1999 Volvo V70

THE THROTTLE ON OUR 1999 VOLVO V70 HAS FAILED. THE PROBLEM WAS NOTICED BY UNUSUAL THROTTLE BEHAVIOR ON THE FREEWAY AT 60 - 70 MILES PER HOUR. AFTER THIS BEHAVIOR HAD OCCURRED SEVERAL TIMES OVER A PERIOD OF MONTHS, THE ETS LIGHT CAME ON INDICATING A THROTTLE PROBLEM. THE PROBLEM CAUSED AN UNUSUAL FEELING TO DRIVING THE CAR AS IF THERE WERE SOME RESISTANCE OR IMPEDIMENT TO THE ENGINE RUNNING PROPERLY. THE ETS WARNING LIGHT CAME ON THE DATE BELOW LISTED AS "INCIDENT DATE," BUT THE PROBLEM WAS OCCURRING OVER A FEW MONTH PERIOD BEFORE THAT DATE. THE ETS LIGHT DID NOT STAY ON, BUT THERE IS CLEARLY A PROBLEM WITH THE THROTTLE. I TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALER, LEE VOLVO IN WELLESLEY, MA AND WAS TOLD THE THROTTLE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THIS IS WORRISOME, BECAUSE THE MANUAL SAYS TO TURN THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON WHEN THE ETS LIGHT COMES ON, BUT THE ETS LIGHT WILL NOT CONSISTENTLY INDICATE A PROBLEM, WHEN THE THROTTLE IS DEFECTIVE AS OURS IS. WE OWN A 2000 VOLVO S70, WHICH I UNDERSTAND MAY HAVE THE SAME THROTTLE, AND THAT YOU ARE CONSIDERING A RECALL FOR VOLVO THROTTLES. IT IS EXPENSIVE TO REPLACE THE THROTTLE $1,000+, AND DANGEROUS AS IT IS A PROBLEM WHICH MAY ARISE AT 70 MILES AN HOUR WITH NO WARNING. *NM

1999 VOLVO V70 ETM (ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULE) FAILURE - MY WIFE AND 3 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER WERE DRIVING THE CAR ON A MAJOR FOUR LANE AVENUE, IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, WHEN THE ETM FAILED. THE CAR STARTED IDLING ROUGH. WHEN SHE CAME TO A STOP LIGHT, SHE HAD TO PRESS THE BRAKE EXTREMELY HARD TO PREVENT THE CAR FROM LUNGING INTO THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF HER. WHEN SHE ACCELERATED TO PROCEED, THE CAR WOULD ONLY GO A MAXIMUM OF 30 MPH, EVEN WITH THE ACCELERATOR PRESSED TO THE FLOOR. LUCKILY, THE CROWN VOLVO DEALERSHIP (GREENSBORO, NC) WAS ON THE SAME STRETCH OF AVENUE. SHE MANAGED TO GET TO THE DEALERSHIP AND GET IT REPAIRED. WE WERE DEVASTATED WHEN THEY TOLD US THE REPAIR WOULD COST $934.00. WE WERE ABLE TO GET THAT REDUCED TO $836.24, BECAUSE WE JUST HAPPEN TO HAVE A $100 DISCOUNT COUPON IN THE GLOVE COMPARTMENT. WE HAD JUST HAD A 60,000 MILE SERVICE PERFORMED ON THE CAR A COUPLE MONTHS AGO. THE ACTUAL MILEAGE WHEN THE ETM FAILED WAS 64,284. THE REPAIR INCLUDED REPLACING THE FAULTY ETM, A GASKET, AND A ETM PROGRAM RELOAD. *JB

DT: WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE LOST POWER AND DIED ON THE HIGHWAY. CALLER SAID THE ELECTRIC THROTTLE SYSTEM WARNING LIGHT CAME ON WHEN THE VEHICLE LOST POWER. HE WAS ABLE TO GET THE VEHICLE RESTARTED BUT IT WOULD NOT IDLE RIGHT AND COULD NOT BE DRIVEN. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO DEALER WHO DETERMINED THAT THE ELECTRIC THROTTLE NEEDE TO BE REPLACED. MANUFACTURER SAID SOMETIMES THESE THINGS FAILED. *AK *NM

SIRS - I FILE THIS COMPLIANT TO ADD TO THOSE ALREADY FILED BY OTHERS THAT DOCUMENT MALFUNCTIONING ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULES IN 1999 TO 2001 VOLVO 60/70/80-SERIES VEHICLES. MY 1999 V70 T5 CURRENTLY EXHIBITS THE CONDITIONS INDICATIVE OF ETM MALFUNCTION (E.G., ROUGH STARTING, UNEVEN ACCELERATION, AND INTERMITTENT SURGING WHEN DRIVING AT STEADY STATE HIGHWAY SPEEDS). THE ETS DASH PANEL LIGHT IS ILLUMINATED. ONLY ONCE HAS THE CAR COMPLETELY STALLED (AND IT OCCURRED IN THE VOLVO OF IRVINE, CA PARKING LOT AS I WAS DEPARTING). THE CAR JUST TURNED 90K MILES. IT HAS NOT LEFT ME STRANDED ON A HIGHWAY BUT I'M VERY CONCERNED THAT IT WILL STALL AND GO INTO "20-MPH LIMP HOME" MODE AND MAKE ME A TARGET. *NM

