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still not running after five months sequester in Ladysmith 900 1995

My winter Volvo started making strange noises as I was returning from Victoria on Remembrance Day, 2023. I saw an open garage and so I pulled in and asked for help. The people there were very accommodating and even provided me with a loaner car to get me back home to Parksville.

Over the past five months or so the following was done:
1. a used cylinder head was rebuilt at a machine shop in Duncan and installed.
2. Engine would start but ran roughly and would stall and then not start.
3. a new thermostat installed.
4. a new water pump installed.
5. a new timing belt and tensioner were installed.
6. a new crank sensor was installed, I think. Not sure on that.

The cylinder head was not an exact match to the original I was told. It was taken from a car of a different vintage to this 1995 model but it was Chapman's who sold it to me and I assume they know their Volvos.

In my last conversation with the head mechanic just before the car was towed home he stated that the car started but would not run right. It woould not idle properly and then the RPMs dropped, it stalled, and would not start.

The garage is not Volvo-centric so the car was a bit of an oddity to them and I don't blame them for not being able to solve its problems. But it leaves me with the problem of trying to get it running again for next winter.

Any thoughts on where I should go with the ongoing repair?

Bob Pellow
Parksville








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    Hi Bob.

    First off, I presume when Chapman Cobble Hill did the head (this would likely be Greg there) that it was running fine when they were done. These guys know old Volvos as well as anyone and would surely have told you what was likely misbehaving in the shop. This a B230FD, right, not a B230FT? The difference between a '95 B230FD head and an earlier B230F head should be minimal. Reportedly the air intake porting is slightly different, in what way I'm not sure. The later B230FDs have Pulsair, which doesn't affect the head other than the mounting bolt holes. I sure wouldn't fault the mechanic in a small town like Ladysmith for not knowing old Volvos -you were lucky to find a mechanic having time to deal with you.

    By noises on the way home back up the Island Hwy, can you elaborate? Steady? Occasional? Speed or rpm related? From the engine for sure? The drive train? Elsewhere? Growling? Vibrating? Whining? Progressively worse with time or engine temp?

    If it will start and catch, but not idle and immediately wants to stall out then a number of possibilities. Is it like the ignition is starting to miss? Is there a sense of fuel starvation running out of steam? Or the idle simply dropping so low it just starts stumbling?

    Thinking of basics, if the ECU doesn't know it's supposed to be maintaining idle or is unable to maintain idle then the idle may drop and the engine simply run rough and stall out as soon as you let off on the throttle. Will it stay running half-okay while holding the throttle open a bit? That would be confirmation of that possibility. In that case, the first thing I'd want to do is verify TPS adjustment/operation, starting with the click as you open the throttle. Next would be to verify the connectors are firmly seated on the TPS, IAC and AMM. Then verifying (using OBD Diagnostic Test Mode 2 as in the FAQ) that the injectors are each being pulsed (by feel) and that the IAC is operating (the tic-toc test, as I call it). A bad CPS is generally a cut-out/no-start issue, but in theory could be sudden rough running. Certainly worth a cable inspection and making sure the connector is solidly clipped

    Defintely pull all the plugs and note if any are fouled differently.

    As additonal food for thought, the last time I had a sudden mystery rough running leading to a no-start, and this was my '95 B230FD, it turned out to be a badly worn distributor cap/rotor. It's hard to tell by looking, you have to diagnose it by tracking it down to ignition being provided by the coil and not getting to the plugs. It was actually Greg at Chapman who found that one as my wife was stranded with the car not far from them and had it towed there.

    --
    Dave -still with 940's, prev 740/240/140/120 You'd think I'd have learned by now



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      Morning Dave,

      Thanks again for your fulsome reply. I do want to correct what I said to what I meant to say and that is that I bought the cylinder head from Chapman's and then i took it to Mid-Island Machine in Duncan. They reconditioned the head and then it was taken to AARAS automotive in Ladysmith for installation.

      Spook replied with the following:

      "Hope you're well and stay so. Did anyone check the Idle Air Control Valve to ascertain whether or not it worked at all, and - if it did work - whether it had been cleaned?

      Further has the fuel supply - from in-tank pump to pressure regulator - been checked? Has the fuel filter been changed?"

      I have added his commentary to yours to take to Klaus Automotive in Qualicum Beach when I am ready to get the 940 repaired.

      Thanks again for your valuable input.

      Bpb

      p.s. I am taking the 240 to a trusted local mechanic to get the brakes fully functional. Emergency not working and sometimes at very low speeds the brakes fail. Neither Volvo operational at the momennt. What is to become of me! I am relying on a Jaguar for transportation!




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    Dear muskox37,

    Hope you're well and stay so. Did anyone check the Idle Air Control Valve to ascertain whether or not it worked at all, and - if it did work - whether it had been cleaned?

    Further has the fuel supply - from in-tank pump to pressure regulator - been checked? Has the fuel filter been changed?

    I'd not have allowed a non-Volvo shop to do "fundamental" work on a 940. While an engine re-builder is likely to get everything right as to an engine, a general mechanic can easily miss things.

    Hope this helps.

    Yours faithfully,

    Spook



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      Sorry I have been so slow to reply. I have been distracted by my 240 over the last month or two but am getting back on track now.

      The exhaust has been disconnected from the manifold since the car was returned to me and one of my more mechanically inclined friends has opined that there is an O2 sensor in that system that might be affecting the engine's running.

      We were able to get it running but it will not idle and is hard to start when it stalls.

      I will try to find out about the Idle Air Control Valve and the fuel supply and fuel filter over the next little while.

      In the interim, thanks again for your input. Much appreciated.



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      Hello Spook,

      Nice to hear from you again. To your comment I did not have a choice of garages. Remembrance Day {November eleventh] is a holiday here and I was happy to see an open garage so I went there. I was contemplating limping home at about thirty miles an hour but the noise from the engine was, to say the least, disconcerting.I was really worried I would throw a rod and ruin the engine.

      I will add your air supply valve and check on the fuel supply to my list of to dos for the future.

      Always appreciate your input.

      muskox37



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