Volvo S70

qbrozen · September 2005

Ah, well, being under warranty I would assume makes a big difference. They are obligated to fix the car, I would think. So I can understand your frustration.

If it was just a used car with no warranty, I do believe that would be an entirely different situation as far as lemon law is concerned.

sedalia · September 2005

We shall be replacing the original brakes (rotors etc) on the front of 2000 S70 SE (76,000 miles) Nov 7. Ceramic or OEM ? Mechanic recommended ceramic as we will be keeping the car forever. Any thoughts out there ? Thanks !

qbrozen · September 2005

I definitely don't like the OEM rotors. They are too soft, in my opinion, hence having to replace the darn things every 30k miles. I switched to Brembo cross-drilled rotors that I found on Ebay and I've been very happy with them over the last 50K+ miles. The thing I'm not happy with is the pads they sent me with the rotors. I forget the name ... but they are very hard material and always sound like they are grinding (although the rotors show no damage). I actually just bought a new set of Greenstuff pads from tirerack (clearancing them out at $25 a set - fronts only). I will be putting those on very soon to see if they are better.

sedalia · September 2005

Thanks qbrozen. Shall not go with the OEM. Assume the Brembo product you mention is ceramic-based technology. Shall inquire with mechanic about the pads. I hate that grinding sound, thankfully haven't heard it since I sold my Taurus Wagon (at 225,000 miles plus...) in 2001.

qbrozen · September 2005

nope. not ceramic. Frankly, this isn't a $200k sportscar. I don't see the point in putting ceramic on an S70.

sedalia · September 2005

Apparently: longevity. And we have high expectations in this regard. Now, for motor oil: I am not sure I have this right, so maybe you have a thought on the subject, or maybe others do: I have heard that after 75,000 miles that SYNTHETIC oil is advisable vs the standard stuff I've put in so far. Also heard that once you put in synthetic motor oil that you can't go back. Thoughts ?

volvomax · September 2005

Ceramic is a waste of money for an S70.
So is synthetic oil if the car has run on mineral oil for the first 75k.

qbrozen · September 2005

well, i've heard many stories about stating synthetic late in a car's life and causing leaks. many say that you should start synthetic around 10k miles. no longer. i've had too many mechanics suggest I DON'T switch to synthetic with my high-mile Volvo and, as a matter of fact, my volvo mechanic outright refused to do it.

As far as those brakes, how much are we talking about? I've spent less than $350 for cross-drilled brembo rotors and pads at all 4 corners. That was at 60k miles and I'm now at 112K and everything still looks really good.

clana · September 2005

gbrozen, a while back you had asked me if I had talked with the dealer about the electronic throttle problem while trying to figure out this no start antenna ring problem. Turns out while my car was in for this no-start problem the first time 14 months ago, they found that the ETM was faulty and replaced it for me at no charge and without a lot of fanfare. I only discovered it this morning while reading through my repair invoices. I owe them a thank you.

It's good to havet my car back after 6 weeks - problem and all. I'm not ready tol give up on her... question is where to go from here...

Thx for your input

jonasrb · September 2005

Regarding 2000 Volvo S70 "No Start" problem. I have the same issue. I purchased car in 2002. Only had 10000 miles. Now have 45000. I've been to dealer 5 or more time for this problem. They seem to feel it is a problem with the antitheft system...the disabler. They've changed the antenna and cut new keys. Seems to go away for a while then begins again. You can tell it is the disabler if the first time you try to start the car it starts, runs for 2-3 seconds, then shuts down. That is the disabler. In general, the car is the most poorly made vehicle I've ever owned. The seat leather is already cracked, the leather steering wheel cover (if that's what it is...I think its a plastic) comes off like dead skin. Had to cover with a real leather steering wheel cover. Even the plastic window buttons are pealing. It feels cheap even when you close the door. I have an Audi A8 and a Saab as well. No comparison. Audi is most refined, unbelievable quality. Saab a little quirky but much better quality than Volvo. Good Luck

