2001 Volvo V70

I OWN A 2001 VOLVO V70 <TURBO> .. AND HAVE HAD REPEATED EXPERIENCES WITH THE VEHICLE EITHER STALLING WHILE IN GEAR AND / OR "SURGING" FORWARD WHILE AT A STOP WITH THE BRAKE PEDAL DEPRESSED ... THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN BROUGHT TO AN AUTHORIZED VOLVO REPAIR SHOP AND TO THE DEALER FOR THESE PROBLEMS A MINIMUM OF 4 TIMES UPON THE RETURN OF MY VEHICLE TO ME <AFTER HAVING WORK DONE UNDER CAMPAIGN 155> THE VEHICLE EXHIBITED THE SAME PROBLEMS .. THE MOST RECENT EVENT HAVING TAKEN PLACE ON 08.08.06 AT THIS MOST RECENT INCIDENT I HAD MY TWO GRANDDAUGHTERS IN MY VEHICLE AND I BELIEVE THAT THIS EVENT PUT ALL OUR LIVES IN DANGER .. THIS IS DEFINITELY A SAFETY ISSUE / HAZARD ! I <YESTERDAY> PLACED A CALL TO THE DEALERSHIP <BOZZANI VOLVO IN COVINA, CA> ONLY TO BE GIVEN THE "RUN-AROUND" FROM JON, TONY, AND GLORIA ... JON BURNHAM SUGGESTED THAT I LET THEM HAVE MY VEHICLE TO DRIVE UNTIL THE "PROBLEM" IS DUPLICATED .. GLORIA MASTERLY <A SERVICE ADVISOR> SAID I SHOULD NOT TAKE MY CAR TO MY LOCAL VOLVO APPROVED REPAIR SHOP ... THAT I SHOULD HAVE IT TOWED TO THEM, INSTEAD <WHICH I HAVE ALREADY HAD DONE <HAVING IT TOWED> BOTH THRU ASC AT NO CHARGE ... AND AT MY EXPENSE NUMEROUS TIMES> TONY RIVAS TOLD ME THAT HE HAD TO MAKE A CALL AND THAT HE WOULD GET BACK TO ME ... NO ONE GOT BACK TO ME ... NOR HAS ANYONE <AS OF NEARLY 12 NOON, TODAY < RETURNED A CALL TO ME ... I HAVE BEEN MADE AWARE OF THE EXISTING <AND WELL KNOWN> ISSUES WITH THE MAGNATE MARELLI ETM AND AM APPALLED AT THE DEVIL MAY CARE ATTITUDE THAT VOLVO IS TAKING TOWARDS THIS WHOLE AFFAIR I BOUGHT VOLVO <THIS BEING OUR THIRD> BECAUSE OF THEIR REPUTATION FOR SAFETY ! I AM NOW AFRAID TO DRIVE MY CAR ... AND AM RECEIVING NO ASSISTANCE FROM ANY VOLVO ADVISORS OR REPRESENTATIVES I AM NEARLY 80 YEARS OLD .. AND WOULD HATE TO LOSE WHAT YEARS I DO HAVE LEFT TO AN AVOIDABLE PROBLEM WHICH MAY VERY WELL TAKE MY LIFE <AS WELL AS OTHERS, POSSIBLY>

ON 6/2/06 I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY ( AT ABOUT 60 MPH), AND SUDDENLY MY CAR SLOWED DOWN AND I COULD NOT ACCELERATE, FORTUNATELY I WAS IN THE RIGHT HAND LANE AND ABLE TO EXIT THE FREEWAY AND SLOWLY MOVE TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD, A WARNING LIGHT WAS ON STATING" ENGINE PERFORMANCE REDUCED". I TURNED OFF THE IGNITION AND WAITED A FEW MINUTES. I RESTARTED THE ENGINE AND THE WARNING LIGHT WAS NOT ON, HOWEVER, I WAS VERY CONCERNED AND CALLED THE DEALER AND WAS TOLD TO BRING THE CAR IN. THE CAR WAS A LITTLE HESITANT AT FIRST BUT I WAS ABLE TO DRIVE SLOWLY ON SIDE STREETS, TO THE DEALER. HE KEPT THE CAR OVERNIGHT AND DIAGNOSED A PROBLEM WITH THE ETM, HE CLEANED THE ETM AND DOWNLOADED NEW SOFTWARE. IT WAS $20 FOR THE PARTS AND $307.00 FOR THE LABOR! I HAVE NOT HAD A RECURRENCE OF THIS PROBLEM WITH THE ETM. HOWEVER, I HAVE BECOME AWARE OF NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS ETM AND SPOKE TO THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT AT MY DEALER, WHO HAD NEVER MENTIONED IT TO ME, AND HAD NEVER OFFERED TO CHECK OR CLEAN THE ETM BEFORE THIS HAPPENED. HE WAS AWARE OF THE ETM FAILURES. I ASKED ABOUT THE EXTENDED THE WARRANTY VOLVO HAS PUT IN PLACE ON THE ETM BUT THE DEALER SAYS THAT IS ONLY FOR SERVICE AFTER THE CLEANING IS TRIED ONCE. THIS MEANS I WILL HAVE TO HAVE ANOTHER DANGEROUS FAILURE OF THE SYSTEM BEFORE THEY WILL REPLACE AND PAY FOR THE SERVICE! I FEEL THAT VOLVO SHOULD HAVE WARNED THE CAR OWNERS ABOUT THIS POSSIBLE PROBLEM AND SHOULD GIVE THE WARRANTY TO ALL THEIR CARS. *JB

