Brake job went well,new rotors,pads and hardware.Started bleeding sequence (not ABS) using Power Bleeder left rear bled O.K.,left frt.top bled O.K.,went to right frt.top and it wouldn't bleed.Cleaned bleeder screw and still wouldn't bleed.Right rear also wouldn't eather.Any idea why? I have a pedal but spungy.Car will stop but not fast enough.Brakes where O.K. before doing brake job. Thanks for any help,Charlie 85 240ti

First I want to thank all of you for your replies.It's great to know when you need help there are a lot of Brick Boarder's that are very knowledgable and are willing to shear it. Well the problem was a clogged erea behind the bleeder screw.Checked all the bleeder screws before pumping up the Power Bleeder and found 3 clogged.Where the air came from I don't know but after bleeding the calipers 2 times and got all the old fluid out the brakes are better then ever. Thanks,Charlie

Thanks guys Im going to try the things you have mensioned tomarrow.Jessie, I didn't open the hydralic system just press back the pistons to install new pads.the brake failure light works so i'm thinking blockage in the caliper.Oh ya Art I am using the Power Bleeder 10psi.Ron,My Bently manual shows a pres.differential warning valve near the front left tire,these are on 83 to 90 cars. Thanks Again,Charlie

If you didn't open the lines you shouldn't have any air in the system. Are you sure you don't have a caliper with a bad seal? The problem with going from old pads to new ones is often that you push a rusty piston back into the bore. Around here that usually results in a seized caliper, but they leak sometimes too.

A technique I use it to use the caliper piston to bleed air out. I pump the caliper piston out with the brake pedal. I use a worn out pad to stop the piston from pushing right out of the caliper. Jam the brake pedal down a little to block the fluid return in the MC, then open the bleed screw and push the piston back in until fluid comes out the screw. If there is any air in the caliper it will be pushed out. You can also back bleed the front lines into the master cylinder the same way except you don't push the brake pedal down or open the bleed screw. This is a drivay hacker technique but it has always worked for me. The wife hates pumping the brake pedal so I have developed alternative techniques.

Why did you open the hydraulic system? Did you change your brake lines?

Charlie, I've had this happen before doing "pressure" bleeding -- where I add about 10 lbs to the brake reservoir. Is that the type of power bleeding you're doing?

A hunk of crud gets in a caliper passageway or even close to the bleeder screw and blocks it. Sometimes I pump up to 20 lbs, after tying a nylon wrap around the reservoir and master - that really makes the reservoir bulge - and the piece makes it through the bleed screw. But sometimes not. That is when the master itself needs to supply the oomph; time to beg for assistance pushing the brake pedal.

I suppose the crud-clog may be the result of a former bad practice- squeezing the pistons back with the bleed screws closed.

With reference to the warning light switch, that last ditch attempt to blast the crud through can set an old switch to one side, lighting the lamp. But in the 240, that is not manually reset by pulling off the electrical contact like it was in the earlier cars. It has springs that are supposed to return (center) the plunger automatically, and the contact pin slides smoothly and does not lock a valve to shut off the bad circuit. But again, crud can hang it up, so blasting through with the pedal may have more consequences than you desired. That's when you go by the book and clean/rebuild/replace calipers and hoses.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore

I've never seen evidence of any free-floating obstructions in the lines that actually plug up as a result of normal bleeding, and can't think of how such a thing would actually be created. In my experience it's usually just common corrosion inside the caliper, the result of time, water, chemical breakdown of the brake fluid, and a lot of heat. When this is happened I've always been able to clear out the obstruction in the caliper mechanically with a probe. You don't have to poke in very far; it's usually right around where the bleeder screw is. It feels like a hard little crust, and when you poke through, it breaks up and then the fluid starts to flow just fine. Especially if the MC wasn't new, I'd feel nervous about nudging the pressure up in the hopes of blasting this kind of corrosion out.

Hey scorch, I saw your reply just as I posted. Reminded me I had poked one free that way, with the same wire used to ensure the bleeder screw wasn't plugged. Good advice, you're absolutely right to try that before resorting to the foot.

I've got to cure myself of that lazy bad habit of changing pads w/o opening the screws. But you can inherit worse from the POs. Here's a seized one had nothing worth saving;-)

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Art Benstein near Baltimore

Wow, that's amazing! What are these people thinking? I'm starting to think that previous owners ought to be outlawed. Or maybe brickboard membership needs to be mandatory if somebody is going to own a Volvo. This kind of stuff is like child abuse!

You've probably got air in the right front.

Take the bleeder screw out (the one that wouldn't bleed), and use a probe or ice pick to poke into the threaded hole in the caliper that the bleeder valve came out of. It's probably just plugged up with corrosion. Make sure the valve is completely clean and free of any obstruction. Most likely, when you start poking around the threaded hole in the caliper, the fluid will start flowing out of it. I'm sure the manual will say that you'll have to bleed the whole system again, but you can probably just bleed the right front upper (it's on a different circuit than the right front lower. Then do the right rear in the same fashion.

If you can't get the thing bled at all, you'll have to take the caliper off the wheel, pop that cylinder piston out, find out what the obstruction is clean it, and rebuild it with some new rubber seals. If you see no obstruction in the calipers, look for a problem in the lines somewhere. But most likely it's just gunk built up inside the caliper right where the bleeder screw is. It's common.

Hi Charlie,

I don't know if this applys to an 85 240 but my 72 ES has what they call a "Warning Valve". If your 85 has such a valve you may have activated the valve when you were bleeding your brakes. You did not say any thing about the brake warning light in the instrument cluster so you may not have a warning valve or the light in the instrument cluster is burned out.
If you do find that you have a warning valve then you need to reset it.

Remove the electrical connection on top and loosen the switch housing just enough to let the poston inside return to the center of the housing.

If you have a meter set it up as if you were looking for a short. Place one lead on the electrical connection and the other on a ground (one of the brake lines will do, there close). If the warning valve has been triggerd you will see a short. Loosen the switch housing until the short is gone and retighten the switch housing.

Hope this helps,

Ron J