Software Problems of Volvo V70

After investigation, I discovered that used vehicle just purchased (2004 Volvo V70) had a bad rem module; rendering fuel gauge, rear door locks, fuel door latch, and hatchback lock inoperative. The rear hatchback has no manual method to lock it; making vehicle unsecurable. Investigation online indicates this is a known issue. Dealer wants around $200 to update software to fix problems. This is unacceptable, since at least two critical items (hatchback and fuel door latches) depend on functioning rem to secure them. I believe these items should be covered by the manufacturer regardless of age.

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First, I got a message on the instrument panel saying "srs airbag urgent. " a few days later, the panel started to intermittently work. When it doesn't work, I have no working speedometer, fuel gauge, odometer, blinkers (although they still work outside the car), or any other light that would normally be shown on the panel. Occasionally everything comes on, then it freezes, and eventually turns back off. Took it to shop and they tried a different panel but it has to be coded in and the software was not compatible. Took it to another shop and they said they could try to send it to someone in canada who rebuilds them and recodes them so they can be reinstalled, but the mechanic said to wait until he has more information. Obviously, this is dangerous for me to have to guess what speed I'm going and to not know how much fuel I have left. Both mechanics have not seen this in this model before and seem to think it is a faulty panel. I don't know what to do. *note: mileage is estimated since I can not actually check the odometer.

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The ignition is shut off momentarily as the transmission attempts to downshift causing it to slip into neutral then engage the lower gear hard as the transmissions computer reestablishes control. This action is recorded on a video car camera operated by the ignitions on and off position. The hard shifting problem thought to be fixed by software update may be addressing the symptom not the cause. Acceleration is also affected at other times where the foot pedal is inoperable, but reestablished when shutting the ignition off and on. The drive train becomes wobbly after a short period of time at highway speeds making travel between cities unsafe. A clunking sound from the rear, as broken spring or loose bowling ball makes, is heard at times of mild acceleration at lower speeds. Perhaps a grounding strap my alleviate static buildup in the ignition system.

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Etm/ecm replaced 1/2006. Subsequent software upgrade 05/08/2006, 08/09/2006. Rough cranking idle. Subsequent shifting problem with transmission. Follow up with software upgrade tcm on Aug. 9, 2006. Problem still present. Transmission shifting jerks between 2 and 3rd gear upon acceleration/deceleration. Rough shifting with kick down shifting at speeds +60 mph.

I am submitting etm failure in my 2000 Volvo V70 se wagon in October of 2005. I am concerned for my safety driving this car because the car hesitates upon acceleration, there's sudden and unexpected transition into reduced performance operation (limp mode) and sometimes when the ets indicator has engaged while my foot is on the brake the car surges forward as if I were giving it a lot of gas. I went to the dealer in culver city, California, today, December 28, 2005, and the module was not replaced but, the service reps did say they cleaned the throttle - whatever that is - and upgraded the software program on the computer. Five minutes after leaving the Volvo services department the etm failed again. I called the dealer and they told me they did all that they could do.

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I own a 1999 Volvo V70 awd wagon with 55,000 miles. We were traveling on the highway at about 70 mph and the car started to surge. The ets light came on. We were able to drive home, but the car was running roughly. I contacted the dealer and made an appointment to bring it in. I was told that the electronic throttle body module needed to be replaced. They also suggested a complete vehicle software upgrade. I have an extended warranty (sold to me by the dealer), but it did not cover this repair.

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The electronic throttle system warning light came on. There was intermittent loss of power. The dealer identified the following throttle failure codes, 914f, 91b7, 9150. They replaced the throttle, cleaned pvc system and upgraded the ecm software. Total cost was $1270. 52. At the same time the brake light system failed. There was no warning light. The entire system, all three lights did not illuminate. The dealer replaced the electronic brake light switch. Cost $124. 08.