ON THE WAY TO AN APPOINTMENT MY WIFE WAS DRIVING OUR VOLVO V70 T5 ON A MAJOR HIGHWAY WHEN SUDDENLY THE CAR LOST POWER AND A MESSAGE STATING "PERFORMANCE REDUCTION" WAS VISIBLE ON THE CONSOLE. THE CAR FELT LIKE IT WAS ABOUT TO STALL AT ANY MINUTE AND WAS ONLY ABLE TO BE DRIVEN AT 20 MPH. SHE WAS ABLE TO PULL THE CAR OVER TO THE HARD SHOULDER BUT AS SHE WAS ABOUT TO ENTER A SECTION WHERE ROAD WORKS HAD REMOVED ANY HARD SHOULDER SHE DECIDED TO STOP AND CALL FOR HELP. WE ARRANGED FOR A TOW TRUCK TO PICK THE CAR UP AND TAKE IT TO OUR NEAREST VOLVO DEALER. WHEN WE ARRIVED THERE AND EXPLAINED WHAT HAD HAPPENED THE FIRST QUESTION ASKED BY THE SERVICE REP WAS "HAVE YOU HAD THE ETM RECALL PERFORMED ?" I STATED THAT WE WERE NOT AWARE OF ANY RECALL AND HAD NOT RECEIVED ANY LETTER FROM VOLVO OF NORTH AMERICA. 2 DAYS LATTER ONCE THE CAR HAD BEEN DIAGNOSED BY THE DEALER IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT IT HAD BEEN CAUSED BY AN ETM/ECM FAILURE. THE REPLACEMENT PART NUMBER WAS 30785453. I ALSO SPOKE WITH VOLVO OF NORTH AMERICA AND WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS NO RECALL BUT A WARRANTY EXTENSION ON THAT PARTICULAR PART. I ASKED WHY I HAD NOT RECEIVED A LETTER YET CONCERNING IT AND WAS INFORMED THAT THEY WE STILL IN THE PROCESS OF SENDING THEM OUT. SINCE THEN I HAVE DISCOVER EVIDENCE THAT THE LETTER WAS AVAILABLE SINCE NOVEMBER 2005. *JB

ETM CLEANED & ADJUSTED AT 48,474 MILES FOR STALLING AND ENGINE SURGING: 10/13/03 ETM REPLACED FOR STALLING; 4/13/05 ENGINE SURGING DIAGNOSED AS ETM AT 79,386, 4/27/05 SOFTWARE UPDATE TO CORRECT SURGING, DID NOT HELP. 5/26/05 ETM REPLACED FOR SURGING IDLE AND TRANS BANGING INTO GEAR, ALSO SOFTWARE UPDATED; 4/24/06 ETM SOFTWARE UPGRADE FOR ENGINE SURGING AND BEING IN LIMP HOME MODE TWICE [S.MCH FROM E-MAIL]

ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULE FAILED ON 2001 VOLVO V70 T5 AT 75,400 MILES. FAILURES OF THIS COMPONENT ARE COMMON DUE TO POOR DESIGN OF ETM. VEHICLE GOES INTO "LIMP HOME" MODE AT UNPREDICTABLE TIMES. MOST RECENT FAILURE WAS AS MY WIFE WAS MERGING WITH TRAFFIC ONTO FREEWAY. FROM 55 MPH VEHICLE SUDDENLY LOST POWER AND REDUCED SPEED TO 20 MPH IN TRAFFIC!. MY WIFE CREPT OVER TO THE SHOULDER AND CALLED A TOW TRUCK. *NM

FAILURE OF "ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULE (ETM)". LOSS OF POWER WHILE DRIVING WITH NO ADVANCED WARNING OR OTHER INDICATION IMMANENT FAILURE. CAR WENT INTO "LIMP HOME MODE" WHICH PROVIDES ENOUGH POWER FOR THE VEHICLE TO BE DRIVEN, BUT BECAUSE THE ENGINE MANAGEMENT COMPUTER ATTEMPTS TO KEEP A FIXED, SOMEWHAT ABOVE IDLE, THROTTLE SETTING, RELEASING THE THROTTLE DOES NOT RESULT IN ENGINE BRAKING AS NORMAL FOR A MANUAL TRANSMISSION VEHICLE. NEITHER SITUATION, LOSS OF POWER OR LOSS OF THROTTLE CONTROL, IS ACCEPTABLE AND COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. THE SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER NEARLY RESULTED IN MY BEING REAR ENDED, LUCKILY THE DRIVER BEHIND ME REACTED QUICKLY ENOUGH TO AVOID HITTING ME. THE DEALER INSTALLED NEW SOFTWARE IN THE ETM IN AN ATTEMPT TO RECTIFY THE PROBLEM. *JB

