VOLVO Complaints

"THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS LOOKING INTO POSSIBLE PROBLEMS WITH VOLVO SEDANS AND STATION WAGONS. AT ISSUE ARE COMPLAINTS SOME VEHICLES CAN LOSE SPEED OR THE ENGINE CAN STALL WITHOUT WARNING." THIS IS HAPPENING TO MY WITH MY 2001 VOLVO S80. *NM

1) VEHICLE STALLS WHILE DRIVING IN ANY WEATHER CONDITION 2) VEHICLE WILL NOT START AFTER STALLING 3) POWER BRAKES AND POWER STEERING ARE REDUCED AND PRESENT A DANGEROUS DRIVING SITUATION 4) VOLVO DEALERSHIP AVOIDS FAULTY DESIGN RESPONSIBILITY. *NM

I OWN A 2003 VOLVO S60, 4 DR SEDAN, PURCHASED FROM DON BEYER VOLVO IN FALLS CHURCH, VA, SERVICED AT DON BEYER VOLVO IN DULLES, VA. THE CAR HAS SUDDENLY STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSECTION TWICE IN THE LAST 2 WEEKS BUT WOULD RE-START ALMOST IMMEDIATELY. LAST NIGHT, IT STALLED GOING 70 MPH ON A MAJOR HIGHWAY WITH NO WARNING WHATSOEVER. I LOST ALL POWER IMMEDIATELY AND HAD TO MANEUVER OVER LANES OF TRAFFIC TO PULL OVER WITHOUT POWER STEERING. VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION. TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP WHERE THEY REPLACED THE FUEL PRESSURE REGULATOR AND SAID THEY'VE HAD NO OTHER COMPLAINTS OF THIS SORT. HOWEVER, JUST TONIGHT I SAW A NEWS REPORT ON CHANNEL 8 NEWS IN WASH DC STATING THAT VOLVO IS BEING INVESTIGATED FOR CLAIMS OF THIS EXACT TYPE. DID NOT SEE ANY MENTION OF THE S60 MODEL SO THOUGHT I WOULD REPORT MY INCIDENT TO BE INCLUDED IN THE INVESTIGATION. *NM

OUR VOLVO WAS SERVICED REGULARLY BY OUR DEALER. WE COMPLAINED ABOUT THE CAR HESITATING AND WAS TOLD THAT THE PROBLEM WAS CORRECTED. WE LEFT NJ FOR A THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY TRIP TO MYRTLE BEACH SC. ABOUT 30 MILES FROM OUR DESTINATION, THE CAR BEGAN TO DECELERATE FROM 65 MPH AND WOULD NOT GO ANY FASTER THAN 20 MPH. WE PROCEED TO PULL OFF THE HIGHWAY AND LET THE CAR COOL DOWN. AFTER APPROX. 30 MINUTES WE TRIED TO RESTART THE CAR AND IT DID START SO WE CONTINUED ONTO MYRTLE BEACH AT NO MORE THAN 30 MPH AS THAT WAS AS FAST AS THE CAR WOULD GO. THE NEXT MORNING IT WAS TAKEN TO THE LOCAL VOLVO DEALER APPROX. 5 MILES AWAY AND IT AGAIN REFUSED TO ACCELERATE ABOVE 20-30 MPH. BEACH VOLVO OF MYRTLE BEACH, SC SAID THE PROBLEM WAS THE THROTTLE CONTROL MODULAR. A NEW THROTTLE BODY WAS INSTALLED AT A COST OF $871.51. THE CAR HAD 53,481 MILES ON IT JUST OVER THE 50,000 MILEAGE WARRANTY PERIOD. THE CAR IS A 2000 S80 VIN [XXX]. WHEN TOLD OF THE PROBLEM BY THE DEALER HE SAID WHEN THE PART GOES, IT GOES WITHOUT WARNING AND THERE ISN'T ANYTHING YOU CAN DO BUT REPLACE IT. I AM GLAD WE BROKE DOWN LATE AT NIGHT WHEN THERE WAS NO TRAFFIC AROUND US BECAUSE WE WERE IN THE HIGH SPEED LANE DOING 65 MPH WHEN IT JUST QUITE AND SLOWED TO BARELY A CRAWL. IF WE HAD BEEN ON A BUSY CORRIDOR SOMEONE COULD HAVE HIT US FROM THE REAR AND CAUSED A TERRIBLE ACCIDENT. VOLVO SHOULD BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THIS DEFECT IN DESIGN. *NM UPDATED 07/19/2012 *JS INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

