2000 Volvo V70XC

MY VOLVO 2000 V70XC STALLED IN THE MIDDLE LANE OF THE INTERSTATE LAST NIGHT DUE TO A FAULTY ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULE. FORTUNATELY, I WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE CAR AND MOVE OUT OF TRAFFIC BUT NOT AFTER SEVERAL "SCREECHING" CLOSE CALLS. IT IS VERY DISAPPOINTING TO FIND OUT THAT THIS IS A WELL KNOWN DESIGN ROBUSTNESS ISSUE THAT VOLVO HAS CHOSEN NOT TO ADDRESS. I HAVE REPLACED THE FAULTY UNIT AT A COST OF $985.00 DOLLARS BUT THEIR IS NO GUARANTEE THAT IT WILL NOT REOCCUR. NHTSA NEEDS TO DIRECT VOLVO/FORD TO REPLACE/REIMBURSE ALL EMT UNITS IN THE EFFECTED 1999 TO 2002 VOLVO'S TO PREVENT ANY FUTURE PERSONAL INJURIES OR DEATHS. IN ADDITION, VOLVO NEEDS TO REDESIGN A RETRO-FIT FOR THE AFOREMENTIONED MODEL YEARS TO ELIMINATE THIS PROBLEM. *JB

(1) NO WARNING AT ALL BEFORE THIS FAILURE HAPPENED. (2) WHILE DRIVING AROUND TOWN, CAR SUDDENLY FAILS TO REV ABOVE 1000 RPM EVEN WHEN GAS IS FLOORED. CAR WILL NOT GO ABOVE 10 MPH, AND IT TAKES A COUPLE MINUTES TO GET THERE, SO IT IS NOT SAFE TO DRIVE. TRIES TO STALL. ETS DASH LIGHT COMES ON. (3) ETM PART REPLACED AND REPROGRAMMING PERFORMED, HAD TO BE ONLY AT A DEALER, WAS WITHOUT CAR FOR 2 DAYS. I DON'T HAVE THE OLD PART. *JB

THE AUTOMOBILE IN QUESTION IS A 2000 VOLVO XC70. I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER. AT 97,731 MILES THE ETS FAILED. AT THE TIME I MADE A COMPLAINT TO BOTH THE DEALER AND TO VOLVO OF AMERICA AS IT DID NOT SEEM TO ME THIS PART SHOULD FAIL AT THIS MILEAGE AND AT THE COST OF $1,050.58. SINCE THIS TIME, I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKE SYSTEM BOX AND THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER AT THE COST OF $2,900 (111,000 MILES). AGAIN I CONTACTED VOLVO OF AMERICA. BOTH TIMES I CALLED THE RESPONSE WAS "TOO BAD". I AM WRITING TO YOU AS I HAVE HEARD THAT THERE IS A POSSIBLE RECALL OF THE ETS AND WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW OF MY EXPERIENCE WITH THE ETS FAILURE. *NM

ETS LIGHT COMING ON - IMMEDIATE LOSS OF POWER. VERY DANGEROUS AT 70 MPH IN 3-4 LANES OF HEAVY TRAFFIC. I PUT MY EMERGENCY BLINKERS ON AND TRIED TO SAFELY GET OFF THE HIGHWAY. I TURNED THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON, THE LIGHT WENT AWAY AND I PROCEEDED TO DRIVE TO THE DEALERSHIP. ENROUTE, IT HAPPENED AGAIN JUST AS I WAS PULLING TO A STOP AT A RED LIGHT. I TURNED THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON, IT DID NOT HELP THIS TIME - AN AMBULANCE CAME UP BEHIND ME. I WAS IN A PANIC TRYING TO GET THE AUTO OUT OF THE WAY. LUCKILY THE LEFT LANE WAS OPEN AND THEY WERE ABLE TO BLOW PAST ME, BUT THEY DID HONK AS THEY PASSED LETTING ME KNOW THEY WERE UPSET THAT I DID NOT MOVE. I AM PICKING UP THE CAR TOMORROW FROM THE DEALERSHIP WITH A NEW ETM. BUT I HAVE POKED AROUND ON VARIOUS VOLVO FORUMS AND FOUND THIS ISSUE TO BE PRETTY PREVALENT. THE REPAIR IS VERY EXPENSIVE (AROUND $1000 TO THE CONSUMER) AND THE BREAK DOWN SITUATION POTENTIALLY VERY DANGEROUS. *JB

