Hi,

My old 242 stopped working this winter and I am trying to get it started.

No fuel to engine. Replaced the fuel pump relay, the in-tank pump is working, but the main pump still is not.

The pump is good, just not getting power. Any thoughts?

Thanks!

Check and clean the two fuel related fuses in the main fuse panel, number 4 & 6 I believe. Also check the 25 amp under hood fuse. It's between the battery and the strut tower. This fuse is in a bad place and a tough environment. It often corrodes, overheats the white plastic holder it's in, and results in a no start condition. Pull the fuse out check it, and shine it up. If the holder is corroded and warped, replace it with a waterproof holder from Advance Auto, Autozone, etc.

P.S. I just saw that your car is a 76, that makes it a K-Jet system, the reference to the under hood fuse may not apply.
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Bruce S. near D.C.

wires to the pump??

look under the back seat on the drivers side. check the ground cnxn.

Thank you will check. Need to remove the rear set for this?

if you mean SEAT ,not set, then no. you have to get under the car as the pump is mounted underneath, next to the tank. good luck, chuck.

Yes, I have it jacked up and the wheel off but I can't see where the pump is grounded...

under the rear seat

http://cleanflametrap.com/harness0142.jpg

Ok, problem solved! I cleaned up some grounds, replaced the no. 7 fuse and fuel pump relay. Started like a champ! Thank you for the help. By the way, the fuse looked good, not corroded and looked in tact, but may have still been bad? Not sure I just know it runs!

I do have a $1500 buyer interested in this car as is so I may pass it on. I have mixed feelings because mechanically this car is sound and if something does go wrong it has always been simple to fix... but I know I will continue to drop $ into it. Cosmetically this car is trashed. Probably for a few hundred dollars more I could pick up something nicer. Oh well.

Some well-intended help in this thread. I take it the thumbs are all A's for effort. The thing is, most of us, including myself, are not familiar with the 1976 242. Comments about "fuse 4 and 6" or even "five and seven" or "fuel pump priming" or "in-tank pump" or harness connections under the rear seat all come from our readers' familiarity with much later versions of our favorite RWD Volvo.

One thing which hasn't changed since your car was built is the way a fuse can look "good" yet not pass the current to the load. Just a bit of invisible oxide on the metal surface, much less a mass of white crud, will interrupt the flow of electricity to a fuel pump, yet pass enough to register voltage on a multimeter.

Check the fuse by measuring the voltage on the load side of the fuse holder contact _while_ the load is present. In your car, that means either the starter is turning, or the air flow switch is open (or unplugged) with the key on.

You're right about the issues being minor. In this case it was just an oxidized fuse contact keeping your car from starting, I'm pretty sure. Try the old relay -- bet it will be a spare for you.





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Art Benstein near Baltimore

During January 2018, the average contiguous U.S. temperature was 32.2°F, 2.1°F above the 20th century average.

so true this happen to me last week fuse looked good but would carry enough current to run signal light

Please help! I had the 1976 running for a short time , replacing the fuel pump relay and no. 7 fuse. Just running long enough to drive it down into the shop, then, no power to fuel pump again!! I checked the load side of the no. 7 fuse, it has power. I checked the red wire feeding into the pump relay, it has power... but still no power going out the the fuel pump, with the new relay. I actually have a total of 3 fuel pump relays, long story, but none of them send power back to the pump when the ignition is turned on. Any ideas of what to check next? Thanks!

"...but none of them send power back to the pump when the ignition is turned on."

This makes me think you expect the fuel pumps to run when you turn the key on. If you follow the diagram Chuck provides, you can see how the pumps should only run when the starter is turning or the airflow switch operates, not just when the key is on. I think all FI cars follow this general safety protocol keeping them from pumping fuel after a crash.





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Art Benstein near Baltimore

Everyone seems normal until you get to know them.

Thank you I am going to try to wrap my brain around this..

Go to this site. Download

Volvo Problem Solver Advanced Edition-1.pdf

http://www.volvowiringdiagrams.com/?dir=volvo/Trouble%20Shooting%20Guides

The relevant pages are 05-031, 11-021, and 24-154. The Problem Solver provides a good pictorial view of the 1976 fuel relay setup.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore

The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it back in your pocket.

Thank you, that problem solver is great! Got the car running again.

ok but what was wrong? need to know plus it helps future lurkers. chuck

look here, go to page 63-

http://www.volvowiringdiagrams.com/volvo/240%20Wiring%20Diagrams/TP11402-2%201976-Electrical%20System.pdf

make sure the relays are correct, they are different.

notice main relay 30 powers pump relay 86. that's what closes the pump relay and powers 87 from 30 to run the pump. pump 85 has to be grounded. good luck, chuck.

Thank you Art, I will not say just how much time and money I spent replacing parts to find it was a $1.79 fuse, but you can probably guess...

Follow the wires....the in-tank pump is grounded in the trunk near the access port. Can't remember where the ground for the in-line pump is.

How do you know the in-line pump is "good"? By the way, you can hear the in-tank pump "prime" -- but if the short piece of rubber hose that connects the output to the hardline in the tank has rotted away (as they do over time) --- then the pump can run while pumping absolutely nothing into the supply line. So, just because the in-tank pump is pumping, doesn't mean it's supplying fuel.