Mileage approx 115,000 when purchased now 120,000 within 8 months. Hardly hard use. Failure of ecm and O2 sensors, on two occasions the second within 1000 miles and 1 month of first repair. Caused the car to surge, if restarted might stall and generally become dangerous to drive. No warning of failure. Volvo dealerships well aware of problem and offered immediate and correct diagnosis prior to checking the computer codes, without needing much investigation. 2 dealers worked on the car one don bayer in washington and independence Volvo in charlotte. Instructed independence Volvo dealer to make car safe and roadworthy. Uploaded faults and downloaded onto vehicle, new software. Within 1 month new symptoms appear. At various times these lights show and reset abs warning, engine warning, traction control warning, speedo failure, check engine, service warning (even though service is just carried out). Symptoms include lack of throttle response when pulling away, when speedo fails. No warning of change in status means this happens during turning maneuvers with potentially dangerous or lethal consequences. Checking various sources note that abs module failure is common making the car potentially unsafe in emergency, not only for braking but during acceleration as the cars ability to pull at its normal rate is vastly reduced, adding throttle does nothing, but if the system turns back on again no warning, the speedometer just comes back to life ) this can cause unneeded fierce acceleration. I noted one death on the highway of a young woman who appeared to accelerate off the road during a benign maneuver and am concerned that this on/off speedometer/abs transmission problem might have been the cause rather than the ecm currently the focus of the investigation.

Please include my vehicle incident to NHTSA action # pe05041. While driving on the highway the vehicle ets (electronic throttle system) warning light came on. Vehicle was able to drive home. Next day vehicle would not start, however, was able to start by bypassing gear selector into neutral and vehicle started and was taken to Volvo dealer. Volvo replaced the ets unit and reloaded the software under the special CA emissions warranty. Since Volvo replaced the part with an identical unit, I am concerned the unit will fail again out of warranty and I will have to replace at my cost ($1,000. 00). Volvo should redesign and replace ets units to Volvo owners at no cost.

Repeated skipping and hesitation of our V70 t5 sw along with a "reduced performance error" message resulted in our going to the danbury CT dealership, where they told us the throttle and software needed replacement. The cost was $899. 17. We service our car regularly and have the documentation to prove it. We have had no accidents with the car prior to this engine problem. Because of widespread reports of the same problem occurring on other Volvo V70 station wagons, we believe the cause of the engine skipping to be an inherent structural flaw and we request reimbursement of our expenses. The dealer who made the $899. 17 repair was Volvo of danbury, 203-743-4667.

We are having problems with our vehicle as identified in a newspaper article with our Volvo. The dealer we purchased the vehicle from originally refused to correct the problem of the loss of power, stalling and other defects with my vehicle under warranty (they claims to have been advised by Volvo that they could not fix the problem without a "reduced performance" light coming on) until I told them that if I was killed (the last time this happened, I lost power as I was entering I-95 north during rush hour and was nearly broadsided by a construction vehicle merging from the opposite direction) it would cost them a lot more than simply a repair. After threatening a lawsuit, they agreed to download some software to correct the problem. While the issue is not as prevalent as it was, we still have occasions when we get power surges, lose power and the electrical systems do not work properly in the vehicle. I do not feel safe driving this vehicle. The transmission/air flow problem is just one of many issues we have had with this vehicle - many of them safety related. We were told by the dealer that they were aware of the problem through a notice they received from Volvo - a notice was the kind that notified the dealers of the problem were not required to advise customers unless customers complained (this was the same issue with an internal engine fan which apparently can catch fire without warning - the dealers got notice about that, but the customers did not - if we complained about issues with the fan, depending on the kind of fan it was, it would be fixed under warranty - otherwise, we would be responsible for replacing the fan at the cost of over $500 - our fan, after we complained that it came on for no reason while the vehicle was parked, was finally replaced last summer by the dealer but they had to get "special permission" from Volvo to do it. Apparently, these fans can come on and cause the engine to overheat, and there have been fires because of it.

