What did you do to your Volvo today? Topic is solved

[jsrnsis]

Recently picked up a 1997 GLT that needed a bit of work, and now that it's back running (and stopping) it seems the only remaining major problem is the starter takes a long time to get the car going. Alternator voltage is 14.4 volts, and one time it was taking a while to start, I turned the key off and then tried to start again and it sounded like something was grinding. Could the starter be fried from the previous owner running a bad battery and just jumping it with a jump pack every time they needed to drive the car?

Other than that I've been trying to diagnose some front end clunking on my black 98 xc, and hoping its not sway bar bushings. I also lost all the pictures of my week+ long door panel leather insert repair....

I did install Bi-LED projectors in a set of old headlight housings, I just need to figure out a way to put heat shrink on the cracked wiring insulation, I'd like to avoid cutting and soldering the wires.

[yanga001]

Recently picked up a 1997 GLT that needed a bit of work, and now that it's back running (and stopping) it seems the only remaining major problem is the starter takes a long time to get the car going. Alternator voltage is 14.4 volts, and one time it was taking a while to start, I turned the key off and then tried to start again and it sounded like something was grinding. Could the starter be fried from the previous owner running a bad battery and just jumping it with a jump pack every time they needed to drive the car?
...
I did install Bi-LED projectors in a set of old headlight housings, I just need to figure out a way to put heat shrink on the cracked wiring insulation, I'd like to avoid cutting and soldering the wires.

Old starters may need a wack every so often. A bad starter is more likely to just click and not engage as opposed to grind itself up. May have been the motor engaged but did not make contact with the flywheel. Had that happen to my V70 once, but it did not repeat the failure later.

I would just use electrical tape for the wiring as it is not a high access area. You could use a rubberized coating if you want to be fancier. The heat shrink will contract the materials so there is no real way to get it on if you cut it. You could get oversized tubing and see if it will shrink small enough to fit around the wires.

[scot850]

AS suggested above, you could use liquid tape to cover the wires if you can't set heat shrink over them. A more radical thing would be to cut the wire and slide heat shrink over it and then re-solder the cut and heatshrink that.

Old starters sometimes just need cleaned and lubed. My brother was having similar issues to what you are saying. In his case fitting a new starter resolved all the issues.

Starters wear their contact brushes which produce a lot of dust internally. On a 93 850 we had I had to replace the starter as there is a plastic casing internally that was breaking up which was jamming the spindle. Bearings also wear.

Check the wire between the solenoid and the starter motor for corrosion and breaking up.

Finally check all your grounds are clean and solid.

Neil

[jsrnsis]

Old starters may need a wack every so often. A bad starter is more likely to just click and not engage as opposed to grind itself up. May have been the motor engaged but did not make contact with the flywheel. Had that happen to my V70 once, but it did not repeat the failure later.

I would just use electrical tape for the wiring as it is not a high access area. You could use a rubberized coating if you want to be fancier. The heat shrink will contract the materials so there is no real way to get it on if you cut it. You could get oversized tubing and see if it will shrink small enough to fit around the wires.

The time my starter failed, it simply made no noise, just totally dead. Thankfully the car was street parked at the end of my driveway. Maybe I'll try giving it a slap with a rubber mallet.

I tried electrical tape, but I don't like the tendency to turn to goop, especially in the high temperatures of the headlight housing. Maybe I can un-crimp the spade connectors on the ends of the wires. It's honestly pretty low on the priority list now that my former weekend/project car is now my daily driver.

[jsrnsis]

AS suggested above, you could use liquid tape to cover the wires if you can't set heat shrink over them. A more radical thing would be to cut the wire and slide heat shrink over it and then re-solder the cut and heatshrink that.

Old starters sometimes just need cleaned and lubed. My brother was having similar issues to what you are saying. In his case fitting a new starter resolved all the issues.

Starters wear their contact brushes which produce a lot of dust internally. On a 93 850 we had I had to replace the starter as there is a plastic casing internally that was breaking up which was jamming the spindle. Bearings also wear.

Check the wire between the solenoid and the starter motor for corrosion and breaking up.

Finally check all your grounds are clean and solid.

Neil

The car needs a PCV done anyways, so when that's done I'll blow the starter out with air, maybe I'll just order a replacement anyways. A ground might be the issue, I have yet to dive into electrical diagrams to try to see why the mirror and rear windshield defrost, as well as both front heated seats wouldn't be working. Just seems odd for everything to be non-functional at the same time.

The broken wire between the solenoid and starter is what failed on my 94. When I had the intake off for the PCV I noticed it had a pretty strong copper patina on it, so I brushed it off and applied liquid electrical tape, then the starter failed not long after, and the braided cable had disintegrated all the way through.

