20 Most Recent 1988 Volvo 740 - Page 3 Questions & Answers

There should be a metal plate on the left side of the trans with the part number.

there is a fuse near the battery on the fender. it is in single fuse holder originally had a cover on it but may not now.pull out fuse to see if burnt then look at the fuse holder and check for burnt terminal it happens to them all the time

The squeeling nose is a loose or worn out power steering belt have you mechanic replace and tighten the belt, most of the time the heat shield fastener or mounting hole has rusted out and no tuely effective repair can be performed

It could be a number of things, but I don't think it is the timing. If it is there should be other signs, like after the car is shut off, does it keep trying to run and make clunking noises? Timing belts are cheap, but the labor is not...around $500 depending on the car.
I would reccommend doing a tune up...new spark-plugs.... check plug wires & coil/distributor with an OHM meter to the tolerances.
Check air filter and change the fuel filter.
This is where I would start.
Good Luck!

Yes should be fine.

verify that voltage is getting to the starter by having someone crank the engine and someone else take a reading off the starter with a voltmeter. if no voltage is read, replace your ignition switch. it should come in 2 portions, tumbler with key, and electrical portion. cheers.

hi you need to turn the petral mix it just on the carb so if you take on the air breaver then you can get the right mix and its allways good to use red x or some good cleaning or even do the cleaning your self could even do with a full overhall like plugs coil and condencer and leads thanks ben

when engine is warm grab the rad hose's if thay are hot coolant is moving in the engine i would think it would be a temp sensor

Just needs regasing,check local garages who can do it,not dealership too expensive

Yes, these rims will fit in. Series 200/700/900 inter changeable except for 960 model.

If your talking about the orange arrow, it's the Overdrive indicator light. Try pushing the O/D button on your gear shifter to see if it gose out

One way that always works is to disconnect the battery for at least ten minutes. If the cause of the check engine light turning on in the first place is not fixed, then the light will come on again pretty quickly after starting the car.
To reset your service light here are the steps.

1. Get in your car and shut the door.
2. Put your key in the ignition
3. Turn your ignition key to position 1
4. Push in your Odometer reset button and hold it in while holding it move the ignition key to position 2 while holding down the odometer reset button.
5. After couple of seconds of holding the button down and the key in position 2 your service light will start to blink once that happens let go of the reset button and start the car.

If you are saying your car fails to start because your not getting a spark at your spark plugs you might want to check your ignition coil.

Remove your fuse block cover and look in with a flashlight, towards the passenger side rear you'll see a white tall relay. if you can get your fingers on it pull it out and crack loose the plastic housing, take the housing off and with a fingernail fileboard, clean the contacts between the closing contact. after doing this take a piece of fiberglas tape and tape closed the relay contact. This will leave the car in overdrive mode all the time. Why not, unless you want to pay nearly 110-130 dollars for the relay. The color "might" be black but the last one I did was white. Make sure by looking up the relay legend on the rear of the fuseblock cover.You didn't mention the yellow upwards pointing arrow on the dash while you're driving, that concerns me, although the last one was a 1990 740. Best of luck. P.S. The only reason you would not want overdrive is to pull a trailer up a mountainside and I don't think you want to be doing that with "this" car, right? Good luck my friend.Dana

There is one small push on connector on the starter. Make sure it is secured tightly if not push it on and off several times then pinch it hard with your thumb and point finger, then replace it and let me know the result. I worked as a tech at a Volvo dealer for 4 years and know them very well.

Hi, try turning the lights on then try turning the key if the lights go off or really dimm then the chances are one of 2 things have happened.

The first this could be the battery is no good and needs replacing.

The second and most likely cause would be the alternator that charges the battery these do fail from time to time their not that expensive to replace but can be difficult if your have never replaced one before.

If the lights stay bright and you here a clicking noise then the chances are that the starter motor has failed and needs replacing if this is the case then when you turn the key your lights will stay bright and you will here a click coming from the started motor everytime you try and start the car.

Is the engine turning over trying to start or is it totally dead let me know then i can assist you further.


If you have tested the battery or have tried using jump leads off another car and it still wont turn over then the problem is going to be with either the starter motor or if the starter motor is ok and the battery is fully charged then the problem is going to be with one of the wires coming from the battery.
If its a bad connection from the battery then you will probably find that the earth wires coming from the battery have either broke or got corroded where they connect to the cars body work or where it connects to the engine block. Its worth undoing these wires and use some sand paper where they are touching any body work or engine block this would ensure a good connection.

So let me know if the lights stay bright or go dull

also let me know if you have tried jump leads and what noises you here when turning the key to start the car.

Also if the car is a manual gear box then have you tried jump starting it to get it running that way you would know if its the starter motor.


If the alternator had gone wrong then when you was able to drive the car their would have been a light on the dashboard that looks like a battery this tells you the battery is getting no power back to it.

If the car has been standing for a day then you might find the battery has got drained somehow by door not shut properly or lights left on so getting the car started and giving it a good run would charge the battery back up again and should solve your problem.

Let me know then i can assist you further ok

on the bottom belt pully at a 5 o-clock position