s70owner · September 2005

My ETS problem ended up just like everyone else's, meaning that it required a dealer installation with the correct programming to make the ETM function. A local mechanic believed that he could do it and I'm sure that he could have, but he did not understand the extent of the replacment requirements and did not have the programming system. The dealer just might have told him that when he ordered the ETM and saved the mechanic and I a lot of trouble, but I guess Volvo doesn't offer that service. I did write to Volvo about this problem and they replied that the car was beyond warranty (it had 90000 miles on it) when the ETM was replaced and they did not feel at all responsible for this problem. They further stated that they have one of the finest warranties in the industry and use the highest quality design standards. I'm still not sure what the phrase "Volvo for life" means. Could be that it will last a lifetime (??), that it is a safe car and saves lives, or that it will cost you all your life as long as you keep it. Anyway, I still have it, my wife still loves it, but the SRS light just started up again (13 months ago, had to have the driver side module changed) and now will be looking at some more dealer involvement.

clana · September 2005

jonasrb, sorry to hear you have experienced this problem as well. Sad to sit in a parking lot in such a nice car cranking away with no results. It boggles me that the dealer cannot permanently fix this as so many others have complained of the same problem. They seem to know in general where the trouble is - yet each time the dealer returns the car it seems fine only for a limited time and then the problem surely comes back - and I notice the intervals between the dealer's temporary fix and the return of the original problem are shortening and taking even more and more cranks to finally get the car started (ten, fifteen or more). So my take is the problem is worsening. I'm thinking next perhaps I will try a different dealer - maybe a fresh outlook will help. My previous car was an '86 sky blue 240 Volvo sedan. I drove it for fifteen years and it never gave me a days problem. It will always be my favorite car and the one I measure all others by.. right now, I wish I didn't let it go.

Thx for response and good luck as well.

volvos70 · September 2005

Hi, It's been one hell of a long journey struggling with this problem for the past year. My car started to idle low and occasionally stall. I took it in, they said replace throttle body or clean it and hope that fixed things. I opted for $60 cleaning over $1,000 replacement. The problem came back worse and about 2 mos after the cleaning. I decided to inquire more about the issue and discovered that the NHTSA is performing a formal investigation on this and has received almost 500 complaints. Volvo states that they expect conclusion by the end of October and the representative said that she predicted a recall. With that info, I decided to wait it out and see if I could make it to the end of the investigation. But I couldn't- the stalling became worse and the car would now stall when I took my foot off the accelerator... which made for super safe driving. I called the dealer to ask about pricing and he said that because my car was only at 74K that it might fall under a goodwill warranty. I took it in today, and he called to say that it did and it was being replaced free of charge. Wow. Totally unexpected and totally appreciated. I wanted to share this in case someone else is going through it. And if you are, please be sure to contact NHTSA and file a complaint- the more info they have the better the chance of a recall. Here is the info for that:

1.800.986.9678
U.S. Department of Transportation
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Office of Defects Investigation
Room 5326-B
400 7th Street S.W.
Washington, DC
20590

volvos70 · September 2005

>

I hear you on this- my previous Volvo was a 1984 240 DL. It's a tank- never a problem and is still in use by my family today. You can bet I won't be saying the same thing about my 99 S70 in 20 years!!

clana · September 2005

volvo70, you were smart to keep it in the family

merckx · September 2005

I'm going to start selling Volvos Monday,so I'm glad to see Volvo backing up their product this way. As much as I'm enjoying my 2001 Passat, I've not found VW to be a very responsive company at all...

davecampbell · October 2005

1999 S70 GLT - 67,000 mi.
bought about 8 weeks ago

Occasionally stalls, and I'm aware of the whole ETM fiasco.
The ETM on this car was replaced last June, with the redesigned one, but there is still something funky going on.

