85 240 stalling at random

My lady's 85 244 (B230F, LH-Jetronic) yesterday decided to start stalling on
her. In a 3-block trip it stalled 6 times. In each case it seemed to stall
when accelerating up to city speeds. The stall isn't preceded by any rough
running or bucking: it just quits. The engine starts up again willingly
after a stall, and while running it is as smooth as it ever is.

I'm aware of the fragile nature of the engine wiring harness, and that will
be my first path of investigation, but has anyone else come across this
problem before and found a different cause?

Thanks,
Lyle

 

Is the tank low when this happens? If so it could be the in-tank pump and/or
the main fuel filter. Another possible cause is the fuel pump relay. You can
open it up and look for broken solder joints and repair them or buy a new
one ($42-45)

Brick_0

 

She filled up the tank after the first couple of stalls. It only took 24
litres, meaning that the tank was over half-full initially. It has since
stalled several times with a full tank. I replaced the main fuel filter last
year, so I don't think that's it either. The in-tank pump is a possibility,
but I'd prefer to leave that as a last resort, given the difficulty of
removing the sender/pump unit. I'll check the pump relay. Thanks.

Lyle

 

You can get a relay here for a bit less. I have purchased from them without
problems. Shipping is free if your order is for more than $50US. They ship
to Canada.

http://www.thevolvosite.com/240FuelRelays.htm

Brick_0

 

$42 for a fuel pump relay? FCPGroton has the white ones for $14
and the green ones for $25. You must be talking dealer prices,
right?

Bob W.
15 Volvos ('58-'92)

 

"Ding!!"
When you mentioned the fuse I suddenly remembered reading about this on the
SwedishBricks discussion list. Turns out that was the culprit: the classic
corroded fuse holder. I've cleaned it up now and we're good to go. Maybe
I'll look into ipd's waterproof fuse holder...

Thanks again,
Lyle

 

Yup, I'm aware of ipd's price inflation, so I took a boo at at Pico of
Canada's Web site (www.picocanada.com) and ordered the the Weather Resistant
Fuse Holder (Pico PN 951, in case anyone's interested) from the local parts
store. Cost is ~$4.50 Cdn. From the photo, it appears to be the identical
unit in the ipd assembly.

Cheers,
Lyle

 

My 85 240 started out with random stalling or engine sputtering. Making a
long story short, after it would no longer start, I found that the rotor has
a resistor in it and this resistor finally crumbled - causing it to be open.
Jeremy