation that was going on before-hand.

if you replaced the fuel pump then it sounds like its electronic.

The first thing to check is the fuel pump relay. It will cause this type of random non start.

If your OBD is not showing any other error codes then this could be the issue.

Usually if any of the other sensors are going they may trip a code on the OBD system. You mentioned that your getting code 1-1-1 which is telling you everything appears normal on the system.

It is not uncommon for the cam and rpm sensors error codes come up on the system when the fuel pump is going and when people replace them.. nothing changes. In your case this is not happening.

My theory is that you should be replacing the relays for your fuel pump regularly, so if it is not gone..it will go eventually if you already replaced your fuel pump.

Besides it is a lot cheaper than replacing the cam sensor and the rpm sensor and since you have to replace them anyway....