On the topic of the PCV, I need to do the 5/8 hose upgrade on the black wagon, which has a lot of oil build up in the PTC. There's also oil seeping out of the short hose that connects the charge pipe that goes over the engine to the turbo. I replaced the PCV around 10k miles ago, but the vacuum line corroded and I think it might need the 5/8 hose at this mileage.

On the white wagon, we had to redo the PCV because the 5/8 hose kinked once the manifold was replaced, and built up pressure in the crankcase, blowing oil out of the rear main seal. Using a 90° coupler that came in an old IPD PCV kit seems to have fixed the issue. The aftermarket Rein PCV vent hose from the top the engine actually fell apart at the seam between the hose sections. I guess that's what I get for trying to avoid paying for the $40 Volvo hose.

[scot850]

That hose to the top is incredibly bad from 'alternate' manufacturers. Most go hard and split or leak at the top connection, or blow off there.

On P2's they originally fitted a corrugated hose which was thin and crumbled. They them replaced it with the old version from the P80's.

On your wiring, have you tried the tape that is used for wrapping cable harnesses in place of the electrical tape. It may still turn to goop but less quickly. The other option is the cut and cover with heat shrink.

Good luck!

Neil.

[duke1]

Old starters may need a wack every so often. A bad starter is more likely to just click and not engage as opposed to grind itself up. May have been the motor engaged but did not make contact with the flywheel. Had that happen to my V70 once, but it did not repeat the failure later.

I would just use electrical tape for the wiring as it is not a high access area. You could use a rubberized coating if you want to be fancier. The heat shrink will contract the materials so there is no real way to get it on if you cut it. You could get oversized tubing and see if it will shrink small enough to fit around the wires.

The time my starter failed, it simply made no noise, just totally dead. Thankfully the car was street parked at the end of my driveway. Maybe I'll try giving it a slap with a rubber mallet.

I tried electrical tape, but I don't like the tendency to turn to goop, especially in the high temperatures of the headlight housing. Maybe I can un-crimp the spade connectors on the ends of the wires. It's honestly pretty low on the priority list now that my former weekend/project car is now my daily driver.

hi have you thought of using amalgamating tape?it makes for good insulation and is heat proof and waterproof and does not turn goopy like insulating tape does,i have used it loads also great on the powerchairs i build and make looms for myself,easier than trying to get shrink tubing on too! i would put a link to seller but its uk so no help but most good sellers of electrical bits will sell it,good luck

[jsrnsis]

I installed this Rein engine mount two days ago and it's already shot....

20240517_201505.jpg (230.66 KiB) Viewed 3535 times

For anyone wondering, on AWD P80s, you don't need to buy the specific lower front engine mount for the AWD model that comes with the aluminum riser plate, you can just pull a little pin off and reuse the plate and any other FWD lower mount (besides the 93 and 94 that have a different pattern).

This was to replace an MTC branded mount that failed within a month, I guess now I'll be going back to the OEM Volvo one that I thought needed to be replaced.

I was freaking out about some new higher frequency vibrations thinking my rebuilt hard-to-find 1998 passenger side AWD CV axle, angle gear, driveshaft, etc was going out.

I also tightened up the upper torque mount bolt the other day, which would have saved me a lot of time solving a clunk and installing a new front CV joint on my rear drive shaft.

[RedBrickCollector]

This is a strange one. My brother was going to use the car for a quick errand, came outside because I heard it crank but not start. Happened to him three or four times, by the last one he tried lightly pressing on the accelerator while cranking.

I told him to get out and let me try it and it started as normal.

Now the first question I have is why it didn't start with him? Are the key switches sensitive to technique?

Then next question is how the ECU trats gas pedal input on startup, like is this one of those cars that has a clear flooded cylinder mode?

[jsrnsis]

This is a strange one. My brother was going to use the car for a quick errand, came outside because I heard it crank but not start. Happened to him three or four times, by the last one he tried lightly pressing on the accelerator while cranking.

I told him to get out and let me try it and it started as normal.

Now the first question I have is why it didn't start with him? Are the key switches sensitive to technique?

Then next question is how the ECU trats gas pedal input on startup, like is this one of those cars that has a clear flooded cylinder mode?

That sounds a lot like what happened to me when my fuel pump relay was going bad. Car would crank and crank for the first few turns of the key, and then it would start. It got worse in the cold, and eventually there would be a loud, rapid clicking, and after this the car would start. Then one 12°F morning it wouldn't start and I had to change out my relay with a spare, which also went bad. The gentleman I bought a car from, MrAl on this forum, and other users have posted some guides on how to repair a fuel pump relay with two capacitors.