1999 VOLVO V70 Complaints

THE INDICATOR LIGHT ON THE GEAR SELECTOR HAS BURNT OUT. THERE'S A 'SIGNAL-ORANGE' COLORED INDICATOR MARK THAT TRACKS THE GEAR SELECTOR AGAINST THE SLATE GREY COLOR SHIFT ASSEMBLY PUT THERE AS A SAFETY FEATURE SO YOU KNOW WHAT GEAR YOU'RE IN AND DON'T ACCIDENTALLY TAKE OFF IN AN UNINTENDED DIRECTION, FORWARD OR REVERSE, OR ROLL INTO SOMEONE WHILE UNINTENTIONALLY FINDING YOURSELF IN NEUTRAL. WELL NOW AT NIGHT UNLESS YOU TURN ON THE INTERIOR LIGHT, YOU CAN JUST GUESS WHAT GEAR YOU'RE IN BECAUSE WHEN IT'S DARK IN THE CAB YOU CAN'T SEE AT ALL WHAT'S WHAT AS FAR A GEAR SELECTION. I FIND THIS REMARKABLE. AT AGE 49, WITH ALL THE CARS WE'VE OWNED AND ALL I'VE HAD UNTIL OVER 100,000 MILES, NEVER DO I RECALL ANY DASHBOARD TYPE INDICATOR LAMPS BURNING OUT, I THOUGHT THEY JUST MADE THEM THAT WAY BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT REPLACEABLE OR SOMETHING. I ASSUMED THEY WERE LIKE NEON OR LIGHT EMITTING DIODES THAT CAN NEVER BURN OUT AND WOULD FUNCTION FOREVER OR UNTIL SOMETHING PHYSICALLY BROKE THEM. HERE'S A TIP FOR YOU FOLKS AT THE NHTSA AND YOUR FAMILIES: AVOID VOLVO'S IN PARKING LOTS AT NIGHT, TURNS OUT WE HAVE ONLY AN IDEA OF THE GEAR WE'RE IN BEFORE THE CAR STARTS MOVING, IN THE DARK THE LACK OF CERTAINTY PROVIDED BY A MANUFACTURING FAILURE COULD PROVE DANGEROUS. VOLVO FOR LIFE? *TR

ABOUT A 1999 V70 GLT VOLVO: THE SUN VISOR IS SAGGING DOWN AND IT UNEXPECTEDLY COMES INTO MY LINE OF SIGHT WHILE DRIVING. TO BE CLEAR, IT'S STRAIGHT AND IN OTHERWISE GOOD CONDITION, BUT IT JUST DOESN'T LOCK UP FLAT TO THE CEILING THE WAY IT SHOULD. CURRENTLY WHILE DEBATING THE RELATIVELY HIGH REPLACEMENT COST - $200 JUST FOR THE PART BECAUSE IT HAS A MIRROR AND LIGHT, I'VE GOT IT STRAPPED UP WITH A NYLON BELT, KEEPING IT OUT OF MY VIEW, BUT THEN I NOW HAVE NOTHING FOR LOW SUN DRIVING CONDITIONS. IT MAY SEEM PETTY TO MENTION THIS AS A SAFETY ISSUE, BUT IT DID COME DOWN AND PRESENT A VISUAL OBSTRUCTION TO ME WHILE DRIVING. ON THE OTHER HAND, THIS HAS NEVER OCCURRED IN MY NOW ALMOST 24 YEAR OLD SAAB, NOT EVEN WITH 240,000 MILES ON IT. NOR DO WE HAVE THIS PROBLEM ON MY WIFE'S '94 ACURA LEGEND, WHERE THERE ARE OVER 140,000 MILES OF USE AND AGE. NOR HAVE I HAD THIS PROBLEM IN OTHER CARS I'VE OWNED, BACK TO AND INCLUDING MY FIRST: THE '73 PINTO I HAD IN COLLEGE, I SOLD IT W/ 105,000 MI. AND DON?T RECALL THIS TYPE OF CONCERN! I JUST THINK ON A NEWER CAR, (THIS OCCURRED ON OUR NEWEST CAR EVER, AND BEFORE 80,000 MILES, I THINK I?VE BEEN FIGHTING TO KEEP THE VISOR UP SINCE 60,000 MI. AND NOW IT?S FINALLY FLOPPED DOWN) ONE SHOULDN'T SUDDENLY HAVE TO BE DODGING THEIR HEAD AROUND THE CAB TO SEE OUT THE FRONT WINDOW, WHILE FIDDLING WITH THE VISOR COMING DOWN, FINALLY PLACING IT TO THE SIDE, WHERE IT STILL SAGS BUT ONLY PROVIDING A MINOR OBSTRUCTION - OBVIOUSLY NOT NEAR AS CRITICAL AS BLOCKING ONE'S FRONT VIEW. SO WHAT AM I TO CONCLUDE: DO I REPLACE IT FOR $200 - PLUS LABOR - (TWO ACTUALLY, THE PASSENGER SIDE ONE IS GETTING READY TO DO THE SAME THING), AND THEN BE SUBJECT TO IT RECURRING? ALSO IT OCCURRED THE NIGHT BEFORE LEAVING ON A ROAD TRIP CT TO ROCHESTER, NY: I.E.: WESTERLY DRIVING INTO THE SUNSET AND THERE WAS NO TIME IN THE TRAVEL SCHEDULE TO DELAY FOR SUCH AN UNEXPECTED REPAIR. I HAD TO MAKE THE DRIVE WITH THE SUN VISOR OUT OF COMMISSION. *TR

