Hello fellow members! I just joined this forum, and I wish I could say it was just for fun, but actually I'm stuck at Yellowstone National Park with a sick 1990 240 and a mad girlfriend. I just bought this car from a doctor in Portland, OR who took great care of it. It's a manual transmission and I have service records going back to new. I had this crazy idea of driving it back home to Cleveland, OH this week with my girlfriend. Everything was going well until now. I felt comfortable driving it back because the doctor had just had it fully gone over by his shop and given a clean bill of health after about $1500 in service. It ran/drove absolutely perfectly. So, on to relevant details. Yesterday, after about 300 miles of driving, the check engine light came on. I'm a fairly tolerant old-car driver, and since it didn't change how it ran, I wasn't worried. What I did eventually notice, however was very bad fuel economy- about 15-16 mpg. I figured I might foul out some plugs and burn a bunch of gas, but still probably get home. The exhaust smelled rich and it would stumble a bit at idle, but hey, keep going, right??? So we decided to visit Yellowstone on our way. We got to a desolate place about 20 miles from nowhere, when the car became very weak on power and stumbled and finally stalled out and wouldn't restart. I should mention that at this time the fuel was getting rather low, slightly into the red. The car was dead at the side of the road and wouldn't restart for any length of time longer than a few seconds (and ran terribly). We did have cell signal so I started calling places for a tow, the closest of which was 30+ miles away. The car sat for a half hour or so while other motorists passed us with a "good luck, dumbass" sneer. After a half hour of sitting, it restarted! It wasn't running perfectly but I was able to nurse it 20 miles of beautiful scenic desolate roads to West Yellowstone. At this point I was suspecting an overheated fuel pump (outside temps were 80+) which in some cars can be exacerbated by low fuel levels. I filled it up with gas here in West Yellowstone and it runs "ok" but not overly well. I read the codes on the LED under the hood and there were three codes. I don't remember them exactly but they all had to do with "Lambda running too rich/lean". Duh, it's running too rich. There are no mechanics or auto parts stores open in this town until Monday so I don't have a lot of options. I *suspect* this has all been caused by a bad O2 sensor sending too much fuel. What I didn't expect was the car completely dying at the side of the road. Are these unrelated conditions or was the fuel pump working hard at high temps with no spare fuel in the tank to cool it and overheated? Can I keep the fuel level above half and get home 1800 miles? Should I try changing the plugs on Monday thinking they are probably getting fouled? I doubt fouled plugs left me at the side of the road only to restart after 30 minutes. Do I have to wait to Monday to get someone to change my O2 sensor? What should I do???? Thanks for any and all advice. John 440-339-4341

I sincerely hope you can get your brick going, but this post isn’t really about that. I want to mention about making a long, involved post, and believe me, I’ve done it.

One time, after I had made a long post such as yours, one of the brick-boarders, and I don’t recall who, suggested I paragraph my posts even if a paragraph wasn’t really called for. It doesn't have to be paragraphed as much as I just did in this post; I'm just showing an example. I now follow his suggestion.

Maybe a paragraph every 8-10 sentences, more or less, you decide. It makes it so much easier to read and follow. Just a friendly suggestion. Good luck with your brick.

Hey Johnwillo, don't leave us all up in the air. What was the final outcome? Did you fix the car on Monday and drive back to Cleveland? What was wrong with the car?

So I got home after 6 days of driving and 2934 total miles. It was definitely running rich as I was getting 10-15 mpg. I had a blast and it was a great trip. I've named the Volvo Helga and having her looked a this week as to what caused the running too rich condition. So far I suspect O2 sensor, airflow sensor, crank sensor or coolant temp sensor. I drove her a bunch today and she was great. She consumed about 1/8 of a quart of oil in 3000 miles- amazing. Thanks to everyone for your suggestions. As it turned out, keeping the fuel level above half and cleaning the plugs daily got me home!

Hint: When the CEL lights for many reasons, including extremely lean (such as caused by a tank pump hose or failed pump), the fuel management system sets "limp home" mode until you clear the computer's memory by lifting the fuse momentarily. If you don't clear it, the limp home mixture is super rich.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore

GREAT TRUTHS THAT ADULTS HAVE LEARNED:
Middle age is when you choose your cereal for the fiber, not the toy.

