Sparks fly! Car goes VROOOM!
I suppose it was due to happen sometime. Much like people, when cars get older, they get grumpy cantankerous. On cold, damp mornings, they sometimes just don't want to wake up and start running. Usually this is due to condensation under the distrubutor cap or in the spark plug boots, old spark plug wires, clogged fuel injectors, etc etc.
I decided to give my car "one last try" this morning before calling AAA and having it taken to a garage (because I don't have time or my own garage to disassemble things while it's cold out). On the third try turning the engine over, it caught just a little bit... On the fourth try, just a bit more...
[I'm so glad at this point that I bought the slightly larger, heavier-duty battery for my car. The listed replacement size was the small one in the series that will fit in the battery tray under the hood of a Volvo 850. I bought the largest, heaviest-duty one that would fit properly, worth it for the $20 price difference. This was just four tries this morning, I ran the starter at least a dozen times on Saturday morning.]
On the fifth try, it caught and ran for a half-second. There's a feel to this sort of thing, though I haven't had to use the skill since I bought this car (the battery replacement above was for a total failure; something disconnected inside the old battery during a heat wave two summers ago). On the sixth try...
*VROOOOOOOOOOOOM*
Ahhhhhhh. No AAA tow, no money spent on a mechanic who may or may not be honest about it only being condensation in the supremely damp weather last saturday, or perhaps a flooded engine. Maximum possible dishonesty in this case? Let's go up the scale, parts cost (at garage rates) only: new distribuor cap and rotor $70 (almost never needs replacing unless cracked or visibly damaged), new battery (for those who don't have a voltmeter) $85, new plug wires $120, new ignition coil $140, fuel-injector service and/or replacement EFI parts, and/or onboard computer $600+?,).
So what's left now is maintenance work. I have to pull the distributor cap and make sure it's clean and dry underneath (which looks to be a real chore with the turbo model engine). I need to inspect the spark plug wires and clean their ends. As soon as it gets warm, I should pull, inspect, and re-gap the plugs. New plugs, wires, cap and rotor all together would cost $130 or so from an online Volvo parts dealer, if I decide to get into replacing things.
Ahh, but it's nice to have a running car.
I decided to give my car "one last try" this morning before calling AAA and having it taken to a garage (because I don't have time or my own garage to disassemble things while it's cold out). On the third try turning the engine over, it caught just a little bit... On the fourth try, just a bit more...
[I'm so glad at this point that I bought the slightly larger, heavier-duty battery for my car. The listed replacement size was the small one in the series that will fit in the battery tray under the hood of a Volvo 850. I bought the largest, heaviest-duty one that would fit properly, worth it for the $20 price difference. This was just four tries this morning, I ran the starter at least a dozen times on Saturday morning.]
On the fifth try, it caught and ran for a half-second. There's a feel to this sort of thing, though I haven't had to use the skill since I bought this car (the battery replacement above was for a total failure; something disconnected inside the old battery during a heat wave two summers ago). On the sixth try...
*VROOOOOOOOOOOOM*
Ahhhhhhh. No AAA tow, no money spent on a mechanic who may or may not be honest about it only being condensation in the supremely damp weather last saturday, or perhaps a flooded engine. Maximum possible dishonesty in this case? Let's go up the scale, parts cost (at garage rates) only: new distribuor cap and rotor $70 (almost never needs replacing unless cracked or visibly damaged), new battery (for those who don't have a voltmeter) $85, new plug wires $120, new ignition coil $140, fuel-injector service and/or replacement EFI parts, and/or onboard computer $600+?,).
So what's left now is maintenance work. I have to pull the distributor cap and make sure it's clean and dry underneath (which looks to be a real chore with the turbo model engine). I need to inspect the spark plug wires and clean their ends. As soon as it gets warm, I should pull, inspect, and re-gap the plugs. New plugs, wires, cap and rotor all together would cost $130 or so from an online Volvo parts dealer, if I decide to get into replacing things.
Ahh, but it's nice to have a running car.