DT: THE CONTACT OWNED A 1999 VOLVO S70. CONTACT WAS COMPLAINING ABOUT AN AIR-INTAKE PROBLEM. HAD TROUBLE STARTING THE VEHICLE, AND NOT ACCELERATING WHILE DRIVING. HAD CAR IN THE REPAIR SHOP THIS PAST WEEK, AND THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH IT. HOWEVER, THEY CLEANED OUT AIR INTAKE, BUT SHE CONTINUED TO HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM. ALSO, SAW AN ARTICLE AT WWW.NBC4.COM UNDER THE AUTOMOTIVE SECTION. *AK

SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER WHILE LEAVING A PARKING LOT. THE SPEED DROPPED TO BELOW 20 MPH. I WAS UNABLE TO DRIVE ABOVE 20 MPH. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER WHO SUBSEQUENTLY REPLACE THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL AT A COST OF OVER $900. *NM

A WHISTLE SOUND THAT THE VOLVO DEALER AFFIRMS BUT ADMITS THAT THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT IT IS. THE DEALER SAID THEY NEEDED SOMEONE FROM "CORPORATE" TO COME AND CHECK MY CAR OUT. AS WELL, MY VEHICLE SUDDENLY JUMPS OR FEELS LIKE IT IS GOING TO STALL FOR NO REASON. *NM

DRIVING ON I-80 IN CALIFORNIA IN BUSY TRAFFIC WHEN THROTTLE RESPONSE ON MY 2001 VOLVO V70 XC SUDDENLY VANISHED. AVOIDED SEVERAL CARS COLLIDING WITH MINE AND PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE. RESTARTING THE CAR CLEARED THE PROBLEM; HOWEVER, 30 MIN LATER THE SAME PROBLEM HAPPENED. ON THE FIST EVENT, THE CAR DISPLAYED "REDUCED PERFORMANCE", AND ON THE SECOND EVENT, THE CAR DISPLAYED "CRITICAL ENGINE FAULT". THE CAR WAS BROUGHT 90 MILES ON A FLATBED TRUCK TO RENO, NV, WHERE A ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL MECHANISM WAS REPLACED. MY CONCERN IS THE SUDDEN, AND COMPLETE, FAILURE OF ENGINE POWER IN BUSY TRAFFIC ON A 8+ LANE INTERSTATE HIGHWAY ... A SERIOUS ACCIDENT WAS NARROWLY MISSED. *NM

1999 VOLVO S70 T5 THROTTLE BODY (ETM) FAILED SUDDENLY. NO INJURIES BUT THIS IS A MAJOR PROBLEM WITH THESE AS THEY ALL FAIL BETWEEN 45,000 AND 100,000 MILES. *NM

DT: 1999 VOLVO V70 STATION WAGON GLT. THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY LOST POWER AND SPEED. CONSUMER WAS JUST DRIVING AND IT STARTED LOSING POWER. WHEN PUTTING PRESSURE ON THE GAS PEDAL IT STARTED BUCKING. WHEN CONSUMER FIRST CONTACTED THE DEALER HE TOLD HIM THAT IF CONSUMER LEFT VEHICLE SITTING FOR A WHILE IT WOULD START BACK. DEALERSHIP CLAIMED IT WAS THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL MODULE. THIS PART WAS REPLACED ON 4-1-05, AND LATER FAILED ON 7-29-05. THE DEALERSHIP REPLACED IT AGAIN AT NO CHARGE. THERE HAVE BEEN SOME OTHER ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS. CONSUMER HAD NOT PICKED UP THE VEHICLE FROM THE DEALERSHIP AS OF YET. BEFORE THESE INCIDENTS OCCURRED THE CRUISE CONTROL QUIT WORKING, THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE SYSTEM LIGHT AND ENGINE WARNING LIGHT CAME ON. *AK