1998 V70R Crank, no Start - IMPENDING WILDFIRES [LAWN MOWER SYNDROME] Topic is solved

atomicthumbs · Post by **atomicthumbs** » 27 Oct 2019, 19:25

I live in Marin County, CA, which is currently under a countywide blackout to prevent PG&E's faulty equipment from causing more fires; no mechanics are open. There's a massive wildfire burning to the north, with evacuations to the Marin County line.

I just found that my car (which has previously always started, except for a failed battery) won't start, with a problem I have no clue to diagnose. It worked yesterday, when I moved it between parking spaces, and all days before that, with no obvious issues.

OBD-II says it has misfire codes for cylinders 1, 3, 4, and 5, along with the regular long-term codes I haven't been able to fix (small evap leak and TC lockup failure).

I can hear cylinder 2 catching when I crank it, but it will not turn over on its own.

Where do I even start with this? I have screwdrivers, wrenches, and a multimeter, but nothing fancier, and I live in a rural area with very poor bus service into town.

I can't go to work, and I can't evacuate if a fire starts nearby. Trying hard not to panic here.

Post by **abscate** » 27 Oct 2019, 19:31

Open up the distributor cap, take pictures of the cap and rotor, wipe it dry, make the brass parts shiny with a sharp knife.

Then put some starting fluid into the cylinders and see if it breathes fire.

Once you get it running, drive it to a safe spot, then go rent a Prius and buy the insurance option. Drive that back to your place.

Post by **abscate** » 27 Oct 2019, 19:32

It worked yesterday, when I moved it between parking spaces, and all days before that, with no obvious issues.

Missed that. Look for “ lawn mower syndrome” here and read those threads!!!

atomicthumbs · Post by **atomicthumbs** » 27 Oct 2019, 21:03

abscate wrote: ↑27 Oct 2019, 19:32
It worked yesterday, when I moved it between parking spaces, and all days before that, with no obvious issues.
Missed that. Look for “ lawn mower syndrome” here and read those threads!!!

thank you - the distributor seems a bit difficult to get to. I've asked folks on Nextdoor if they have a spark plug socket I could borrow to dribble some oil into the cylinders.

If this turns out to be the case, it will be absolutely the stupidest problem I've ever dealt with on any of my Volvos, and that includes the alternator on my 940 falling off.

atomicthumbs · Post by **atomicthumbs** » 28 Oct 2019, 18:23

Couldn't get the plugs out, but I charged the battery off the neighbors' generator, pulled the injector fuse, cranked it for quite a while in stints, and when I put the fuse back in and started it, it roared to life with a clatter and a cloud of smoke. It's idling smoothly now. THANK YOU!!

Post by **erikv11** » 28 Oct 2019, 21:25

atomicthumbs wrote: ↑28 Oct 2019, 18:23 Couldn't get the plugs out, but I charged the battery off the neighbors' generator, pulled the injector fuse, cranked it for quite a while in stints, and when I put the fuse back in and started it, it roared to life with a clatter and a cloud of smoke. It's idling smoothly now. THANK YOU!!

thumbs, sounds like you didn't need to evacuate yet, hope all is well and stays well! Good job getting it going and thanks for posting back with the solution.

Post by **abscate** » 29 Oct 2019, 04:38

Classic lawnmower syndrome. If you start the car to move it for any reason, let it run at least three minutes to get rid of all the cold start fuel; that will avoid it.

Post by **BlackBart** » 29 Oct 2019, 12:07

erikv11 wrote: ↑28 Oct 2019, 21:25 thumbs, sounds like you didn't need to evacuate yet, hope all is well and stays well! Good job getting it going and thanks for posting back with the solution.

Yes, good luck out there!

I did this years ago to my 850 - washed down the cylinder walls so no compression and it just spun and spun. My clue was that it was spinning so fast and not catching at all. I pulled the plugs and let it dry out.

Post by **scot850** » 29 Oct 2019, 12:17

Hopefully fire misses you. I have a brother in Santa Rosa on stand by but currently they are ok but without power.

I wish you all luck out there. Glad car is running again too!

Neil.

Post by **abscate** » 29 Oct 2019, 13:00

Re-titled.

Violated CAPS rule in title because IMPENDING WILDFIRES just required CAPS.