This car idles fine in Park or Neutral, but as soon as the transmission is engaged, even with brake pedal on, it idles rough. And then at certain RPMs or throttle positions, it seems to run even rougher.

It stalls fairly frequently, and I am trying to isolate all sorts of relevant data about the different input parameters that might help someone diagnose.

When it goes into 'stall mode', the RPMs drop fairly abruptly. If I catch it, I can kind of 'rev' through it, and about half the time it does not completely stall.

Two observations that might help:

- I swear it seems connected to times when the car is either on a grade or if the car has just gone over a little rise or dip in the road. Not a severe bump, but one of those soft up-and-down floater type of bump. Certainly not every time I go over one of these, but almost every time it has stalled while driving, i seem to recall one of these types of mild bumps.

- The only time that it would not restart within a few seconds, I noticed that the instrument cluster was flashing IN UNISON with my emergency flashers, but only with the headlights in the middle position. I know that is weird, but it is true as I am sitting here. I have never been able to recreate that occurrence, but I've never been in permanent non-starting mode other than that one time.

I may have a combination of issues here, but I'd really appreciate anyone's insight.

THROTTLE BODY HAS BEEN REPLACED, DOUBT IT IS THAT.

WHY THE ROUGH RUNNING ONLY WHEN TRANSMISSION ENGAGED?

WHY WOULD SLIGHT CHANGES IN GRADE CAUSE RPM DROP OR STALLING?

volvomax · October 2005

Sounds like a faulty MAF sensor.

mjmnsam · October 2005

Hi,

I have had the same issues with my C70 and my dealer says they will NOT pay for it. Could you tell me the name and location of your dealer and any other information you would like to provide.

I will be filing a complaint

Marie Murray

98s70wannabe · October 2005

Hi..you seem to know your stuff on this car. I have put a deposit on a 98 S70 for my daughter. While we were testing it (only 61K miles, drove great, looks beautiful) the ABS and Check Engine lights came on after about 10 minutes.

I just happen to Google the problem and here I am learning a lot. I am supposed to pick it up in two days. What should I make the dealer do?

Thanks in advance. This is clearly a critical known problem which he said he would fix but if disconnecting the battery will reset it for a while (as I read in a prior posting) how can I be sure that whatever needs to be done gets done (i.e. ABS replacement module?)?

98s70wannabe · October 2005

Hi.. Once the dealer did the installation and programming...how is it working now? Also, what is the driver side SRS light...air bag?

jrdnmllr · November 2005

who did you take your car to? i think i am having the same problems at 60000 miles i hope they do the same for me. thanks jordan

qbrozen · November 2005

Is this a volvo dealer?
Did both the CEL and ABS light come on at the same time? What about the TRACS light? Are you sure it was the check engine light and not the TRACS light?

IF both ABS and TRACS, then, yes, a new ABS module is in order. Thisis an expensive fix. There is a cheap fix, which you can find by reading this board, but I certainly wouldn't want to buy a car that already had the problem. I would ask the dealer what they did to fix it and see if they say they replaced the module. If they didn't, then the problem will definitely come back.

As far as the CEL, that could be any number of things. They can find out what by pulling the code.

gtron · November 2005

I bought a 99 S70 with 77K on it two weeks ago and have been using regular gas, but noticed they recommend premium, I was told regular was fine but wanted to hear from a more knowledgable group. Thanks for any info

volvomax · November 2005

Regular is fine unless you are trying to extract maximum performance from the engine.

gtron · November 2005

Is it normal for the light in the car to stay on with all the doors shut but unlocked? So far, the light stays on until I lock all the doors. This is a 99S70 GLT

qbrozen · November 2005

how long have you waited for the light to go off? it should turn off automatically after a couple of minutes (not sure of the exact time).

gtron · November 2005

at least 5 minutes, I thought I had left the door cracked but that wasn't the case, a bit confusing really.

volvohater · November 2005

I gave a 1999 S70 AWD piece of crap. This car has nickeled and dimed me since it was new. I do however have an extended warranty good until May 2006. I have just under 62,000 miles on the car, and recently had it in to the dealer for the 60,000 mile check. The car is idling a little rough, and today the ETS light popped on. I seemed to run okay, and after the sat for a few hours, the light went out. Is this a big concern? I will definitely never buy another Volvo again.

