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ArcticMyst Security by Avery

Possible First Car

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Good point InfinitusEquitas.

Fuel capacitiy of a Volvo S40 is 15.8 gallons.

If it was really almost empty and went to full on 6 gallons ---they sending unit or gauge should be checked----maybe go back to the Dealer and ask them about it--if it is typical/OK?

Oh. Ok, I'll keep a look on it. IIRC the gauge before filling up was at about 20% full and now it's about 85% there. :eek:

-Alex
 
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Encap

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Oh. Ok, I'll keep a look on it. IIRC the gauge before filling up was at about 20% full and now it's about 85% there. :eek:

-Alex

It is probably OK gauge are never 100% accurate and there is a generous reserve of fuel even after the red low fuel light comes on of 1.5 gallons--so if you were not even in the red or at empty yet it probably had 5 or 6 gallons in it and everything is OK.

If not maybe it just needs the contacts of the sender cleaned if it actually is off . Pictures of it here, just scroll down See: How to replace fuel pump Volvo S40 and V40 (1996 to 2004)

Ask the guys who sold it to you---they are Volvo experts.
 
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It is probably OK gauge are never 100% accurate and there is a generous reserve of fuel even after the red low fuel light comes on of 1.5 gallons--so if you were not even in the red or at empty yet it probably had 5 or 6 gallons in it and everything is OK.

If not maybe it just needs the contacts of the sender cleaned if it actually is off . Pictures of it here, just scroll down See: How to replace fuel pump Volvo S40 and V40 (1996 to 2004)

Ask the guys who sold it to you---they are Volvo experts.

Yeah. Also, one of the headlights isn't working right so they'll fix It. Free of charge!!!!

-Alex
 

GSS

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As far as the fuel guage however annoying it might be you will learn its pattern as to when you need gas. Like they said its not likely the guage itself, but the float in the tank witch could have been bent or misalined if the fuel pump was changed or do to age. It will be to much work and expense to fix, prob talking about dropping the tank. Again you will learn its pattern if thats the issue to begin with. I dont recommend this but I had a gas tank float issue at one point and I let the car run out of gas to see exactly were at the point of the guage I ran out. That was me though!! Lehap enjoy:wave:
 
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As far as the fuel guage however annoying it might be you will learn its pattern as to when you need gas. Like they said its not likely the guage itself, but the float in the tank witch could have been bent or misalined if the fuel pump was changed or do to age. It will be to much work and expense to fix, prob talking about dropping the tank. Again you will learn its pattern if thats the issue to begin with. I dont recommend this but I had a gas tank float issue at one point and I let the car run out of gas to see exactly were at the point of the guage I ran out. That was me though!! Lehap enjoy:wave:

Thanks!

I'll keep a track of next time I fill up & measure how many gallons I take it :)

-Alex
 
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It does usually end up being expensive to deal with the fuel gauge issues, had it on two cars, and didn't feel like spending money on it.

What I suggest doing, is figuring out approximately how many miles you should get per tank, filling up to the absolute maximum, and filling a small 1/2 gallon or 1 gallon container, enough to get you to a gas station again basically. After that, when you're getting down to your maximum range based on gas, just let it run out, and then you'll more or less know.

Or just figure out the max range on the lower end of the scale, and make sure you're not too far away from a gas station when the trip odometer is getting there. I have the same problem with my camry right now, and just try to fill up every 300 miles or so, although theoretically the range is ~400 miles for me.
 
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Well,

It seems like something is going on. The guys who sold me the car seem to be hustlers.... They tell you you'll get great deals(which they did give me) but something strange is going on as someone else posted about on yelp.

Ever since I had it and brought it back to them something else is breaking down..... First it was the headlights, then the driver side window which costs me $215 to fix now the car won't even start, again.... I just bought a $135 battery a month ago and ever since my last visit the car had trouble starting up and it became harder and harder to start until now where it just cranks and if I turn the key all the interior lights flash and no engine.

Now I won't be returning there but I'll need to probably spend $70 to get it towed to a dealership so they can see what the hell is going on & possibly fix any other issues.

What pisses me off the most is I work minimum wage, as much hours as possible and all is spent towards fixing the car!!! I barely have any laser money or things to treat myself. It shouldn't be this way, but it is unfortunately ugh....

-Alex
 

GSS

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Well,

It seems like something is going on. The guys who sold me the car seem to be hustlers.... They tell you you'll get great deals(which they did give me) but something strange is going on as someone else posted about on yelp.

Ever since I had it and brought it back to them something else is breaking down..... First it was the headlights, then the driver side window which costs me $215 to fix now the car won't even start, again.... I just bought a $135 battery a month ago and ever since my last visit the car had trouble starting up and it became harder and harder to start until now where it just cranks and if I turn the key all the interior lights flash and no engine.

