My '91 240 starts in gear (it's a manual), without the clutch depressed. I suspect there's a switch that needs replacing - can someone tell me which one??

Thanks,

Tom MacDonald

Minneapolis

No neutral safety switch. I think it's a good thing. I backed a dead car into the garage with the starter one time. I bet a woman who is stuck in the middle of the road would be happy putting it in 1st and cranking her way off the road. better than getting killed.

There is no clutch switch. There aren't such devices on Volvos until 99.

Many European cars didn't have these untill the 90's and their Euro sold versions usely still don't use this feature.

In countries where cars are effectively 100% manuals, people don't need external devices to assure their safety in this matter.

They have laws that mandate disabled cars be removed from roadways and the starter is one way this can be accomplished. In the old cities in many places in Europe the roads are in between ncient buildings and the width is not sufficient for shoulders so a stalledcar would stop any movement of traffic. The tow hooks we have are the result of some laws that mandate that other motorists assist you in getting a disabled car out of road. New cars come with tow ropes in many Scandinavian countries by law for this purpose.

You should always make sure any car is not in gear when starting as even if there is a clutch switch the clutch hydraulics or cable (cable on that car) could be out of adjustement or break and you could still run over someone or something.