I own/owned 83 760 GLE (sold for parts), 87 740 GLE Wagon at 251K, and purchased last May a 93 960 (bought at 196K, currently at 206K). I've known a good Volvo mechanic for years, he needed the money, and I was looking for something newer. Previous owner broke timing belt on 960, mechanic replaced at 196K, and had torn down engine & repaired head. So, I've been driving car for 10K miles, knowing winter is rough on all cars, kept the 740 until the 960 proves itself.

Drove home from work a couple of weeks ago, parked 960 in driveway. The next morning, temps dropped near zero, car turned over, but did not start (it did seem to fire, though, now it does not).

Wife wants me to do something other than enjoy football on TV, so after 15 years of paying for service, I decided to climb under the hood, and get my hands dirty. BTW (by the way), Volvos are awesome, and I let everyone know!

Here's where I'm at:

1. Bought a Chilton's manual.
2. Determined engine is B6304. Distributorless ignition. Coil over plugs.
3. Read the manual.
4. Pushed the car into the garage, so I can add heat and survive the cold.
5. Read the manual some more.
6. Cleaned up the battery, added distilled water, charged.
7. Tried to start. Better turn, but no catch.
8. Read the codes from DLC-A. 1-1-1 in mode 1, nothing in mode 2, 1-1-1 in mode 3.
9. Smell gas.
10. Uncovered shrader (sp?) valve on injector rail, pushed in needle, and got good spray of gas.
11. Timing belt changed at 196K (10,000 miles ago).
12. Replaced plugs with Volvo plugs. Bosch plugs were dry, and in decent shape.
13. Tried to start. Good turn, but not even a hint of spark.
14. Attempted, unsuccessfully, to remove connector from coils and test them for 1 ohm across terminals 1 & 2. I'm hesitant to apply too much pressure to connectors thinking breaking them would make things worse...

Need advice on how to test, and next steps.

A. Seems Crank (RPM) sensor is next likely target. Manual says to check for 200-500 ohms across sensor. I think I've got it located, a wire comes up from the rear of the engine, and connects into the harness with some funky looking connector with a wire clip. White plastic on the side from the engine/trans. Does that sound right?

B. Coils did not "click" onto plugs. I added di-electric to top of plugs, coil just kind of "slid" on easily. Should I do some more testing of the coils?

C. Given the plugs were dry, even after many unsuccessful attempts at starting, do I need to do some testing around the injectors?

D. I'll take the oil cap off & check that the cam is working per the posts in the off-chance the timing belt let loose.

Read through posts, synthetic is going in once it is running. I'm not adverse into purchasing test equipment, or other things to make job easier. Just let me know.

Thanks for your help,
Dan