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240 '91+T, Died while driving, Won't start, SRS warning light

ZVOLVO240

Active member
Joined
Mar 30, 2008
Location
MD
Hey guys,

Was driving to school this morning at normal highway speeds, hit an exit ramp to the interstate and my SRS light came on, the tach dropped to 0, and the car was still driving, but would not boost or go past 50.

Pulled it over, stumbled/stalled/died and checked all of my fuses (none for srs), battery terminals are clean, and Computers are the ECU 948 EZK Gold 207. All have been working fine up until this point.

Checked for fault codes and came up clean. In position KP2 the only lights on the dash that I'm getting are "SERVICE, CHECK ENGINE, OIL, SRS" Nothing else is illuminated when I crank it. Oil levels are fine and I just re-did all major vac lines 2 weeks ago.

Car will turn over but progressively turns slower and slower. Will not fire at all now.

What should my plan of action be?

Thanks
 
I looked and didn't really notice anything out of the ordinary.

What would trigger the SRS and spontaneously kill the tach signal like that?
 
srs and other lights would come on if the alternator stopped charging, and you would have decreasing performance as the battery died. as for the tach dropping to zero, that could be an outlying symptom, since the only way for it to not work (technically) is via the coil not firing, the gauge itself breaking, or the wiring being cut.

the lack of a battery light when you turn the key on, coupled with the engine being slower to turn over and the lackluster performance right before that seems to favor an issue with the alternator/charging system.
 
Alright. I'll look into that. Obviously most of my sources for volvo repair cover Bosch related alternators. Is there anything else that I should take into consideration for a nippon denso 100a?
 
Check the voltage to the trigger wire on the alterntor with the key in the RUN position.
Check voltage at alternator output stud.
Check voltage at battery.

If you don't have battery light when the key is in the run position, engine off, you have a problem in that circuit, could be alternator, wiring, fuse, bulb. Or the battery could be totally dead.

Charge the battery before you work on it any further, alternators are not designed to charge dead batteries, they are designed to maintain properly functioning systems, and it can kill the alternator.
 
Alright I'll check the battery voltage first.

It's funny, I just ran the power wire for my speaker amp.. Good thing I didn't hook it up!
 
Took the battery over to the auto store for a test/charge and I got these results:

Before:
Voltage-11.82
Measured-340cca
Rated 600cca

After:
Voltage-13.38
Measured-605cca
Rated-550cca

About to reinstall it and see what happens.
 
Okay, so I just took it for a quick road test. All signs show positive except for the fact that I still don't have the battery icon on my cluster.

If I'm not seeing that symbol can I assume that the alternator is the source of the fault?
 
I'm surprised the motor would crank at all when the SRS light came on and the speedo died - they take so little power vs the starter.

Do you have a multimeter?

Check the voltage when the car is resting - now that's its charged it should be hovering in the 12v area.
Start it - does the voltage increase to 13-14? When you rev it does the voltage change?

If there's no change, you can point your finger at the alternator or wiring around the alternator.

Also check to make sure the ground cable for the alternator is still on and secured.

And I think that giant bosch alt is a pain to fit if you have the oil pressure sender for a guage and idiot light. If you have just the idiot light sender, it should fit I think.

Edit: it takes 5 minutes to pull another ND100 from jessup crazy rays.
 
Okay, so I just took it for a quick road test. All signs show positive except for the fact that I still don't have the battery icon on my cluster.

If I'm not seeing that symbol can I assume that the alternator is the source of the fault?

Does the battery light come on at all? Like badvlvo mentioned, you should see the battery light KOEO (Engine off, key in "RUN"). If not, then check to see if you have the voltage to that circuit as mentioned.

It could be as simple as a dead "Battery" light bulb.
 
What can I find the ND on again? I forgot because it's been such a long while.

There is no battery light at all.
 
There is no battery light at all.


Then check that bulb first before you go about doing ANYTHING else. If the bulb is good, then check the circuit as mentioned for power. Don't fuss with a new alternator, or doing ANYTHING else until you verify that the bulb for the indicator is good. They do burn out. Burnt bulb = no battery charge.
 
I value your opinion a lot, so if you could please expound on that "NO" :)

1) alt belt tension
2) alt EXCITER WIRE *AT* the alternator (battery voltage)
3) alternator GROUNDS
4) CHARGING + 2500 rpm 13.5V or better
5) battery TERMINALS / WIRES
6) battery reserve (holds 12 V w/a 300 Amp load for 15 sec)
7) "alt warning lamp" on dash
8) shake & wiggle ign key
 
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