greetings all,

i'm actually writing on behalf of my sister, trying to save the little white volvo from a new car replacement.

the auto: 1992 740 non turbo

the narrative: several months ago it developed this nasty habit of simply not starting at times it preferred not to. it would be running fine, no problems, then not start. (say this is in the evening) the next morning a tow truck would be called. he would put the key in and it would start right up.

it was driven driven to a repair shop, but no diagnosis could be made other than wires and plugs replaced.

then it pulls the same stunt, stranding my sister a second time. she is able to wait overnight, then drives it to a volvo specialty shop. they replace the fuel pump relay and it seems to be doing fine.

it won't start again. i am in town for christmas, and having been in the volvo family for many years, want to take a look. i tried to start it to no avail, but sister says the tow driver had luck with starting fluid. i spray that into the air intake and it starts right up - to die again 3 days later, this time not to start with starting fluid.

so it's towed again to a reputable shop, sits for three days, and when they go to work on it, it starts right up.

you guessed it, a day after leaving the shop it does the same thing and strands her a fifth time.

so after all this, has this happened to anyone in the community here, or does anyone have any recommendations? three reputable mechanics can't diagnose.

any advice would be greatly appreciated.