Diesel fault tracing . . .[240-260/'84]

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Diesel fault tracing . . .[240-260/'84] posted by T. Tillman on
Thursday, 30 April 1998, at 10:07 p.m.

Hi Y'all,
Got another one for you to chew on.

How can I determine if either my relay or my timer is faulty on my glow plug system? I have a relay out in the firewall area and a timer under the dash. The ol' girl is having a little trouble starting in the mornings when it's cool. When I go through the glow plug sequence, the instrument panel curly-que does not come on like it should. However, once you get going and drive off the symbol comes on for a few moments and then goes off. You may drive a few blocks and it'll come on again and go off.

Since both units are pretty expensive, I'd like to eliminate one if I could. Is there anyway some simple tests can be used to check this out?

I realize that there aren't many diesels left out there, but I moved to a town (Lubbock, Texas) where the Volvo dealer has never sold a diesel, has no mechanics who can work on them and doesn't WANT to! So, until I am able to find the appropriate reference materials, the BrickBoard is my only hope. I DO appreciate it!

Thanks --
T. Tillman - Texas

Re: Diesel fault tracing . . .[240-260/'84] posted by george anderson on
Sunday, 3 May 1998, at 11:24 a.m.

this is very simple to troubleshoot, really. People who don't want to learn can pay others 50 bucks an hour but there is really no need to. Take the wire off each glow plug and check for electrical continuity. You will probably find at least two open. Replace these and your car will start fine. It is also possible to have a shorted glow plug but that would blow the fuse. so read on. If the plugs should all check good, then measure the voltage at any of the glow plugs while attempting to start. If no voltage- check for blown fuse. If fuse is ok then you can replace the more expensive units such as the timer unit but this is very rare indeed. Regards, GeorgeAnderson --
george anderson

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