1999 VOLVO V70 W/61,000. ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULE FAILURE (ETS AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHTS: ROUGH IDLE ON START (SURGING);SLOW SPEED ONLY. DEALER SERVICE MGR. INDICATED THEY REPLACE MANY, BUT NOT AT SUCH LOW MILEAGE. NO INDICATION THAT FAILURE WAS IMMINENT EXCEPT SLIGHT, OCCASIONAL HESITATION AFTER STARTUP. TRIP LENGTH OF 3 MILES. SUBSEQUENT STARTUP AND COMMUTE TO DEALER UNEVENTFUL EXCEPT CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS LIT. *NM

I'VE HAD NUMEROUS ELECTRONIC PROBLEMS WITH MY VOLVO V70 SINCE I BOUGHT IT IN 1998. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN BROUGHT BACK TO THE VOLVO REPAIR DEALER FOR MANY REPAIRS (I HAVE ORGANIZED DOCUMENTS OF ALL THE REPAIR ORDERS) CLEARLY IDENTIFIED AS "LOST OF POWER" WHILE DRIVING. MOSTLY ON SMALL ROADS AND ONLY ONCE ON AN INTERSTATE. ORIGINALLY STARTED UNDER WARRANTY, I WAS TOLD THAT THE SAME PROBLEM WAS NOT COVERED OUTSIDE OF WARRANTY WHEN I SPOKE WITH THE PRESIDENT OF VOLVO NORTH AMERICA'S SECRETARY. I HAVE HAD MANY PARTS REPLACED TRYING TO CORRECT THE SITUATION INCLUDING TWO ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL UNITS (TOTALING THREE IF YOU INCLUDE THE ONE THAT CAME WITH THE CAR). "LOSS OF POWER", "STALLING AT TRAFFIC LIGHTS", "HESITATION WHEN PRESSING ON ACCELERATOR", AN OTHER COMMENTS ARE ALL DOCUMENTED IN THE VOLVO REPAIR SHOP REPAIR ORDERS. THE PROBLEMS CONTINUED UNTIL THROUGHOUT MY OWNERSHIP OF THE CAR. I FINALLY GAVE UP AND SOLD IT JUNE 05. THE REPAIRS THAT VOLVO DID TO MY V70 WOULD WORK FOR A WHILE AND THEN THE LIGHTS WOULD SOON COME BACK ON. I'D PUT UP WITH IT FOR A WHILE UNTIL THE CAR STARTED TO BECOME TO DANGEROUS TO DRIVE (HESITATION) AND THEN I'D BRING IT IN FOR REPAIR. VOLVO TRIED DIFFERENT SOLUTIONS AND TOLD ME THAT THE COMPUTER CODES INDICATED DIFFERENT REPAIRS, BUT TO ME IT WAS ALWAYS THE SAME SYMPTOMS. I WOULD BE GLAD TO SHARE THE ENTIRE BOOK OF REPAIR ORDERS OVER THE 7 YEARS (AND 167,000 MILES) THAT I OWNED THE CAR. AGAIN THEY WERE ALWAYS DONE AT A CERTIFIED VOLVO DEALERSHIP. *JB

DT: THE CONTACT STATED BASICALLY THE WARNING LIGHT WAS COMING ON IN THE LATTER PART OF 2003. IT HAPPENED SEVERAL TIMES. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER, AND THE DEALER TOLD HIM THAT HE COULD HAVE IT CLEANED, BUT THE WARNING LIGHT COULD STILL COME ON. HE WOULD EVENTUALLY HAVE TO REPLACED THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULE (ETM). THE CONTACT HAD IT REPLACED IN 2-04, AND JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT THE PROBLEM WITH THE VALVES. HE CALLED THE DEALER STATING HE WOULD LIKE HIS MONEY BACK FROM VOLVO. BECAUSE THE CAR WAS NOT UNDER WARRANTY AT THE TIME HE HAD THE ETM REPLACED, AND BECAUSE THE MILEAGE WAS 64,495, THEY COULD NOT REIMBURSE HIM. THE CALLER WAS NOT THE ORIGINAL OWNER. *AK

FAILURE OF ELECTRONIC THROTTLE SYSTEM OCCURRED. NO INJURIES DUE TO IMMEDIATE DISCONTINUED USE AFTER WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. AFTER LIGHT ILLUMINATED, I DROVE THE CAR STRAIGHT HOME FROM WORK, PARKED IT AND AM CURRENTLY RESEARCHING WHERE I WILL TAKE IT TO GET REPAIRED. I HAVE RECENTLY READ NUMEROUS ARTICLES ON THIS PROBLEM THAT OTHERS ARE HAVING AS WELL, AND WANTED TO NOTE THIS INCIDENT AS WELL.