8aa2ym · November 2005

The CEL comes on because the ECU isn't receiving input from the ABS module. I replaced my own module using the following website: http://autoecu.com/Products/partDetail.asp?partID=3136

qbrozen · November 2005

What year is your volvo? It doesn't work that way on my '98 (and many others I've spoken with). Its just the ABS and TRACS lights that come on.

By the way, this guy will do the same rebuild for less money. Countless volvo owners have paid Victor to rebuild their units with great success (myself included).
qbrozen, "Volvo S70" #764, 20 Jun 2005 8:35 am

jonnybgood · November 2005

2000 S70 w/ 35k miles, had the car for about 18 months. Is there a tire thats better suited to these cars. Looking for all season w/good snow as well as long summer road trips qualities. Handling & ride, noise, etc.

sedalia · November 2005

2000 S70 SE (currently ca. 80,000 miles +/-) Original tires: Michelin. Handled well, did not last long (long enough). Next: Pirelli. Hated them - handled very poorly esp cornering. Next and currently: Bridgestone Turanza LSH. Good handling, similar to the OEM Michelins and have lasted longer. Where and how you drive would I imagine affect your satisfaction with any tire. On our Bridgestones as with any of tires this car is used for commuting half on a superhighway, the other half on typical but hilly suburban streets. We live at 7000' south of Denver so sometimes that commute is very treacherous. We have run this car on these tires up to the mountains skiing in rank and rugged conditions and we feel safe and sound all the time, whereas with the Pirellis this was definitely NOT the case. We have also taken it throughout the Rocky Mountains and southern Utah; the tires definitely made the trip more enjoyable. I guess you can say we like the Bridgestone's and I don't hesitate to recommend them, or the Michelins either if you don't mind them being short-lived.

jonnybgood · November 2005

Thx for your input, I had great success w/Bridgestone Duelers on my SUV over 170K on 3 sets & many miles left on the 3rd set when I sold it. I drive all over the East Coast, from the Beaches of Kitty Hawk to Green Mountains in Vermont. I wasn't happy w/the Michelins, had seen some negative comments on the Pirelli's and BMW's come w/Conti's.

qbrozen · November 2005

I liked the continental conti-extremes the best. I now have a set of Yokohamas that don't grip nearly as well.

jonnybgood · November 2005

How would you compare the Conti's to Bridgestone Turanza LSH's. Overall performance for handling, wear, noise, summer & winter traction

s70owner · November 2005

The vehicle now has 95000 miles on it and the ETS has not been a problem since the dealer changed it 3 months ago. Cleaning only of the throttle body did nothing for my car, and correcting the problem required replacement. The SRS light indicates something has failed in the safety restraint system. I have tried resetting, but the light returns. My reference to the driver side is that in 2004 a failure of the air bag system occurred on the driver side and required replacement at a cost of $500. The current problem is still unresolved and I am reluctant to take it to the dealer until I have the money to cover repairs.

s70owner · November 2005

I cannot help you with the problems, although I would expect them to be in the emissions control systems since they seem to occur at low rpm. I had a faulty EGR valve on a different vehicle(not a volvo) that acted that way until I changed the EGR valve.
In your comments, there is a reference to a redesigned ETM that was installed in your vehicle. Could you identify what the redesigned unit might be? When the ETM was changed in my S70, the dealer never mentioned anything about a redesigned module and I was under the impression that it was replaced with one identical to the failed unit, except new.

qbrozen · November 2005

I never had Turanzas. My car originally came with Michelins, which were good dry weather tires, and pretty quiet, but rather expensive compared to the others I was considering when my tires needed replacing.

