Hi, This is my first time here. Have read all the info. on bricks not starting. My husband bought mine brand new and said it would last the rest of my life. He is frantically trying to get it running again. It has 130,000 miles on it and he has maintained it perfectly. It has never quit on me...however several years ago it would just die while driving down the street..you could put it in neutral and it would start back up. We don't have a volvo house here but a "mechanic" said it was the fuel filter and we started changing them about every year or so. Anyway, this time the car died and would not start. We pulled it home and he began testing. He said it's getting fire. He had bought dist. cap but decided not to put it on after reading about hall sensor. He did order a fuel press. reg. and two relays. None of these have helped. It will start for a second and die when you try to drive it. Now we are about to order the two fuel pumps today and see if that works. By the way, about 4 years ago squirrels got under the hood and literally chewed up the wiring harness($2000 worth)....so that has been replaced. I know this is long but we need help. Thanks ahead of time.
dandeeman

If you're sure that it has good strong spark, then I'd say fuel pump relay.
With someone turning the key, cranking the engine, the main fuel pump under the front seat ought to run and it should be a noticeable buzz.
The fuel pump relay is in the main fuse box, in the left front of it. Remove the trim ring for cig lighter, then 2 screws for the coin tray above the ashtray. Unplug the old and plug in the new. IF you want a spare, pop the old one open and re-solder terminals inside.
If no improvement, or if you determine the fuel pump still does not run, I would then think possibly the fuel pump has died (they do that occasionally) or the hall sensor in the distributor is being intermittent.
If that's the case, replacement of the dist is the fix- it's a pricey part but installation is really pretty easy, two 10mm bolts on the back of the head. New unit comes with a new cap.
Before you get that drastic though, inspect the old cap and make sure it's not all black and crusty inside.
Good luck with it!
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Rob Bareiss, New London CT ::: '87 244DL/M47- 234K, '82 245T/M46-182K, '89 244DL/AW70- 212K Not too distant past: 86 244DL 215K, 87 244DL 239K, 88 744GLE 233K, 88 244GL 147K, 91 244 183K

hi there,
Try to run the car with starter fluid. It it runs then ur electrical is fine..If i were u i would start looking for the easy stuff like fuses, relays. ect.. and check the hall sensor on the dist. if the connection is hanging down form thedist u will need new hall sensor but i highly recommend rebuilt dist comes with everthing .. If u wanna save some money on parts order them from www.Fcpgroton.com. I did buz wiht them and they fast, nicely priced..
Good luck
Sammy

If it just quits, electrical..If it stumbles, fuel issue..

before you spend any more money, look in the faqs, there's good info on nostarts and where to look. like, before you buy fuel pumps, how to check the fuel pump relay. how to check for spark, maybe it does need a cap. good luck, chuck.