VOLVO Complaints

I HAVE A 2002 VOLVO V40 AND IT HAS 50,200 MILES. MY DAUGHTER DRIVES THE CAR. I HAVE NOTICED THAT THE CAR ENGINE STALLS WHILE DRIVING AT SLOWER SPEEDS. THIS HAS HAPPENED TO ME OCCASIONALLY AND I CAN COUNT LIKE 20 TIMES. MY DAUGHTER EXPERIENCED THIS AND I DO NOT HAVE A COUNT. I CALLED CARLSEN VOLVO (650 - 493-1515 X 254) IN PALO ALTO AND THE SERVICE REP, DAN SAID THAT THE CAR HAS NO RECALL. THE CAR STALLED WHEN I DROVE IT TO COSTCO IN REDWOOD CITY FOR TIRE CHANGE ON 9/19/2008. CAN YOU TELL ME HOW I CAN RESOLVE THIS PROBLEM BEFORE A MAJOR ACCIDENT HAPPENS? *TR

BULBS CONTINUOUSLY BURNS OUT CAUSING ERRORS THAT CANNOT BE READILY FIX BY THE OWNER. BULBS SUCH AS FOR HEADLIGHTS, TURN SIGNALS AND REAR LIGHTS BURN OUT CONSTANTLY. WE ARE AVERAGING A BULB REPLACEMENT EVERY 2 MONTHS. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 VOLVO S70. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 45 MPH, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED INTERMITTENTLY. APPROXIMATELY THREE MONTHS LATER, THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE SYSTEM (ETS) LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER AND THEY CLEANED THE ETS. WHEN THE CONTACT WENT TO RETRIEVE THE VEHICLE, THE ETS LIGHT ILLUMINATED AGAIN AND THE VEHICLE WAS LEFT AT THE DEALER. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 78,728 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 78,528.

OUR COMPANY OWNS 3 - 2004 VOLVO XC90 VEHICLES. ALL THREE HAVE REQUIRED TRANSMISSION REPLACEMENTS AT LOW MILEAGES (77,000, 90,000 AND 106,000 MILES). WE BELIEVE THIS IS AN EXTRAORDINARILY LOW MILEAGE FOR A VEHICLE TO HAVE TRANSMISSION FAILURE WHEN IT IS A $50,000 VEHICLE NEW. AFTER DOING MUCH RESEARCH, THIS SEEMS TO BE A CHRONIC PROBLEM WITH THIS VEHICLE AS EVIDENCED BY THE FACT THAT THEY CANNOT GET A TRANSMISSION FOR THIS IN THE US AT THIS TIME AND THE MANY CONSUMER COMPLAINTS ABOUT THESE VEHICLES. WE BELIEVE THIS SHOULD BE REVIEWED BY THE GOVERNMENT DUE TO THE HIGH RATE OF FAILURE AT MILEAGES LOWER THAN ACCEPTABLE FOR TRANSMISSION FAILURES. ALL THREE OF OUR VEHICLES ARE DRIVEN FOR WORK PURPOSES ONLY, MOSTLY HIGHWAY MILES AND DO NOT PULL TRAILERS OR ARE ABUSED IN ANY OTHER WAY. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 VOLVO XC90. THE CONTACT NOTICED THAT THE SPACE BETWEEN THE ACCELERATOR AND BRAKE PEDALS WAS ONLY 4 1/2 INCHES WIDE. THE WIDTH OF HIS FOOT IS 5 INCHES WIDE. THERE IS AN INSUFFICIENT AMOUNT OF SPACE TO ADEQUATELY APPLY PRESSURE TO THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WITHOUT ALSO DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL. THE DEALER STATED THAT THEY WERE AWARE OF THE FAILURE, BUT HAVE NOT MADE ANY EFFORTS TO CORRECT THE DESIGN. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 54,000.

I BOUGHT MY 2001 VOLVO S60 N/A BRAND NEW AT THE END OF 2001. SINCE UP TO ABOUT SEPTEMBER OF 2007, I HAD NO PROBLEMS WITH THE VEHICLE EXCEPT ROUTINE SERVICE. THEN I NOTICED LOUD "CLANGING" AND "METALLIC THUMPING" WHENEVER I WENT OVER ROUGH ROADS AT ANY SPEED. TURNS OUT THAT MY CONTROL ARM BUSHINGS (BE THEY EVER POORLY MADE) CRACKED INTO PIECES. TOOK MY VEHICLE TO MY INDEPENDENT VOLVO SHOP TO REPAIR THE BUSHINGS. THE TECHNICIAN, AFTER THE REPAIRS WERE DONE, NOTIFIED ME THAT THERE WAS A FUEL LEAK COMING FROM THE REAR FUEL TANK AREA. FUNNY THAT IT WAS THAT EXACT WEEK THAT I STARTED TO NOTICE THE GASOLINE SMELL, BE SO EVER FAINT. AS OF TODAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2008, THE SMELL HAS BECOME VERY STRONG WHERE AS EVEN WITH THE WINDOWS OPEN WHILE DRIVING, I LITERALLY HAVE TO STICK MY NOSE AGAINST THE OPEN WINDOW TO BREATHE IN WHAT SHOULD BE FRESH AIR. *TR