Now I won't be returning there but I'll need to probably spend $70 to get it towed to a dealership so they can see what the hell is going on & possibly fix any other issues.

What pisses me off the most is I work minimum wage, as much hours as possible and all is spent towards fixing the car!!! I barely have any laser money or things to treat myself. It shouldn't be this way, but it is unfortunately ugh....

-Alex
Oh boy sorry, I allways do a quick log in in the morning before I go out. Alot of it looks like you have some type battery draining issue. Every problem you mentioned seems to be that way. A sticky window switch a headlight working of an on. Just my quick 2 cents you might have to play detective and pull out a different fuse everynight and see if the car starts in the morning. Example if the power seat switch is sticking and you pull the fuse for that power seat you might find out that switch is defective if the car starts in the morning. Does your mom have AAA mabey you can use her policy to get your car towed. Im sure by the time I log on again you will have plenty of post with help. You will figurwe this out:)
 

GR3EN

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Always a risk buying used cars. Can always just be buying someone else's problem that they didn't want to deal with. I know the pain though. Will be putting a new motor in mine this week. After that I'm done with crappy used cars. I'm just going to get a 12k car loan and get something I shouldn't have to worry about for a while.
 

GSS

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Lehap, can you give a say of how the car was acting up in like the past week, and what led up to it not starting. When you mentioned it cranked but wouldnt start did it crank strong or slow till the inside lights flashed and the battery quit. say anything that comes to mind we can all put are heads together. When they fix the window did they change the switch panel, on a 1996 honda its $125 I can imagine how much on a volvo. Also does it have an after market alarm. What kind of vibe are you getting from the dealer as you said it seems they are giving the run around?:thinking:
 
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Lehap, can you give a say of how the car was acting up in like the past week, and what led up to it not starting. When you mentioned it cranked but wouldnt start did it crank strong or slow till the inside lights flashed and the battery quit. say anything that comes to mind we can all put are heads together. When they fix the window did they change the switch panel, on a 1996 honda its $125 I can imagine how much on a volvo. Also does it have an after market alarm. What kind of vibe are you getting from the dealer as you said it seems they are giving the run around?:thinking:

Hey GSS,

When I turned on the key I get a loud machine gun sounding cranking and all the interior warning lights flash(which is really weird). Any advice what that might be?

@GR3EN

Agreed! I'm tired of dishing out money for this crap.

-Alex
 

GSS

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Was the noise coming basiclly from the engine compartment. A starter soleniod kicking in an out could make this noise, both by electrical clicking and hitting the teeth on the flywheel. Its can happen when there is just not enough juice coming from the battery or the starter itself is on its way out. I still believe its battery drain thing. Again are you sure the little things like glove box lights, interior light are all off. Does it have a aftermarket alarm?
 
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Was the noise coming basiclly from the engine compartment. A starter soleniod kicking in an out could make this noise, both by electrical clicking and hitting the teeth on the flywheel. Its can happen when there is just not enough juice coming from the battery or the starter itself is on its way out. I still believe its battery drain thing. Again are you sure the little things like glove box lights, interior light are all off. Does it have a aftermarket alarm?

It dosent have an aftermarket alarm as far as I know. That dosent make sense, this started happening right after I took it in to them, pointing to a better chance that they messed something up!

-Alex
 

GSS

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Did you try to jump start it? What was the last thing they did the windows?
 
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Used cars will almost always inevitably require some care after purchase. Used car lots are kind of the worst option in getting kind of a lemon. The reason being is the people there, both the sales & mechanics, know enough to be able to fix the problem so the car is fine for a test drive, but will still break down in very short order.

Get your car to a different mechanic, not the lot you bought it from, and have them look it over. Go from there.

Agree with GSS, sounds like something is draining your battery.

That said, it could be a more serious problem, your best bet is to get it towed to a mechanic, don't drive it there.
 
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Used cars will almost always inevitably require some care after purchase. Used car lots are kind of the worst option in getting kind of a lemon. The reason being is the people there, both the sales & mechanics, know enough to be able to fix the problem so the car is fine for a test drive, but will still break down in very short order.

Get your car to a different mechanic, not the lot you bought it from, and have them look it over. Go from there.

Agree with GSS, sounds like something is draining your battery.

That said, it could be a more serious problem, your best bet is to get it towed to a mechanic, don't drive it there.

I plan on trying to jump start it tomorrow and see if that works.

I don't get payed until Thursday so I may need to take it to the Toyota dealership so they can do a full inspection and fix anything that is wrong with it.

I took a look at some YouTube videos and it sounds like it might be the alternator, although I'm not sure.....

-Alex
 




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