Hello Everyone,

Here are the symptoms. I jump my battery, get into the car, it is running. I start going down the highway, sometimes the warning lights will flicker in the dashboard, then I lose power completely and glide to a stop. Jumping will get it going, but it won't continue to drive.

My volvo shop says its my altenator. If it is, is there a pictorial out there to help guide me to remove it? My chilton's motor manual sucks.

Thank you, and Ambrose the Volvo thanks you,

Jeanette

You don't mention the year of your 240 but please consider the possibility (probability) that you have the dreaded disintigrating wire harness syndrome. My 1980 needed alternator repairs and maybe a new battery (I replaced it) but it also had the wiring harness problem. It got to the point where the the car would start fine and go about a half block before dying, even with a fully charged battery. It also began to frequently have the starter staying engaged (even with the ignition turned off it kept running). It's the main engine harness starting at the gray connector at the firewall and routing to all the electric components on the engine, mostly routed under the intake manifold. I'm one of the lucky ones who finally realized that I had more than a charging system problem. The correct fix is replacing the harness, I went for cheap and repaired. Every wire in the harness needed at least partial replacement. Most of the dammage was inside the bundle jacket under the intake manifold. Many people report finding disintigrating insulation at the connector, mine was fine there.

Anyway, even if your alternator and/or battery prove to be defective, you may find the symptoms don't go away. By the way, in my case repairing the previously rebuilt alternator didn't pan out as the rear frame was worn out, allowing the shaft vibrate things apart. Doing well now with a $35 alternator from a wrecking yard.

sure sounds like the alternator,you can check the output with a multimeter though,it should be putting out 13-14 volts. removing the alternator is fairly simple,loosen the negative battery cable and remove it from the battery first.
The alternator is on the left lower side of the engine,and on the top of it you can loosen the bolt that adjusts the belts first,and then remove the belts,then you'll be able to tell where the alternator "hinges" at and remove that bolt and the two upper bolts , and the wiring and you've got it made.

Excellent advice below...

I'd like to add that the battery "idiot" light on the dashboard is also important. I can't explain it technically but the bulb is part of the charging circuit, if it doesn't light up when you put the key in position II then you'd better get it replaced before you start attacking other items in the system.

You can do a search for more technical details.

Good luck,
Bean

Oh, and some advice while working with anything related to the battery/charging system (ie: poking and tugging wires)... disconnect the battery and remove all rings from your hands.
--
'80 242GT 93k, '94 945T 139k, '89 765T 68k (new '94 B230FT)

"the bulb is part of the charging circuit, if it doesn't light up when you put the key in position II then you'd better get it replaced before you start attacking other items in the system. "
There is a possibility that the light is defective, but check other things first. Ie. If the light doesn't come on in position II (before starting)there is a greater chance that either the thin red wire or the thicker blue wire are making poor contact. (See B.C.'s post)

So the first thing to do is check the connections at the alt. They're most likely the problem.
--
1980 245 Canadian B21A with SU carb and M46 trans

That makes perfect sense... It should have crossed my mind since I've experienced a bare little red wire on my 1980. It was grounding out and lighting up the dash like a Christmas tree. Check the wires first, then the dash bulb. Got it.

Regards,
Bean

--
'80 242GT 93k, '94 945T 139k, '89 765T 68k (new '94 B230FT)

What you describe might be the alternator, might be a dynig battery, or a combination.

The job of the battery is to store electricity in order to start the car. Period.

The job of the alternator is to run everything the car needs, plus to re-charge the battery after it has used some of the stored electricity. (Simplistic view)

If the alternator looses the ability to produce enough electricity to do it's job, the battery will try - but usually won't last very long. Especially if the headlights are required.

So the problem is the alternator - it's not charging like it should. Why?

Check this: Look at the back side of the alternator, there are three wires connected there (unless your brick is 1981 or older, you didn't say).

The fat red one, leave alone. The thin blue or black one, hard to see and seldom goes bad. It's the thin red one that goes bad. Wiggle the connection to be sure it is good and solid.

Note the little housing on the back of the alternator. It contains the voltage regulator and the brushes. Brushes wear down over time, and after 100,000 miles of so they are often too short to work properly.

Changed them lately? Part from fcpgroton, a DIY job.

Check the tension of the drive belts, too. Push down half between alternator and water pump. Belt going easily down over 1/2 inch is too loose.

Don't blow a $ on an alternator until some of these are checked out. See if you can get a free test at a place like AutoZone.

Good Luck,

Bob

:>)

i agree w / bc, its a lot easier to take the regulator off than the alternator and check those brushes, same with the battery, a rule of thumb i learned a long time ago was if the battery is more than 2 years old you are on barrowed time any way and in replaceing it you will loose nothing. bosch alternators are difficult to kill, regulator brushes do wear out.
--
mike, 1988 Volvo 240DL 114k , , previous 79 & 81 Volvo 244s

Ok, if YOU want to be sure it the alternator, go to Sears or Radio Shack and buy a $20-30 digital volt ohm meter (VOM). After starting car, put DVM in DCvolts position, on a high enough scale to just read 12 volts (typically the 20 position these days) and put the leads on the battery terminal.
IF it reads 14 or more volts the alternator is working, if it reads 12.7 to 14, the alternator MAY be working or may be marginal. Less than that and the battery is not being charged.
BTWay most auto parts stores will do this test for you in the parking lot (if you can get there. An alternative to get yourself going is top have someone charge the battery (in or out of the car) and then put it in and go have the system tested. The car will run for at least 30 minutes without headlights on off the battery.
The above test do not insure it's the alternator which is bad , it could be wiring between the battery and alternator, right up to those big clamps on the battery.The advantage of the test done by the shop or parts store is they will do a drain test on the battery and be able to determine whether it is OK.
I recently had this done (pretty much knowing the battery was bad because i had done the test with the VOM) and when the load cam on ,, the car stalled because the voltage went so low.

As for the idiot light, it depends on the brushes to be OK to work, So the alternator can fail but the light will not come on if it is because of the brushes being worn.
They are pretty easy to remove and check ( the brushes are part of the voltage regulator assy.)

If I had to guess, I'd say alternator OR bad wiring is your problem.
--
745-4+OD-16v, 744-4+OD-16v, 245SE auto, 242 4+OD Turbo