TRANSMISSION DISENGAGES AT LOW RPM (AT ABOUT 20MPH) WITH SLIGHT PRESSURE ON THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL - FEELS LIKE THE CAR WANTS TO UPSHIFT TO THE NEXT HIGHER GEAR (POSSIBLY 2ND GEAR), TRANSMISSION THEN DISENGAGES...THE ENGINE RPMS SURGE TO 3,000-4,000 AND THEN THE TRANSMISSION ENGAGES WITH A HUGE CLUNK AND SURGES FORWARD. WHEN COMING TO A STOP WITHOUT ANY GAS PEDAL PRESSURE, TRANSMISSION DOES NOT DISENGAGE, BUT SEEMS TO SHIFT INTO THE LOWEST GEAR AND SURGES FORWARD WHILE TRYING TO STOP THE CAR AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT OR STOP SIGN. AGAIN, THERE IS NO PRESSURE ON THE GAS, THE CAR AUTOMATICALLY DOWNSHIFT MAKING A LOUD CLUNK AND THEN THE ENGINE SURGES AND PULLS THE CAR FORWARD. AFTER A FEW SECONDS OF THE CAR TRYING TO PULL FORWARD WITH THE BRAKES APPLIED, THE TRANSMISSION DISENGAGES THE GEAR AND RETURNS TO A "NEUTRAL" SETTING WHILE THE CAR IS STOPPED. TRANSMISSION DISENGAGEMENT AND ENGINE SURGING ARE CONSISTENT WHETHER THE CAR IS HOT OR COLD AND THE PATTERN IS CONSISTENT - ALWAYS AT LOW RPMS WHEN THE CAR'S AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION EITHER WANTS TO SHIFT UP OR DOWN IN GEARS. IT SEEMS LIKE THE ISSUE IS ALWAYS BETWEEN 1ST AND 2ND GEARS. AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS THE CAR SEEMS FINE. *TR

GASOLINE OVERFLOWS FROM THE FILL NECK SPILLING DOWN THE CAR AND ONTO THE GROUND. THIS IS A FIRE RISK AND AN ENVIRONMENTAL VIOLATION. THIS HAS HAPPENED WITH VARIOUS PUMPS AT VARIOUS GAS STATIONS. THIS NEVER HAPPENED TO ME WITH ANY OTHER CAR IN 30 YEARS. I HAVE FOUND OTHERS REPORTING THE SAME PROBLEM ON THE WEB. *TR

MY 2004 VOLVO T6 AWD TRANSMISSION HAD BEEN SLIPPING SLIGHTLY SHIFTING FROM 2ND TO 3RD GEAR, BUT THERE WAS NO WARNING OR SERVICE LIGHT. I WAS DRIVING UP A HILL IN VICTOR N.Y. WHEN THE TRANSMISSION TOTALLY DISENGAGED, THE ENGINE REVVED UP TO 4,000 RPM'S AND I NEEDED TO SWERVE OFF ONTO THE SHOULDER IN ORDER FOR TRAFFIC GET AROUND ME. NO ONE WAS HURT, I CAME TO A STOP ON THE SHOULDER, RESTARTED THE CAR AND THE TRANSMISSION ENGAGED. I PULLED AWAY SLOWLY AND THE TRANSMISSION WAS OK, BUT STILL SLIPPED AND FAILED TO SHIFT UP OCCASIONALLY. NOW 6 WEEKS LATER THE SLIPPING WAS BECOMING MUCH MORE FREQUENT. THE "TRANSMISSION SERVICE URGENT" LIGHT CAME ON AND I TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALER TODAY. I HAVE NOT HEARD THE OUTCOME YET, BUT AFTER READING THE INCIDENTS REPORTED HERE, AND ALL THE INTERNET FORUMS, INCLUDING:HTTP://TOWNHALL-TALK.EDMUNDS.COM/WEBX/.F0A069B/ SELECT VOLVO XC90 T6 TRANSMISSION, I AM QUITE SURE I KNOW THE OUTCOME. MY CAR HAD 105,000 MILES ON IT WHEN THE PROBLEM WAS FIRST NOTICED, BUT THIS IS THE SECOND TRANSMISSION, THE FIRST WAS REPLACED UNDER WARRANTY AT ABOUT 30,000 MILES. MY VOLVO DEALER DID NOT SEEM AT ALL SURPRISED BY THE PROBLEM. I AM QUITE CERTAIN THEY SEE IT ON A REGULAR BASIS. *TR

WHILE DRIVING ON I-10 AT NIGHT AT APPROXIMATELY 75MPH WITH MY FAMILY, WE EXPERIENCE COMPLETE FAILURE OF THE VEHICLE'S ELECTRONICS SUCH AS LOSS OF BRAKING, STEERING, ODOMETER, SPEEDOMETER, ALL INSTRUMENTS, AND TRANSMISSION. WE HAD A TOTAL LOSS OF EVERY ELECTRICAL FUNCTION OF THE VEHICLE AT THE MOST DANGEROUS POINT AND TIME OF OUR TRAVEL - AT NIGHT, ON AN INTERSTATE, AND FAR FROM MAJOR CITIES. AFTER MUCH STRESS AND FEAR, WE LIMPED TO OUR DESTINATION BARELY. IN SHORT, WE HAD THE CAR TOWED TO A VOLVO DEALER. THE DEALERSHIP STATED THAT THE C.E.M. (ONE OF FEW "BRAINS" OF THE VEHICLE FAILED) NEEDED TO BE REPLACED, AND OF COURSE WE DID. I KNOW FOR A FACT THAT C.E.M FAILURES ARE AN COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS TYPE OF VEHICLE. TWO DEALERSHIPS HAVE TOLD ME THAT THEY HAVE DEALT WITH THIS ISSUE RECENTLY. THIS IS A MAJOR ISSUE. OUR LIVES WERE AT RISK GIVEN OUR CIRCUMSTANCE. I CANNOT IMAGINE WHAT OTHERS HAVE EXPERIENCED. A FIRE, PROPERTY DAMAGE, CRASH, AND REPORT TO POLICE SHOULD NOT IN THIS CASE BE THE GENESIS OF A RECALL. THE SIMPLE FACTS OF OUR NEAR GRAVE EXPERIENCE SHOULD BE SUFFICIENT TO HAVE A RECALL. *TR