Hello Everyone and Happy Holidays.

My 93 244 turns over very slowly. In fact, today, after not being used for a few days, in 15 degree F weather, it would not start. Although I don't think the battery is particularly strong, when I jumped it, it still "turned over" rather slowly. In fact, since I've had the car, it always turned over slowly as compared to a 90 244 that I have. I'd like to attribute this to stupendous compression, but something tells me it might be due to the starter. On the other hand, the battery has not been ruled out either, and strangely, cause strangely, when I put the trickle charge on it, it took a full charge in just a couple of hours. Anyone have any input on this. Thanks much and don't eat too much over the holidays, lest you get stuck under the car on your cardboard creeper.

Marty Wolfson
90 244 216K, 93 244 160K, 93 244 108K

Hello everyone. Not too much blood or bruised knuckles as today was set aside for a car day, cause the weather warmed up to a "comfy" 30F.

Turned out to be the battery, but I did learn a good lesson. Initially, I used the 90 Volvo (w/ jumper cables) to jump the 93 and still obtained that slow start performance. Although I then figured my problem was with the starter, I decided to take the BB's good advice and physically change the battery and surprisingly, that made all the difference in the world. Apparently, through the use of a jump start, the old battery must exert an influence to reduce the current available from the good battery to turn the starter. In any event, when I swapped the battery, all was fine. A new battery is all I need and the starter is fine.

Also I always use 10W30 so there shouldn't have been an issue with the oil. Thanks for everyone's help and thoughfulness.

Marty Wolfson
90 244 216K, 93 244 160K, 93 144 108K

Great Marty! Glad to hear it was a simple solution.

Happy Holidays!
Danny Mac

Hi,

I just went through the exact same thing as you.....slow to turn over when starting and then when it got really cold it wouldn't start at all.

Turns out it was the starter and it had to be replaced, well I had the brushes replaced and that solved the problem. Try tapping the starter casing with a hammer....you may be able to get a couple of starts out of it...at least ot get it to a garage....you may think I'm nuts, but I'm dead serious....I've done this before on a previous Volvo and it worked!!

Hope that helps a bit!

What Oil are you using in 15 deg F temperature? Alaskan and Canadian pilots, will remove the batteries from their airplanes to keep them warm and drain the oil, heat it, or add a little fuel to thin it. What did it start like, during Summer months? Slow? Electrical fault. Normal? Possibly battery has given up the ghost, but could be something not so obvious.

I think the most likely culprit is your battery. The only positive way to test it is under load, and few places have *real* load testers anymore... it's just easier to sell you a new battery. Your battery could indicate fully charged but have nowhere near its original current capacity. This is even more likely if it is a "maintenance free" battery.

Nonetheless, it's always good to check the basics, so look at the cables and battery terminals to make sure they are in good shape and free of corrosion. If your battery is 5 or more years old, consider a replacement.

Happy Holidays Marty!

You might swap the battery from the 90 240 and see if you notice any difference in cranking power. I can't imagine a 93 needing a new starter already unless it has been replaced sometime with an aftermarket model. Have you checked tension on your AC belts & output voltage & grounds? Just another thought.....

Good Luck!
Danny Mac

The best way to test a battery is to try and start a car with it!
There are 3 basic potential faults;
1) the battery. swap for a known good one and see if it then starts OK
2) cables, connections, especially the earthing strap connecting the engine to the chassis/battery
3) starter motor. This would be the last thing to eliminate, because it is the least likely, the most expensive, and the hardest to remove.