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First the bad, then the good...
The bad: there's always a reason someone sells a Volvo (particularly because most owners have strong loyalty -- e.g., how often do you see a 240 for sale?), so you always have to be prepared that it may be a mechanical problem. In my experiences, having bought six used ones since my first and only new purchase in '73, I have two such stories:
1) One couple sold me their '84 car back in '87 (BTW, I still have it and it's been a terrific car all these years) because they had brake work done and, they said, they couldn't get it fixed right -- they were aboveboard about it. I bought it way cheap, thinking how bad can it be, and it was an easy fix: the short version is that I found that the Midas shop (ugh!) where they took it rolled the rubber piston seals under and between the pads and the pistons, causing a spongy pedal that no number of bleedings could cure. I took it home and fixed it in about 30 minutes!
2) My latest car, a '93, was immaculate, and I was suspicious (no reason for being sold, at first) because it, too, was being sold really cheap. But I went back two additional times. Only I noticed that every time I picked it up for a testdrive, the heat was turned full on! I kept turning it down, and I had a guess, though, and the third time I brought my RayTek themometer with me. I drove it long, and sure enough, after a while the temp gauge started climbing into the red! A check with the RayTek, however, showed it wasn't really overheating at all! It was the TCB that was failing. Looking over the thermostat housing, I saw it had been opened recently. Obviously, the owner thought it was a overheating problem they could't solve, but they never told me that! Ha, ha -- the joke was on them -- I just had to remove and bypass the TCB, and it has been a gem to own ever since.
But the good news is that there are few things that aren't easy to diagnose and fix on a 240. So about your problem... this is almost certainly why the previous owner sold the car. But it may not be so bad....
In addition to a simple tune-up, I'd guess that your problem is apt to be (though I can't be certain) a bad Flywheel (or Crankshaft) Position Sensor. This is new from '89 on, so you might not be familiar with it -- it replaces the sensor in the distributor, because the ECU has taken over advance/retard control of the ignition timing (instead of the distributor) and fuel injection to help tell the ECU at what position the crankshaft is.
This probe is, unfortunately, somewhat hard to reach, sitting on top of the bell housing just behind the engine (best seen from above on the passenger side) -- but the original versions frequently goes bad (Volvo campaign no. 68) -- the old, untrustworthy one has a yellow tag, and the new replacement has a white tag.
Other possibilities include a bad fuse (yes, even if it looks good, it may have a hairline crack) -- change the relevent fuses to be sure.
I'd say that I doubt that you have any fuel pump (either one) problems (except perhaps their fuse :-) because your car is too new -- Volvo fuel pumps last an awfully (or wonderfully, actually) long time!
Good luck.
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