THE BRAKING SOMETIMES BECOMES DIMINISHED. THE PEDAL IS 'STIFF' AND NORMAL BAKING IS REDUCED. IT OCCURS SO RARELY THAT THERE IS NO WAY FOR ME TO EXPECT THAT IT WILL PRESENT FOR A MECHANIC ON A TEST DRIVE. OCCURRENCES ARE MANY DAYS OR EVEN WEEKS APART. THE SYMPTOM INVOLVES A DISTINCT VARIATION ON THE NORMAL BRAKING EXPERIENCE: A SLIGHT THROBBING OCCURS AND DIMINISHED STOPPING POWER IS AVAILABLE, I HAVE TO PRESS MARKEDLY HARDER TO GET THE CAR TO STOP. SCARY. THIS SYMPTOM IS SO INTERMITTENT AND FLEETING, IT SEEMS IT WOULD BE NEAR IMPOSSIBLE TO DEMONSTRATE AND TRACK DOWN. BUT EVERY TIME I EXPERIENCE IT, THE VERY SLIGHT PULSING DURING BRAKING AND ACCOMPANYING ADDITIONAL PEDAL PRESSURE REQUIRED TO ACHIEVE A NORMAL STOP, I WORRY. I'VE EVEN PULLED INTO A PARKING LOT AND TRIED IN AN ABANDON SECTION TO TEST IT AND TO GET IT TO REOCCUR FOR ME, BUT NEVER CAN. SO I WORRY. TO BE CLEAR, THE SITUATION FOR WHICH I'M CONCERNED HERE IS WHEN, ON RARE OCCASIONS, WHILE ROUTINE BRAKING, I EXPERIENCE THE NEED TO APPLY MORE PRESSURE THAN IS OTHERWISE TYPICAL AND USUAL. IT SCARES ME A BIT, BUT AS IT TURNS OUT, IN ALL THE INSTANCES SO FAR, IT'S OCCURRED ON CITY STREETS W/ RELATIVELY LOW SPEEDS INVOLVED AND LIGHT TRAFFIC SITUATIONS; (E.G.: I'M FIRST TO AN INTERSECTION W/ NO ONE IN FRONT OF ME, ETC.) BUT FOR FUTURE SITUATIONS THAT MIGHT REQUIRE A CRITICAL BRAKING, I REMAIN NATURALLY, CONCERNED. THE DANGER IS DISPLACED IN THE IMMEDIATE TERM WHERE THE REMEDY HAS BEEN, SIMPLY, APPLYING INCREASED PEDAL PRESSURE AND FEELING LUCKY NOT TO BE IN A CRITICAL BRAKING SITUATION. THEN I DON'T SEE THE PROBLEM AGAIN FOR SOME TIME. HAVE YOU HAD OTHER MENTIONS OF THIS TYPE OF PROBLEM WITH THE 1999 V70 GLT VOLVOS? *TR

