VOLVO Complaints

I HAVE A 1999 VOLVO S70. IT HAS HAD A PROBLEM LOSING SPEED AND STALLING WITHOUT WARNING. I HAD A MAJOR REPAIR DONE IT TO FIX THE PROBLEM. I UNDERSTAND THAT THIS VEHICLE MODEL IS UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR THIS SAME PROBLEM.

MY 1999 VOVLO S80 ENGINE BEGAN SURGING WHEN COMING TO A STOP. THE IDLE WOULD BOUNCE UP AND DOWN BY ITSELF FROM 500 - 1500RPM. THE CAR FINALY SET DHECK ENGINE CODES THAT INDICATED THAT THE MASS AIR FLOW SENSOR HAD FAILED. REPLACING MAF CORRECTED THE ISSUE, HOWEVER THE CAR HAS BEEN SHOWING SIGNS OF THE SAME FAILURE AGAIN. FIRST MAF UNIT WAS REPLACED ON AUGUST 28, 2003 WITH 63,935 MILES, NOW AT 104,380 THE SAME ISSUES HAVE BEGUN TO RE-APPEAR. IT APPEARS TO ME THAT THE CURRENT DESIGN OF THE 1999 S80 MAF HAS A DESIGN FLAW THAT LIMITS ITS USEFUL LIFE. I HAVE NEVER HAD TO REPLACE A MAF SENSOR BEFORE NOW I AM LOOKING AT A RE-OCCURANCE ON THE SAME VEHICLE.

THE ENGINE SHUT DOWN SUDDENLY WITH LOSS OF POWER STEERING AND POWER BRAKES ONCE WHILE ON A RAMP ENTERING THE EXPRESSWAY AND A SECOND TIME WHILE ON THE EXPRESSWAY. EACH ALMOST CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. I WAS ABLE TO RE-START THE ENGINE. THIS HAPPENED SHORTLY AFTER BUYING THE CAR AND THE ETM AND MAF WERE REPLACED THEN. SEVERAL TIMES OVER THE YEARS SINCE THERE HAS BEEN A VARIATION OF ENGINE SPEED WHILE DRIVING AT HIGH SPEED. THE DEALER WAS NEVER ABLE TO IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM. I JUST HAD THIS FIXED (AT A COST OF $1,326.68) SINCE IT IS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY.

LATE EVENING ON THE 22ND , OR EARLY MORNING, OF JULY 23RD I RENTED A VOLVO S80 FROM HERTZ CORPORATIO DIA LOCATION AND LATER ON THE MORNING OF THE 23RD DROVE WITH MY FAMILY FROM DENVER TO CARBONDALE ALONG I-70 AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. SHORTLY AFTER ARRIVING IN CARBONDALE MY YOUNGEST SON AND I WENT FROM THE HOUSE AT WHICH WE WERE STAYING TO THE LOCAL 7/11 FOR A FEW SUPPLIES. WHILE IN THE PARKING LOT THE FRONT AXEL, DRIVER''S SIDE, DISCONNECTED FROM THE VEHICLE. HAD THIS HAPPENED A FEW HOURS EARLIER ON THE INTERSTATE I DOUBT THAT I WOULD BE ABLE TO AUTHOR THIS.

I DRIVE VOLVO 960 STATION WAGON, 1994. I HAVE HAD 2 EPISODES OF THE CAR SUDDENLY LOSING SPEED ON THE FREEWAY AND LAST WEEK HAD A HAIR RAISING EXPERIENCE OF THE CAR LOSING ALL POWER WHILE IN THE FAST LANE OF THE FREEWAY. ALL POWER TO THE CAR QUIT AND I AM LUCKY THAT MY CHILDREN AND I WERE NOT INJURED OR KILLED. TODAY IN THE SAN DIEGO UNION TRIBUNE NEWSPAPER I READ A SMALL ARTICLE REGARDING THE NHTSA IS OPENING A PRELIMINARY STUDY REGARDING VOLVO'S C70, S60, S70 V70 AND V70XC 1999-2001 MODELS DUE TOLOSS OF SPEED AND STALLING PROBLEMS. EVEN THOUGH MY CAR IS OLDER THAN THESE MODELS, I TOO HAVE THE SAME ISSUE. IT IS TRUELY TERRIFYING AND DANGEROUS.

