89 740 GL starter just spins

The problem has got to be the starter if the flywheel teeth look fine. Get a "new" one from a scrapyard and save yourself some trouble down the road. Supposedly the older larger diameter starters used on '87(?) and earlier cars are more robust.

Failure to engage is usually loss of lubrication in the bendix. It sounds like it is within your DIY range to disassemble the bendix and grease it up. Another thing to check would be the engine ground and the battery cables.

Replacement of the starter is a problematic second way to go. I don't know what the price of a genuine Volvo starter is, but aftermarket starters and alternators have earned a bad reputation.

Mike

Buying a new one is just plain silly, even online they're several hundred dollars. I've rarely had trouble with $13 junkyard starters, though a word of advice, it's quite a bit easier to remove one from a car with a manual transmission.

Good idea, James. The conventional wisdom for operating parts is to favor pulling them from a car that has fatal body damage, since you can be sure it worked before the car was smooshed!

Mike

Most Volvo starters are solenoid operated. which means that the fork end of the lever which pushes the pinion into engagement has broken and does not push the pinion into engagement although it operates the contacts for heavy current to spin the motor.

Exchange starters are not that expensive and come with a guarantee. In UK they are less than £100 if you go to an electrical specialist like Lucas-CAV or Bosch.

Cheers, Peter.

You state that you are able to turn the engine with a ratchet but did you remove the oil filler cap & see if the camshaft is also turning ? what is the mileage on the car ? It is possible that the timing belt teeth have worn off these are all things to also check before removing the starter & replacing Glenn Volvo Technician ASE Certified

None of those problems will prevent the engine from turning over, which he stated it does not do.

Oil leaks are often the valve cover or the camshaft seal, but check the flame trap first, it becomming plugged is the leading cause of oil leaks in the first place, it can blow a seal out and cause a REAL bad leak.

damper and manually rotated the engine and

and the camshaft does exactly what? A toothless or broken cam belt makes the starter seem as if it's not turning the motor. Do any of the pullies on the front of the motor turn?

Bob

the damper and manually rotated the engine and

How's that? It's pretty obvious looking under the hood if the motor is turning or not, I'm quite sure he's verified that to be the case. I've cranked a motor with no compression before and while it spins much faster, it sounds very different than a starter not engaging.

the damper and manually rotated the engine and

How's that? It's pretty obvious looking under the hood if the motor is turning or not, I'm quite sure he's verified that to be the case. I've cranked a motor with no compression before and while it spins much faster, it sounds very different than a starter not engaging.

Did the pinion spin with the motor or did it just push into engagement without rotating? The pinion has to be keyed to the shaft for it to rotate with the shaft. The solenoid fork engages in a slot in the pinion body so that the pinion can rotate while the solenoid fork stays still.

Best way is to exchange at a shop who specialise in auto electrical parts or take pot luck with one from a scrapper.

Cheers, Peter.

I doubt any cars had a bendix gear by '89. All 740s have pre-engage starters.

The starters back at least as far as '79 240 are identical and interchangeable with those in 700 and 900 series cars, I don't think Volvo ever used a started with a Bendix, and certainly not in the OHV redblocks.