2000 Volvo S80 Cranks but won't start

[trill2ride]

Hello everyone, I turned on my car in the afternoon yesterday and it cranked but it did not start. I turned it off and tried again; this time it cranked longer than it normally does but it did start at the end. This is not the first occurrence, it happened a couple of times before.

I have no problems with stalling or anything like that. My concern is that this will get progressively worse and eventually strand me somewhere I don't want to be. I want to get ahead of this issue and fix it before it gets worse.

Any suggestions/ideas on where to start and what the problem could be would be much appreciated.

Thank you.

[trill2ride]

Hey guys, I would appreciate any help to resolve this issue. Even a point in the right direction would be great help. I don't even know what I should be checking or looking into to.

Thanks.

[blmvolvos80]

Hi, I've got a 1999 S80 non-turbo with 2.9.

My short answer for you is based on a very long experience with my own car. Start by getting a $7 can of MAF sensor cleaner from the auto store and clean this sensor really well. Takes about 20 mins. You can find plenty of vids or instructions on this site or on youtube. If that doesn't work, you can go on to your cam sensor, crankshaft sensor, moving battery cable away from sensors, O2 sensors, or etm module, etc. (other suggestions you'll find on this topic), but I ignorantly went backwards. Did all that other stuff before the MAF sensor. The starter got weak and I tore the teeth up on my flywheel. Nearly stranded myself also. Only made it home after grabbing the serpentine belt and turning engine enough manually so that starter would engage other good teeth and luckily start engine. But, MAF was the problem, now car starts on first try every time. My most important piece of advice is next:

DO IT NOW! Do NOT just continue to try and start the car the way you are now. I did, and I lived to really regret it. Ended up having to drop subframe, disassemble engine and tranny, and replace flywheel. I'm a capable guy, and a mechanically inclined shade-tree mechanic, so I did it myself because it would have cost me both legs and a kidney on the black market to get done at the shop. I paid a heavy price for my procrastination! Anyone who knows what i'm talking about is probably laughing at me behind their screens right now. That's ok, though, I learned a lot of valuable information and built some character along the way. However, needless to say, I'll not do that again.

My last piece of advice:
Don't ignore my advice.

Good luck, friend!