THE 2000 VOLVO V70 WHICH I PURCHASED BRAND NEW BEGAN STALLING EVERY TIME I STARTED TO SLOW DOWN AFTER 3 YEARS OF OWNING IT. STARTING FEBRUARY 2003 THE VEHICLE WOULD COMPLETELY STALL OR STRUGGLE TO STAY RUNNING. I REPORTED THE PROBLEM TO ONE OF THE "AUTHOURIZED" VOLVO DEALERS AND SCHEDULED SERVICE ON 02/05/03. AFTER DIAGNOSING THE CAR, THE SERVICE CENTER TOLD ME THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. AS I WAS LEAVING THE DEALERSHIP THE CAR STALLED OUT AGAIN. I RETURNED TO THE SERVICE CENTER AND THEY DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS JUST NEEDING THE THROTTLE BODY CLEANED. ON 06/19/03 THE PROBLEM STILL CONTINUED THE VEHICLE WAS AGAIN DIAGNOSED AS JUST NEEDING TO CLEAN THE THROTTLE BODY OUT. AGAIN, WITHIN ONE MONTH ON 07/07/03, BACK TO THE SERVICE CENTER WITH THE SAME RESULTS. SEPTEMBER 10, 2003, THE PROBLEM STILL EXISTED. THE THROTTLE BODY WAS CLEANED AGAIN FOR THE 4TH TIME. EACH ONE OF THESE APPOINTMENTS COSTING ME TIME, MONEY AND STILL A VOLOVO V70 THAT STILL STALLS. FINALLY I SCHEDULED ANOTHER SERVICE APPOINTMENT ON 02/27/04 AT ANOTHER "AUTHORIZED" VOLVO CENTER( SOUTH SHORE VOLVO) THEY DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS THE THROTTLE BODY GETTING OIL IN IT FROM THE BACKED UP BREATHER BOX. THEIR SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM WAS TO ALSO CLEAN OUT THE TROTTLE BODY. THIS ATTEMPT AGAIN WAS A FAILURE BECAUSE CURRENTLY, THE VEHICLE STILL STRUGGLES TO STAY RUNNING OR STALLS EVERY TIME YOU SLOW DOWN. I DID WRITE TO VOLVO IN APRIL 2004 AND EXPLAINED MY PROBLEM WITH THE CAR AS WELL AS PROVIDED THEM WITH ALL THE DOCUMENTATION OF ALL THE REPAIRS THAT I HAVE INCURRED TO DATE, BUT THEY SUPPLIED NO EXPLANATION NOR RESOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM. I AM FRUSTRATED AND WOULD LIKE MY VOLVO FIXED AS WELL AS RESTITUTION FOR A TOTAL $1240.98 THAT I HAVE ALREADY INCURRED IN USELESS REPAIR BILLS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION IN AN INVESTIGATION INTO TO THIS MATTER.

ON AUG. 13, 2005, MY WIFE WAS DRIVING ON A PUBLIC ROAD IN SAN FRANCISCO APPROX. 35 MPH WHEN HER 1999 VOLVO V70 (APPROX. 72,500 MILES ON THE ODOMETER) STALLED. I CALLED PUTNAM VOLVO IN BURLINGAME THE FOLLOWING TUESDAY, AND MADE A SERVICE APPOINTMENT FOR THURSDAY, AUG. 18. THAT THURSDAY MORNING, WHEN I STARTED THE CAR, IT BEGAN TO IDLE ROUGHLY, SURGING FROM APPROX. 800 RPM TO 1500 RPM REPEATEDLY. I SHUT THE CAR DOWN, THEN RESTARTED IT; THE CAR THEN RAN FAIRLY NORMALLY. PUTNAM VOLVO DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS A FAULTY THROTTLE CONTROL MODULE, AND CHARGED ME $1225.00 FOR THE REPAIR. IT SEEMS THAT MANY OF THESE THROTTLE CONTROL MODULES ARE FAILING PREMATURELY.

SHORTLY AFTER BUYING A VOLVO 80, I NOTICED THAT THE CAR WOULD SURGE PERIODICALLY. I WAS TOLD THAT THE THROTTLE BODY NEEDED TO BE CLEANED. AFTER READING UP ON THIS, IT SOUNDED LIKE A WASTE OF MONEY SO I AM STUCK WITH A $40+K CAR THAT HAS A SIZABLE DEFECT. THE SURGING IS SO BAD THAT IF YOU DON'T HOLD THE BRAKE PEDAL HARD THE CAR WILL SURGE FORWARD IE AT RED LIGHTS. NOTHING WAS DONE TO CORRECT THIS FAILURE. I AM THE SECOND OWNER. ALSO I HAD TO REPLACE A BALL JOINT ON THIS CAR AFTER A RECALLED BALL JOINT WAS INSTALLED AT MY COST. THE DEALER SAID THE RECALL WAS ONLY A BOLT AND NOT THE WHOLE JOINT BUT I VERIFIED THAT THE PREVIOUS OWNER HAD BOTH BALL JOINTS REPLACED VIA A VOLVO RECALL. I BELIEVE THE RECALLED JOINT WAS DEFECTIVE LIKE THE ORIGINAL ONE. NO ACCIDENTS OCCURED BUT IT PUT MY STEERING WAY OUT OF WHACK AND NEEDED AN ALIGNMENT. (ALL AT MY COST)