Incidence 6 of 7 similar. As reported on service invoice: "customer states: ets light came on after driving car at highway speeds. When decelerating down to local (town) speed car has a severe sputtering, hesitation as if it was going to stall. Fault traced system with vadis and retrieved codes ecm-532d ecm-9190, ecm-91a7, and ecm-91f0. . . Replaced electronic throttle assembly, and downloaded new software to adapt car. " this incident was the 6th of 7 similar problems occurring later that ultimately lead to having the throttle body cleaned twice & then replaced twice. I will be reporting all these subsequent incidents in sequence of occurrence on this NHTSA complaint site as well. Note that this particular incident seems to be consistent with already-recognized NHTSA action number pe05041 "failure of the electronic throttle control module (etm) in the subject vehicles. " previously reported incidents: 1) odi #10131200 2) odi #10131206 3) odi #10131207 4) odi #10131208 5) odi #1013120.

The consumer was having problems with Volvo 2001 v-70 cross country wagon. The vehicle was stalling at random speeds starting in mid-August of 2004. Consumer took the vehicle to a repair shop, and the mechanic suspected the throttle was the issue. The problem was random and it would not do this for several days. The vehicle stalled on the highway while the consumer was merging into traffic. The vehicle would start after consumer let the car sit for a few minutes. Later that day the car stalled again. Consumer had to have the car towed to a dealership for repairs. This time the car did not start. The dealer replaced the throttle module, loaded software; throttle body, cable tie and etm reloaded. The car was running okay at times, but the engine was racing very high for seconds and then returns back to the normal rate. The motorwas revving and the tachometer was registering high for a moment. Consumer considered returning the vehicle because of the problems. The total cost on repairs has been over $800. 00. Nhtsa investigation, pe05041.

Incidence 4 of 7 similar. As reported on service invoice: "customer reports: 1) when slowing down to a stop tach drops and then picks back up when car comes to a stop. Clean throttle housing. 2) was getting 20 miles per gallon now about 17 1/2. Perform software upgrade for ecm, tcm and etm. " this incident was the 4th of 7 similar problems occurring later that ultimately lead to having the throttle body cleaned twice & then replaced twice. I will be reporting all these subsequent incidents in sequence of occurrence on this NHTSA complaint site as well. Previously reported incidents: 1) odi #10131200 2) odi #10131206 3) odi #10131207.

Incidence 3 of 7 similar. As reported on service invoice: "[throttle & cruise] customer reports: ets light comes on intermittently - light goes out on restart. Access diagnostic codes: ecm 91a7. Perform software download & reset adaptations. " this incident was the 3rd of 7 similar problems occurring later that ultimately lead to having the throttle body cleaned twice & then replaced twice. I will be reporting all these subsequent incidents in sequence of occurrence on this NHTSA complaint site as well. Previously reported incidents: 1) odi #10131200 2) odi #10131206.

While traveling at high speed on an interstate my car lost power completely. I was able to get to the shoulder safely and call Volvo roadside assistance. My car was towed to the nearest dealership where it sat for a month because the problem couldn't be determined. The car was returned to me. About six months later the same experience occurred, once again while traveling at a high speed on an interstate highway. The "problem" was fixed again. My car has been in and out of the dealership for various reasons for years. When I was finally fed up with it and decided to sell it, it needed more electrical work. The service manager at a dealership listened to the problems I had with the car over the years and felt that it warranted a call to the Volvo rep. I gave him all work orders which I have from the purchase date of the car. He was told by the Volvo rep that since all repair work had not been done at a Volvo dealership they couldn't help me. Normal work such as oil changes, etc. Were done by a mechanic who only works on saabs and Volvos. Upon looking for the names of Volvo execs that I could write a letter to I stumbled on a website about Volvo problems and people who were trying to hold the company accountable for mechanical failures of any type. I wrote to the individual who started the website and he suggested that I send my e-mail to stephen mchenry at NHTSA which I did. After trying for many days to do so and failing to connect because of some problem with the message trying to reach mr. Mchenry I just let it go. We need to sell the car because we can't afford to fix all that needs to be repaired. The problem is how do I sell a car that needs over a thousand dollars of work? I am forwarding the e-mail I tried to send to stephen mchenry to your e-mail address. What can I do? am I too late in reporting this? what do you advise me to do? thank you for your consideration. Susan k. Luxem.

2006 Volvo V70. Letter from the law office enclosing a letter to Volvo regarding their extended warranty notice re the engine management system software.

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