I HAVE A 1986 VOLVO (740) CAR TROUBLE?

Question

I have a 1986 Volvo 740/ 4 cyl.

My car runs for about 7-10 mins, and then it stalls out. I have a full gas tank, i got a tunip done, IT RUNS WELL AT FIRST but then it stalls out.

Answer 1

Good luck with finding a solution...this is the reason I gave up my much-loved 1988 240 2 years ago.  Our mechanic, a Volvo specialist, tried many of the solutions mentioned above and none worked. :-(  

Answer 2

You are experiencing what us techs call "Old car Syndrome". But that doesn't mean it's time for a new car. There are at least 20 things that can cause your particular problem. Let's start with a few basics that u can handle yourself. Visual inspection...battery condition,terminal post clamps and cables should be clean and tight. Give the battery wires and cables a little tug or twist to see if a loose connection is evident since your eyes do it physically. Fix as needed. Fuel pump relay.....remove the ashtray and the rectangular compartment just above to get access to the all the relays near the fuses. Pull out the white relay on the far left side of the relay compartment. There should be a date marked on the white cover. If it's dated when the car was made or 10yrs+ it should be replaced with a new one. Idle thumb s***w adjustment.....turn the idle thumb s***w counter clockwise or outward until the s***w is almost all the way out. This raises the engine idle and a quick test to see if there is an idle issue. Also double check any loose connections that was created during the tune up process. Oh, there is one thing i want u to check that is a good indication that this is a guarantee to cause stalling and a must replace item and that is the electrical connector for the ignition distributor. If this connector is dangling by its wires or not attached tight to the distributor housing then a replacement of the distributor w/impulse sender is needed. Ok, try all of the above in any order u like and keep me posted. Good luck!

Answer 3

It sounds like your cat is plugged up.  

Answer 4

will it re-start and stay running if you feather the gas pedal?[possible throttle body carbon ring or constant idle motor problem]

if it wont re-start until it sits for 20 min. or so [you may have a failing fuel pump and/or pump relay]

when it stalls out and if it wont re-start and you smell raw fuel in the exhaust[you may have a failed coolant temp sensor]

if it stalls and restarts and will idle but stalls again as soon as you touch the gas pedal. [suspect the air mass unit]-- this can be tested by unplugging the quick disconnect at the air mass unit, this will force computer into limp home mode [if now runs poorly but quits stalling replace the air mass unit] note acceleration will be very  slow with the air mass unit disconnected.

one last tip there is a radio suppression relay [right strut tower turbo left strut tower non turbo] this supplies power to the injectors [12v].intermittent failures are fairly common but does not really fit your described symptom

in short you will have to be more specific for  proper help.  

is your car a turbo model? does it have a manual or automatic transmission? please list actual tune up parts that were changed, serviced, or cleaned.

NOTE cod_frag 's tip for the distributor is  stellar. i have seen many over the years fail like this.  caution is to be used when replacing the distributor cap on these models the plastic is very brittle.