Towed Home

[Clemens]

It’s a 2.5 hour book job for the fuel pump on a FWD car.

So part plus about $400 labor

Really? It took me like an hour.

[abscate]

The fuel pump relay lives under the fuse panel under the dash cowl. You have To release the top,with some tire screws to get access

Screen grabs from Robert Spinners video

[yanga001]

If you have never changed the fuel pump relay, that is one of the easier troubleshooting steps, and if it's original to the car, you should do that as a maintenance item anyway.
Avoid URO and ProParts, Volvo is best but pricey, Stribel is OEM. I just bought some that were boxed as Meyle but turned out to be Stribel.

Yeah ha ha im just kind of finding out about that now, but guess what. Cant find the fuel pump relay.
Here is an actual pic of the car where the relays and fuses are under the hood.
I see other relays, but nothing labeled as a fuel pump, only a fuse for the fuel pump.
Is it somewhere else on this car ?
Thanks.

Note the green outlined inset is a better picture of the labels the camera cord got in the way of that first pic.

the fuel pump relay is under the main fuse panel, ie look at the top right section if standing at the front of the hood, or the area where the windshield meets the drivers side of the hood. You need to undo the 4 torx screws and lift up the lid. The tall square based relay should be for the fuel pump. 103 if i recall correctly.

One thing i would say is its odd for the car to work for a bit and then not work at all. Maybe if it happens again, touch the fuel relay to see if its overheating or anything. As you know heat is the indicator of death in many electronics.

Next time it happens i would say try to start it while pushing the gas pedal a bit. If it catches there then its definately not the fuel pump relay.

The steering wheel lock mechanism can result in the key getting stuck inside. Normally the key should not come out if turned off in drive. Only in park and maybe neutral if i recall. When i crashed sideways into a tree my car turned itself off and we could not pull the key out as it was still in drive. Had to use the override button to put it in neutral and then park to get the key out.

If you are strapped for time, and the tubing looks good then pull off the tubing for the vacuum hose on the left side of the intake manifold and try to start the car. If it has the exact same symptoms as what has been happening then it may be a vacuum leak. This is not an exact science either.

Do you have any check engine lights coming on after this happens, any misfires or anything like that.

I would say it being intermittent likely points to some sort of connection be it electrical or vacuum. As far as i know pumps usually go all at once but correct me if i am wrong

[MrAl]

If you have never changed the fuel pump relay, that is one of the easier troubleshooting steps, and if it's original to the car, you should do that as a maintenance item anyway.
Avoid URO and ProParts, Volvo is best but pricey, Stribel is OEM. I just bought some that were boxed as Meyle but turned out to be Stribel.

Yeah ha ha im just kind of finding out about that now, but guess what. Cant find the fuel pump relay.
Here is an actual pic of the car where the relays and fuses are under the hood.
I see other relays, but nothing labeled as a fuel pump, only a fuse for the fuel pump.
Is it somewhere else on this car ?
Thanks.

Note the green outlined inset is a better picture of the labels the camera cord got in the way of that first pic.

the fuel pump relay is under the main fuse panel, ie look at the top right section if standing at the front of the hood, or the area where the windshield meets the drivers side of the hood. You need to undo the 4 torx screws and lift up the lid. The tall square based relay should be for the fuel pump. 103 if i recall correctly.

One thing i would say is its odd for the car to work for a bit and then not work at all. Maybe if it happens again, touch the fuel relay to see if its overheating or anything. As you know heat is the indicator of death in many electronics.

Next time it happens i would say try to start it while pushing the gas pedal a bit. If it catches there then its definately not the fuel pump relay.

The steering wheel lock mechanism can result in the key getting stuck inside. Normally the key should not come out if turned off in drive. Only in park and maybe neutral if i recall. When i crashed sideways into a tree my car turned itself off and we could not pull the key out as it was still in drive. Had to use the override button to put it in neutral and then park to get the key out.

If you are strapped for time, and the tubing looks good then pull off the tubing for the vacuum hose on the left side of the intake manifold and try to start the car. If it has the exact same symptoms as what has been happening then it may be a vacuum leak. This is not an exact science either.

Do you have any check engine lights coming on after this happens, any misfires or anything like that.

I would say it being intermittent likely points to some sort of connection be it electrical or vacuum. As far as i know pumps usually go all at once but correct me if i am wrong

Oh that's very interesting thanks, that explains a lot. I could not imagine why the key would not come out and the shifter locked up too, didnt make any sense, just like the other problems i had in the past with this car. I guess i am lucky i got 7 years out of it up to this point. Funny thing is, i hardly put any mileage on it, and about 3 or 4 months ago i paid $2800 USD for repairs. The guy that did the repairs said it is under warrantee but only if it is related to the repairs done previously. So if a different problem i still get soaked for more money.