BACK IN JUNE OF 2008 - ON START UP MY 99 VOLVO V70 - WOULD ROUGH IDLE, REV TO 4000 AND WOULD NOT EXCEED 20 MPH. THE IDLE SOUNDED LIKE SNEAKERS IN A DRYER. I TOOK THE CAR TO MY GARAGE AND WAS QUOTED $2000.00 TO REPLACE THE ETM - I WAS TOLD BY MY GARAGE THAT THE ETM MAY STILL BE UNDER WARRANTY. AFTER SPEAKING WITH VOLVO USA - I WAS ADVISED THAT THIS PART WAS UNDER WARRANTY AND I SHOULD BRING TO THE NEAREST VOLVO DEALERSHIP. I DID. BOSTON VOLVO VILLAGE - DID A SOFTWARE UPDATE AND AFTER THAT REPORTED NO ISSUES WITH THE ETM - THEY CLAIMED CRACKED VACUUM HOSES WERE THE PROBLEMS. THEY REPLACED THE HOSES AND RETURN THE CAR. THE CAR BROKE DOWN A DAY LATER - REV TO 4000, ROUGH IDLE, WON'T GO OVER 20 MPH - SNEAKERS IN WASHING MACHINE SOUND. I BROUGHT THE CAR BACK TO BOSTON VOLVO VILLAGE - THIS TIME THEY TOLD ME THAT I HAD AN BAD ACCELERATOR PEDAL - WHICH WAS REPLACE COST WAS $225.00. THE CAR BROKE DOWN A THIRD TIME - THIS TIME ON A BUSY HIGHWAY - I WAS ABLE TO PULL OFF - BUT IF NOT FOR SOME EXCELLENT DRIVING BY OTHERS ON THE ROAD THERE WOULD HAD BEEN A 3 CAR PILE UP. BOSTON VOLVO VILLAGE TOWED THE CAR BACK TO THEIR GARAGE. ONE OF THEIR EMPLOYEES ADMITTED TO ME THAT THE EMT WAS THE PROBLEM - BUT THAT VOLVO MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE TO REPLACE THE ETM. *TR

DRIVING ON FREEWAY 65 MILES PER HOUR, VEHICLE LOSES COMPLETE POWER, ETS AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHTS COMES ON. I WAS ABLE TO COAST OFF THE FREEWAY ONTO THE RIGHT SHOULDER. TRIED SEVERAL RESTARTS TO SEE IF ENGINE WILL RUN NORMALLY, AFTER 10-15 MINUTES, STARTED CAR, ENG RAN NORMAL, ETS AND CEL LIGHT STILL ON. I WAS ABLE TO DRIVE HOME WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. *TR

I BOUGHT THIS VOLVO USED W/ 120K MILES. I SAW RECORDS OF MAJOR WORK DONE AT THE DEALER JUST PREVIOUS TO 100,000 AND FIGURED IT WOULD BE GOOD FOR ANOTHER 100K. AT 131K, IT BEGAN CONSTANTLY STALLING AND LUNGING. I DID A TINY BIT OF RESEARCH AND LEARNED OF THE RECALL. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER AND THEY TRIED TO CHARGE ME 200 TO DO NOTHING OTHER THAN READ THE CODES AND TELL ME THE ETM SOFTWARE HAD ALREADY BEEN UPDATED, AND THAT THE MASS AIRFLOW SENSOR WAS BAD. I REPLACED THE MAFS TO NO CHANGE. *TR

I HAVE A 99 VOLVO V70 T5, ON JULY 3RD OF 2006 WE HAD THE VEHICLE IN AS THE ETM LIGHT WAS ON, THE DEALER UPGRADED THE SOFTWARE OF THE ETM AT NO COST, NOW A YEAR LATER THE VEHICLE IS UNDRIVABLE. IT SURGES AT LOW IDLE CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO JUMP FORWARD, IT CONSISTENTLY STALLS OUT AND NOW IS BEGINNING TO SURGE WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD AT ANY RPM. I FEEL THAT THIS IS A EXTREME HAZARD AND I AM NO LONGER ABLE TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1999 VOLVO V70. WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH, THE ABS WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED, THE SPEEDOMETER STOPPED WORKING, AND THE TRANSMISSION FAILED TO SHIFT. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE ABS MODULE FAILED AND THEY MADE THE REPLACEMENT. NO OTHER FAILURES HAVE OCCURRED SINCE THE REPLACEMENT. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT MILEAGE IS 140,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 102,000.

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1999 VOLVO V70. WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, THE CONTACT MADE A SUDDEN STOP. AS A RESULT, THE INTEGRATED CHILD SEAT UNLATCHED AND SLAMMED HER CHILD INTO THE FRONT SEAT. THE CHILD'S CHEST WAS INJURED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE MECHANIC WHO STATED THAT THEY WILL REPLACE THE SEAT. THE PURCHASE DATE, ENGINE SIZE, AND A VALID VIN WERE UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT MILEAGE IS 61,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 57,000.

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1999 VOLVO V70. THE CONTACT HAS EXPERIENCED FAILURES WITH THE VEHICLE'S TAILGATE THAT HAVE BECOME PROGRESSIVELY WORSE. THE TAILGATE DOOR WILL NOT OPEN AT ALL. THE VEHICLE IS CURRENTLY AT THE DEALER AND HAS BEEN FOR SEVEN DAYS. THE DEALER STATED THAT THEY ARE HAVING A HARD TIME REPLACING THE ENTIRE LOCKING MECHANISM. NHTSA SAFETY RECALL # 00V239000 (LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:TAILGATE:LATCH) IS FOR THE SAME FAILURE. THE CURRENT MILEAGE IS 109,605 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 102,849.