Check the vacuum hose on the fuel pressure regular for gas fumes.
Dan

You also may have a failed in tank pump hose.

Dan

You also may have a failed in tank pump hose.

Dan

Thanks for the update. Glad you got home safely. Sounds like you got a really fine car with one small elusive problem.
Give us a final update after you find the cause of the rich running condition. Never know when that might happen to me as it probably applies to all fuel injected cars.

With the engine off, unplug the air mass meter from the wiring harness and then try to start the car. Does it run any better or worse? If so, your air mass meter is faulty and needs to be replaced. This is an easy 10 minute job and the only tool required is a screwdriver. However, you would need to order the part and have it shipped to you in situ, which may be difficult.

With the air mass meter disconnected, the ECU will revert to a pre-programmed fuel map that should allow you to limp home, but I wouldn't drive the car 18000 miles that way. You risk frying the catalytic converter, you fuel mileage will be abysmal, and you will not have full power. It's good enough for driving across town at low speeds (25-30 mph) but not highway driving.

The $1500 service should have covered it -- but check the air cleaner. Clogged enough and the symptoms are just as you described. Check engine light, terrible fuel mileage and continued rough running. Don't ask how I know (embarrassed)....
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82 242 5.0L; '10 Cayman S; '15 Honda Fit

Not knowing what the $1500 entailed BUt if they didnt do the pump & sock in the 100,000 that could be clogged up.I have taken pumps out of junkers & flushed them w carburetor cleaner & they worked fine,,so maybe if worse comes to worse you take the assembly out & try to back flush the pump ,,& or leave the sock off you maybe abeto get it to run,,THANKS to Al Gore for the internet,,,now if he could just airlift you a pump & sock for good measure!

Read this thread:

http://forums.turbobricks.com/showthread.php?t=311818

Just ignore the jerks.

TLDR? Reset your computer by momentarily lifting the 25A fuse under the hood. Get down to below 2000 feet ASML by keeping the gas tank filled with cool fuel and the computer reset each time the CEL lights. Get the tank pump fixed.

Art Benstein near Baltimore

Children: You spend the first 2 years of their life teaching them to walk and talk. Then you spend the next 16 years telling them to sit down and shut-up.

even if they stick out their thumbs,,don't pickup any Bison.

Funny see you as "Noob" on anything Volvo related.

2-3-2

1-1-3

2-3-1

2-2-1

These are the codes I got. And I wasn't able to erase them, even following the instructions.

Hi,

I don't have a 240 but my 940 also uses the same Bosch system.

The fuel pump is cooled by the fuel flowing thru them. And the immersed in-tank pump is also cooled by the fuel surrounding it.

Your O2 sensor may be sensing the abnormal mixture at the combustion end but don't forget your AFM is sensing the air at the intake end. The AFM could also be faulty here. And your OBD codes also seem to suggest air issues. Try starting the engine with the AFM electrical connector unplugged.

Next check for any looseness of EVERY vacuum hoses to the engine and this includes the large hose from brake booster to engine. You shouldn't be able to freely twist any hoses at their attachment ports if they are tight. If you could then cut them off a bit and stuff the remaining hoses back into their ports. The no start condition could also be due to looseness of your large accordion air intake hose between the engine and air flow meter. For this you could try tighten the screw clamps.

Others to do:
Also open your air filter box and see if any foreign body blocking the airflow (insects along the road maybe?). Just check your plugs and see if any needs replacing. Ensure your plug cables are tight.

There could also be other issues but lets tackle these first.

Regards,
Amarin.

I second the AFM/AMM... air flow meter, air mass meter. With ignition off!, unplug it. If it runs better, you've likely found your culprit. If it runs worse, you've likely ruled out that culprit. Do not un-plug it or plug it in unless the ignition is off.

It's a quick thing to check, and costs $0. I've never had a 240 new enough to have OBD, so I don't know codes. But your symptoms sure sound similar to failed AMM that I've experienced in earlier 240 models.
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-Matt I ♥ my ♂