J Sweet... where to get ECU for 92 Volvo?

Re: the 92 volvo turbo wagon w/B230 FT engine: My brother got
fed up with spending money on this car, its been in a pro shop for a
few weeks, and this very experienced foreign car mechanic could not
fix it. It is not running at all now. For a while, it would suddenly
die, and not start/run again until the next day. Guess he is really
not much of a mechanic, huh? Anyway, my brother is *giving* me the
car, will have it at my place next week.
The last thing I heard from the mechanic is that he thought that
when it failed it was going full rich, as the sparkplugs were soaked
with gas. I don't know how this would happen except for the ECU to
suddenly send signals to the injectors to go to 100%....is that even
possible, for them to just all stick open under ECU command?
If the fuel pressure regulator was to malfunction, this would also
flood the engine and I guess stop it....but I see that there is a code
for mixture too rich.....and it is not setting a code. You do get a
1-1-1 code. (This seems to say that the ECU is functional)
So I will first try those two suggestions in earlier post, about
checking power connector.... and if I get it running intmt. again,
disconnecting the AMM. Would a loose ECU power conn. make the engine
flood, though? I would think the injectors would all close, wouldn't
they? I do know that the car still has healthy spark when it dies,
and the fuel pumps are still pumping.


One alternative ( but possibly difficult to afford): have the Volvo
dealer shop repair it...they could surely fix it! But if it is a bad
ECU....who knows? It might cost $800 for the ECU and half that for
labor! That's more $$$ than I can handle right now. Or I can try to
fix myself....but even a rebuilt ECU from FCP Groton is $425. A junk
yard ECU is just too much of a gamble. I seriously doubt that they
accept return of electrical parts....so if that doesn't fix it, I am
stuck! If there was just some place I could send the ECU off to for a
functional check?
Other than this problem, it is in excellent condition, looks and
drives almost like new!

I have a set of noid lights.....not much experience using them, but
I can definitely see if the injectors are being pulsed.

Ideas? Thanks, Geronimo

 

Could be a shorted injector driver transistor in the ECU, that's easy to
check with a multimeter if you take it apart. $800 for an ECU is
ludicrous, even at an upscale junkyard it shouldn't cost more than $150,
much less from a U-pull and you can swap it yourself in about 10 minutes
with common hand tools. Any TV shop can check the injector driver
transistor. Wish I'd known you needed an ECU last week when I was at the
yard, they had a '91 and could have grabbed that for ~$30.

 

As long as the wrecking yard offers a 30 day exchange warranty (most do,
except the pull-it-yourself yards) you are quite safe. Any ECU that works 30
days is likely to work the life of the car. I always recommend getting ECUs
from wrecking yards.

Mike

 

Voluparts says they have a rebuilt one for 325, and it is returnable
for 90% refund....this would end up costing about $55 w/shipping
if it doesn't fix it. Still kind of expensive for something that is
very possibly not the problem. The junk yards here (abt 5 of them) are
pathetic. I don't think they are willing to warranty electrical parts
for 30 days or even less. Bunch of crooks. In all the years I have
had to scrounge parts, they have never had the make/model I need parts
from. So I'd rather stick with some internet source. I think there is
some sort of junkyard network on the internet that can locate and
supply electrical parts, isn't there?


Well, I am an avionics tech, so I can check transistors or any
discrete component. But the first thing I will do is put my noid
light on the injectors and see if they are pulsing OK or if being held
open.

What I would like to have is some inductive noid light that goes
around the injector control wire to monitor the signal....do they make
such an animal? I guess the pros use an inductive pickup and a scope
for this, but I don't have anything like that.


regards, Geronimo

 

Every yard I've been to does, and I've never personally come across a
bad ECU. How many $30 junkyard ECUs could you buy for one $800 new one?
Do you really think you could find someone to check it for you for less
than $30? This sort of thing is what junkyards are absolutely ideal for,
parts that are ridiculously expensive new, cheap used, and almost always
good. Why not have a spare?

 

Small world! I was an avionics tech (general aviation) from 1970 to 1984.
It's an adventurous job at times, particularly test flights with pilots of
uncertain skill level.

I would hesitate to pay the rebuilt price, if only because it's a fairly
long shot that the ECU is the problem (unless it got wet while in service).
Much more common are sensor problems and controller problems. The ECU can
detect a dead sensor but not one that is simply wrong.

Oddly enough, many ECUs (dunno about yours) don't complain about the crank
angle sensor failing. That produces symptoms like you are describing: often
intermittent operation without rhyme nor reason, and complete failure when
it feels like it. Now, that's something you can put your scope on! Others
here are more experienced than I in that area so I will let them check in.

Mike

 

That $800 figure I mentioned was actually what one internet vendor is
charging for an ECU---before I found the much more reasonable price of
$325.00! Can you imagine the nerve? So it wouldn't have surpirsed me
if a Volvo dealer wanted to charge some schmuck that much. The crooks
at our local junkayrds are smart. They seem to know what an equivalent
rebuilt part costs from the internet, and then charge maybe 50% less.
(Or maybe its just me that they are always trying to gouge with
rediculous prices.) There are also no longer any u-pull-it
places....I think it is because of insurance issues.
Yea, your'e probably right, its probably not an ECU. And I am
thinking that its not going to be a supply power problem to the ECU
as was suggested, if I find it is still showing a 1-1-1 code. If it
has lost power, then it ain't gonna show any codes at all. A while
back I replaced the crank pos. sensor on this car.....I seem to recall
it was setting a code for it. But then I found out that the real fix
was an intake hose leaking severely. SO I might go back and check
that....maybe a wire to it has opened.

I am just going to go over the car for a couple of weeks, and if no
joy, then get it to some garage that is more competent. I knew that
mechanic was no good with electrical problems, but the brother
insisted on taking it there.

Michael, sounds like you had an exciting carrer. Going up with test
pilots, and all. What I do is rather boring. I work for a civil
contractor which maintains a fleet of abt 50 KingAir trainer planes,
which the Navy uses for multi-engine pilot training. The entire fleet
is now receiving an complete avionics upgrade, from 1970s COllins
analog, to the latest Collins glass cockpit with dual PFDs, TCAS and
the works. So us techies are having to learn a whole new
cockpit/system.



regards, Geronimo

 

Goodness, I didn't mean to give the impression they were professional test
pilots! They were just the owners, taking me up because the danged thing
worked on the bench but not in the air. Most of them were good pilots, but
one ran the tanks on his Apache dry over the mountains southwest of Phoenix,
then switched to the reserves that were reading in the "unusable fuel"
range.

Mike

 

;-) I'll bet you were a little white-knuckled on that one.

I have to fly with Navy pilots, but only rarely, just taking me to
some airport where I have to fix a plane down for avionics. The Navy
pilots have degrees and are pretty sharp, but can still be boneheads
sometimes about their "switch-ology". geronimo

 

Roger that. I have to say that most of the techs I've known (in avionics and
later in communications) who got their training in the service got it in the
Navy. Another oddity - a recent "Mail Call" on the history channel took us
inside Cheyenne Mountain (nerve center of NORAD) and revealed the facility
was built by the Navy. Huh.

Mike

 

Interesting...I would have thought it was the Air Force!

 

Me, too, but I guess the AF doesn't get that deeply into maintenance. Dunno
why, unless it's because the Navy has to handle things on its own when at
sea.

Mike