MY WIFE WAS ON ONE OF THE BUSIEST FREEWAYS IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA DURING RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC, WHEN OUR 2001 V-70 BEGAN MISSING AND LOSING POWER. BY THE TIME SHE LIMPED HOME TO THE NEXT OFF RAMP, SHE WAS TRAVELING AT APPROXIMATELY 20 MILES AN HOUR, IN TRAFFIC MOVING NEARLY 60 MILES AN HOUR. OBVIOUSLY, THIS CREATED A SIGNIFICANT SAFETY HAZARD FOR MY WIFE AND OTHER TRAVELERS. SHE WAS ABLE TO DRIVE THE CAR TO THE DEALER, CALABASAS VOLVO, AT ABOUT 20-30 MILES PER HOUR. AT THE DEALER, SHE WAS INFORMED THAT THE GAS PEDAL LINKAGE REQUIRED REPLACEMENT AT APPROXIMATELY $300 (COPY ENCLOSED), AND THAT THE ETM WOULD BE CLEANED. I HAD ALREADY FOUND INFORMATION ON THE WEB THAT SHOWED CLEANING WAS INEFFECTIVE, AND THE LIKELIHOOD OF CONTINUED SAFETY RISK. IN FACT, THE INFORMATION ON THE WEB EXPLAINED THAT VOLVO HAS AGREED TO AN EXTENSION OF THE WARRANTY ON THIS PART TO 200,000 MILES OR 10 YEARS. I, FRANKLY, WAS STUNNED THAT A CAR MANUFACTURER WOULD ACKNOWLEDGE SUCH A FUNDAMENTAL DESIGN FLAW AND COMMIT TO SUCH A LONG PERIOD OF TIME FOR REPLACEMENTS FOR THE EFFECTIVE LIFE OF THE CAR. IT APPEARS THAT SOMEONE AT VOLVO DOES RECOGNIZE THAT THE ETM FAILURE COULD CAUSE INJURY OR EVEN DEATH OF THE VEHICLE OPERATOR AND OCCUPANTS. I CALLED THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT AND URGED THEM TO REPLACE THE ETM. TO MY ABSOLUTE SURPRISE, THEY EXPLAINED THAT VOLVO HAS DIRECTED DEALERS TO CLEAN FIRST, REPLACE LATER, ALTHOUGH THEY AGREED THAT THE ETM WOULD PROBABLY FAIL WITHIN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. NOW MY WIFE IS MUCH NICER THAN ME, AND SINCE I HAD SOME DISCUSSIONS WITH THE CALABASAS VOLVO SERVICE DEPARTMENT REGARDING THEIR INCOMPETENCE WITH THE FAN RECALL, THEY CHOSE TO GIVE HER THE CAR BACK AFTER THE CLEANING AND SHE ACCEPTED IT. WITHIN TWO MILES, THE CAR WAS EXPERIENCING THE EXACT SAME SYMPTOMS THAT IT HAD EARLIER IN THE DAY. IN OTHER WORDS, VOLVO POLICY HAS PLACED MY WIFE AND FAMILY AT RISK OF DEATH OR INJURY. *JB

WARMED UP CAR FOR 2 MINUTES; DROVE 2 MILES TO DRUG STORE--LET ENGINE IDLE WHILE WIFE IN THE STORE; DROVE .1 MILE AND ENGINE BEGAN ACTING VERY ERRATIC! SPUTTERING AND STALLING AND NO ENGINE POWER CAR DIED INTO PARKING LOT; VERY LIGHT TRAFFIC IN MIDTOWN ALLOWED ME LIMP CAR TO DROP FAMILY AT TRANSIT STATION AND LEFT VOLVO AT OFFICE .3 MILES AWAY; AFTER RETURNING FROM VACATION CAR RAN OK--CHECK ENGINE LIGHTS STILL ON + TWO URGENT ERROR MESSAGES. DEALERSHIP REFUSED TO REPLACE ETM DESPITE THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT BEING ON. *NM

DT: THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE LOST SPEED. WHEN STOPPING AT A STOP SIGN OR AT A RED LIGHT THE ENGINE STALLED. SHE CONTACTED THE DEALERSHIP, AND THEY SAID THE THROTTLE MODULE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. ALSO, SHE CONTACTED THE MANUFACTURER. THEY STATED THIS PROBLEM WAS UNDER INVESTIGATION. NO REPAIRS HAVE BEEN MADE.*AK