So i have to take the main fuse panel off? Is that the one with all those littler fuses?
I had a feeling it was somewhere else other than with the other relays. Since it would make a lot more sense to put it with the other relays it makes even more sense that Volvo wouldnt do something that makes sense (ha ha ha). I say "Volvo" but it's really the computer systems that mess these cars up, even in other makes and models. The computer systems complicated things so much that it makes it a small miracle that any cars run at all anymore. Could you imagine the problems that are going to come up with self driving cars in the future? I hate to think about it as they rely on computers to navigate, even going 70 mph on a highway.

Thanks for the ideas and suggestions. At this point i appreciate every idea.

[foggydogg]

Yes and no; it's in the main fuse panel, but you have to unscrew the four torx screws and take off the top. It helps to pull off the small rubber
seal first. The screws are captured, they unclamp the cover and stay with it.
Picture from an earlier thread on MVS:

Volvo P80 FuelSystem.jpg (136.33 KiB) Viewed 420 times

Red 103 is the item of interest, if it's original to the car you need a new one anyway, even if it isn't the culprit.

[foggydogg]

So i have to take the main fuse panel off? Is that the one with all those littler fuses?
I had a feeling it was somewhere else other than with the other relays. Since it would make a lot more sense to put it with the other relays it makes even more sense that Volvo wouldnt do something that makes sense (ha ha ha). I say "Volvo" but it's really the computer systems that mess these cars up, even in other makes and models. The computer systems complicated things so much that it makes it a small miracle that any cars run at all anymore. Could you imagine the problems that are going to come up with self driving cars in the future? I hate to think about it as they rely on computers to navigate, even going 70 mph on a highway.

Thanks for the ideas and suggestions. At this point i appreciate every idea.

As Dr. Abscate pointed out above; my computer didn't load the pics on his post, so I doubled on his comment.

[MrAl]

Yes and no; it's in the main fuse panel, but you have to unscrew the four torx screws and take off the top. It helps to pull off the small rubber
seal first. The screws are captured, they unclamp the cover and stay with it.
Picture from an earlier thread on MVS:
Volvo P80 FuelSystem.jpg
Red 103 is the item of interest, if it's original to the car you need a new one anyway, even if it isn't the culprit.

Oh that's great thanks. Nothing beats a picture like that, and that is well detailed too i see.
Ok i saw the torx screws on mine too now so i know what to do, thanks much really.

Now one question came to mind. Does anyone happen to know the resistance of the fuel pump? I would assume there is some motor or something that draws current when it has to pump gas. If i could test that it might help too.

I realized i can do a pretty comprehensive test on the relay. I've dealt with many relays in the past. This one however does not have a clear case like many of them do so you can quickly inspect the contacts. I'd know right away if it was bad by looking at those contacts, then take it in the house and run some electrical tests on it to make sure it works normally. I'll also look for a new one. With the non clear case however i'd have to hope i can get the cover of the relay off, they often just snap on. If that's the case i can inspect the contacts no problem.

What still doesnt make too much sense to me is why it would not start after i drove 20 feet but then after sitting for maybe a half hour or so it ran fine again. That's the craziest thing about it. I am starting to wonder if it is worth fixing anymore. If it is going to be that unreliable, is it really worth the aggravation.

[MrAl]

Hello again,

I hate to ask this but, does anyone know the number of the torx bit for the relay box top?
I want to check the relay for the fuel pump but not sure what the torx bit number is i may have to order one.

Thanks for any info.

[foggydogg]

Dr. Abscate mentioned T25 in his post above, sounds right to me.
Replacing the relay with a quality new part is age related, and a matter of routine maintenance. It may not cure your base problem, but once replaced you can cross it off the list. Since you're trying to get your ride straightened out, my suggestion is replace it and experiment with the old one at your leisure.
https://www.autohausaz.com/pn/9434225?u ... YoQAvD_BwE
https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/volvo- ... ay-9434225

[volvolugnut]

I strongly suggest that if there is any chance you will continue to do work on this or any other modern vehicle, that you invest in a set of Torx bits to cover the many sizes. If you buy a few individually, you may spend as much as you would buying a set. There is also the convenience of having all the sizes you may need readily available.
volvolugnut