DT: THE CONSUMER STATES THAT 2003 VOLVO S60 HAS AN INABILITY TO STOP IN REVERSE . THE BRAKES FAILED AND THE CAR ACCELERATED IN REVERSE. THIS OCCURRED AFTER THE CAR STARTED AND SPUTTERED. THE CONSUMER TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALER, AND THEY SAID IT WAS A SOFTWARE PROBLEM, THE SOFTWARE WAS UPDATED. BUT THE CAR WAS STILL DOING THIS. THE CONSUMER HAS NOT CALLED THE MANUFACTURER. THE SOFTWARE WAS THE ONLY THING MENTIONED AS BEING THE PROBLEM WITH THE CAR. THE CAR HAS BEEN DOING THIS FOR ABOUT 2 YEARS. LATELY, THE CAR HAS BEEN DOING THIS MORE FREQUENTLY. *AK

1) I WAS DRIVING ALONE ALONG STATE HIGHWAY 283 IN PA, WHICH IS A 4 LANE (2 EACH DIRECTION) HIGHWAY IN A RURAL AREA WITH A POSTED SPEED LIMIT OF 65, BETWEEN LANCASTER AND HARRISBURG. MOST TRAFFIC WAS TRUCKS (TRACTER TRAILERS). 2) THE CAR (VOLVO S70 AWD), TRAVELLING SMOOTHLY ON CRUISE CONTROL AT ABOUT THE SPEED LIMIT, SUDDENLY LOST POWER. ENGINE WAS STILL RUNNING, BUT AT A MUCH LOWER RPM, AND RUNNING BADLY. FORTUNATELY I WAS IN THE FAR RIGHT LANE. I PULLED OFF THE ROAD ALMOST IMMEDIATELY TO AVOID BEING HIT BY THE TRUCK BEHIND ME. I NOTICED THE ETS YELLOW WARNING LIGHT WAS ON. THE VEHICLE SEEMED ABLE TO OPERATE, ALBEIT ROUGHLY, AT ABOUT 30-35MPH. BEING IN A RURAL AREA, I DROVE IN THIS OFF THE HIGHWAY LANE UP TO THE NEXT EXIT. I TOOK THE RAMP OFF THE HIGHWAY, GOT TO THE TOP OF THE RAMP, AND THE CAR SEEMED TO BE REASONABLE. BEING IN A RURAL AREA WITH NOWHERE SEEN FOR REPARIRS, I ACCELERATED DOWN THE RAMP TO THE HIGHWAY, WITH THE CAR SEEMING A BIT SLUGGISH, BUT OTHERWISE OK. THEN IT LOST POWER AGAIN AT THE BOTTOM OF THE EXIT RAMP. I PULLED OVER, TO THE SOUND OF THE HORN OF ANOTHER TRUCK WHICH WAS BEHIND ME. I SHUT OFF THE CAR; WAITED A FEW SECONDS; AND RESTARTED THE CAR. IT RAN MUCH BETTER, BUT THE ETS LIGHT WAS STILL ON. AFTER PULLING BACK ONTO THE HIGHWAY, EVERYTHING WAS OK FOR AWHILE, BUT I RAN INTO PROBLEMS WHEN I HIT SOME SLOWING TRAFFIC. WHEN I TRIED TO ACCELERATE FROM THE SLOWDOWN THE CAR DID NOT RESPOND. IT WAS AS IF I HADN'T JUST PRESSED THE PEDAL. I NURSED IT TO A VOLVO DEALERSHIP AS SOON AS POSSIBLE THAT DAY. 3) THE THROTTLE BODY WAS REPLACED AFTER DEALERSHIP FIRST PERFORMED A DIAGNOSTIC ON THE ENGINE. THE DIAGNOSTIC SHOWED 5 LINE ITEMS FOR THE "THROTTLE UNIT, INTERNAL FAULT..." I HAVE A COPY OF THE PRINT OUT OF THIS REPORT. I HAVE DRIVEN THE CAR ABOUT 150 HIGHWAY MILES SINCE THE REPAR. THE PROBLEM HAS NOT BEEN OBSERVED DURING THIS TIME.