My bet is that the stalk went bad. That's the 'Button that sticks up. It has a switch built into it. If you take the Bolster (carpet above your knees) off on the drivers side and look for a white connector with three wires going into it. (Red, Green and black with red cover) and disconnect it. That works the door lock on the drivers side.
see if that works for you.

If you had an e-mail address I'd send you a pic of the connector to look for
--
'75 Jeep CJ5 345Hp ChevyPwrd, two motorcycles, '85 Pickup: The '89 Volvo is the newest vehicle I own. it wasn't Volvos safety , it was Longevity that sold me

Trev 29 has it right. I just went through this on my daughter's 240. The locks really acted crazy. Sometimes they would work, sometimes not. Sometimes they would lock and unlock while driving. The problem was in the switch connected to the locking button on the driver's door.

If you want to just get rid of all electric locking, take off the door panel and look for a three pin connector which will be stuck to the door metal, using a black tar stuff, near the rear of the door. This is the connector for the dual lock switch. Disconnect this connector and all electric locks are disabled. However, you'll find that all the doors except the driver's door will be pretty stiff when unlocked with the key. This is because you are having to move the lock motor at the same time. (Yes, there are small motors which operate each lock unlike solenoids as I had thought. I'm always learning.)

I disconnected the electric locks as described then went to a pick-and-pull salvage to find a replacement lock. I got one for $10. Be sure to find one which has good insulation on the wires. I tested the lock with an ohmmeter to ge sure it worked. The lock is actually double. There is a switch which connects to the push button and a second switch which wraps around the key lock. They are not hard to get out and replace. If you take one out at a salvage yard, study how it all goes together.

I'm not familiar with the '89's additional feature (see B.C's post) but the locks are controlled by two switches. One wraps around the key lock, the other is actuated by the pull knob.

Each switch has 3 wires to it (common, lock, unlock). So if any of those wires are broken you'll have problems. You'll need to pull the door panel on the drivers side to examine the wires (blk, red, grn).

I disabled my key actuated switch as I didn't like all doors opening when I turned the key. If I want to open/close all doors, I just use the driver's side knob.
--
1980 245 Canadian B21A with SU carb and M46 trans

I'd speak to the president/owner of the organization, and ask for an explanation of such a ridiculous assessment. I think people that insult your intelligence need to be called on it. That's just me though, and I'd probably still want to take my repairs elsewhere.
--
David Armstrong - '86 240(350k km?), '93 940T(270k km), '89 240(parts source for others) near

re: "...Now our local Volvo dealer says about a grand plus to "align the locks" !!..."

Wow! Either he's a real ripoff (wants to send his kids to Ivy League college), or else he just doesn't want to mess with the job and quoted you that suspiciously rounded figure to discourage you from giving me the job ("That should scare him away" being what he was thinking).

I had the same type problems. I think you will find it to be broken wires in the drivers door hinge area inside the rubber boot.

you say:

The driver side will not lock by key or by pushing down manually..

You refer to the driver's door, right? That door has an extra feature in it that prevents the door from being locked by key or button if the door is open.

On my 1988 244GL, we found that the door can seem fully closed, but not enough to allow locking. Another, harder, closing does the job every time. Note that disengaging the central locking system will not affect this "protection".

The other rain dance you are going through can be related to age and hardening of the lube in the solenoids.

Find an independent Volvo shop to work with, many dealers are focussed on your wallet more than on your car. Some say it's a form of IQ test. If a customer is willing to pay $1,000+ for a "Lock alignment", he has money and is a fool, and you know the rest of that.

Good Luck,

Bob

:>)