FIVE YEARS AGO, WE BOUGHT A NEW 2000 VOLVO V70-XC. IT CURRENTLY HAS 39,600 MILES ON IT. STARTING IN ABOUT 2003, THE CAR BEGAN EXPERIENCING REPEATED ENGINE MALFUNCTIONS -- ROUGH IDLE, JERKY ACCELERATION, STALLING AND, MOST ALARMINGLY, SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER WHILE MOVING. I ONCE LOST POWER ON A TRAFFIC CIRCLE, WHICH WAS TRULY TERRIFYING -- ESPECIALLY SINCE THE MAIN REASON WE PURCHASED THE CAR WAS THE SAFETY OF OUR TWO SMALL CHILDREN. WE HAVE REPEATEDLY HAD THE CAR IN THE SHOP (MARTENS SERVICE CENTER ON RIVER ROAD). INITIALLY, WE WERE TOLD THE CAR WAS CLOGGED WITH CARBON AND THAT THE PROBLEM WAS ESSENTIALLY OUR FAULT FOR NOT DRIVING IT ON THE HIGHWAY MORE OFTEN. NOW THAT WE ARE PAST THE WARRANTY, WE HAVE BEEN PAYING FOR REPAIRS -- THOUGH ON OUR MOST RECENT VISIT IN SEPT 2005, WHEN I MENTIONED THE NHTSA INVESTIGATION, MARTENS REPLACED THE ETM FOR FREE. I THINK THIS IS A DEFECTIVE AND DANGEROUS VEHICLE AND IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN RECALLED A LONG TIME AGO. EARLIER IN THE CAR'S HISTORY, WE EXPERIENCED A RANGE OF ELECTRICAL MALFUNCTIONS INVOLVING THE TURN SIGNALS, WHICH FAILED FOR NO APPARENT REASON. BECAUSE THOSE PROBLEMS OCCURRED DURING THE WARRANTY PERIOD, WE DID NOT HAVE TO PAY TO HAVE THEM REPAIRED -- BUT THE DANGER AND HASSLE FACTORS WERE STILL SIGNIFICANT. *NM

DURING LAST THANKSGIVING BREAK, MY HUSBAND AND I DROVE OUR 2000 VOLVO XC FROM NEW MEXICO HOME TO FORT COLLINS, CO. THE MORNING OF OUR DEPARTURE, THE ETS (ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULE) LIGHT CAME ON, THEN WENT OUT. ON THE WAY HOME, THE CARE SHUDDERED AND LURCHED, AND LOST POWER WITH ACCELERATION. IT TOOK US 6 HOURS TO TRAVEL 125 MILES FROM COLORADO SPRINGS TO FORT COLLINS, AND WE WERE TRYING TO BEAT A SNOW STORM. WE LITERALLY LIMPED HOME. IT WAS TERRIFYING. WE TOOK THE CAR TO OUR LOCAL VOLVO DEALER, AND THE DIAGNOSED IT AS A FAILED ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULE. IT COST ABOUT $854 TO REPLACE IT. IT WAS NOT WARRANTY WORK, AND THE DEALER SAID NOTHING ABOUT THIS BEING A COMMON PROBLEM VOLVO WAS ALREADY AWARE OF -- EVEN WHEN WE ASKED. I NOW UNDERSTAND VOLVO HAS KNOWN ABOUT THIS PROBLEM FOR MORE THAN FIVE YEARS AND HAS DONE NOTHING ABOUT IT. I AM ALSO AWARE THAT SOME VOLVO DEALERS HAVE BEEN PAYING THE COST TO REPLACE THE UNITS. WE WERE NOT SO LUCKY. VIRGINIA MOHR-CALLAHAN, FORT COLLINS, CO. *NM