I went with the Contis at that time, and never found fault with them. They were great in all aspects. I would have replaced them with the same, but at the time I was ordering, they were unavailable at the shop I wanted to buy new wheels from. Hence I wound up with Yokohamas.

mdwalton1 · November 2005

Hello again all,

New little thing started happening with my 99 S70 and I thought I'd ask the gurus before being completely stunned at the dealership as to what the problem may be. While at the ATM, I had my window down and noticed the car clicking. It sped up as I accelerated and then stopped clicking completely. I've only heard it twice, and it was in the same day. I have searched the threads but haven't found where this has been mentioned. Any ideas? Am I going to pay an arm and a leg to have the dealership replace whatever's going wrong? Car has 102,000 miles on it and is going in for an oil change Friday. It's not been 7500 miles since the last oil change but it's been a little over six months. Thanks for any help!

vousavec · November 2005

I have a '98 S70 base model and the ABS light came on today (just that one light) - I parked and went on about my day; when I started the car again - it did not reappear. What are the most likely things to cause something like this? Does this mean my ABS unit is going to go soon? What do I do to replace/fix it for a reasonable price? Could it be something else; maybe just a fluke?

This has only happened once, but I worry because sometimes when I turn, the car makes a weird noise. It happens when I am going slow, like in a parking lot. It sounds like something that rubs, but it rubs by - not constant. I can feel it in the steering wheel. Closest sounding to geese maybe. This has happened maybe three times with the noise, but all in the past month. Just kinda makes me worry about the safety aspect with winter here! :confuse:

Any comments?

qbrozen · November 2005

that noise you are hearing is the steering stops. They need to be greased.
here ya go:
http://www.volvospeed.com/steerstops.php

The ABS light is an unknown at this point. If it stays away, great, then it may have been an anamolous reading. If it continues to pop up once in a while, then you most likely need to have the module rebuilt (search this topic for where you can get this done cheap). Question is, does your car have TRACS? If not, that would explain why just the one light came on. In cars with TRACS, both the ABS and TRACS light will come on when this common malfunction occurs.

thmpsn5 · December 2005

Just my 2 cents... Using tirerack.com, I was able to evaluate tires specific to our S70. Users rate the tires and you can find people with the same car. While continental scored pretty well, I wanted a little cheaper tire. I found the Bridgestone Potenza G-009. Great tire, noise, wet/dry handling, and wearing quite well. People hated the Michelins.

dick0823 · December 2005

Call Volvo in NJ to see if covered under new program. My 2000 was and I sent bills to Memphis for reimbursement.

timeming · January 2006

Recently the SRS light came after I started the vehicle and has since stayed on. I have checked the fuses and they are all good. The vehicle currently has 75,000 miles. Anyone with the same issue and what was the repair done?

Thanks

kacsnk · January 2006

Whenever my car Volvo S70 98 slipped in a snowy road my ABS light and traction off lights on. Then i have to stop engine and reastart to get rid off that. Why is this

timeming · January 2006

Your ABS and traction control uses the same computer module to operate the brake system. When you're slipping in snow, the traction control trys to prevent the tires from slipping. If the ABS and traction control lights are staying on, most likely there is something wrong with the computer module.

tatum1 · January 2006

I have a 98 GLT and the ABS light has come on off and on since new I have learned to live with it but how will I know when there is a real problem.

qbrozen · January 2006

you mean you bought the car brand new in 97 or 98 and have always had this issue? You didn't have it fixed under warranty?

Anyway, if the lights come on and stay on, then you have a problem. I fixed mine fairly quickly after the problem began because it scared the heck out of me to be driving a vehicle where the ABS might give out all of a sudden (imagine that happening DURING a panic stop!).

boulder1990 · January 2006

I have a 2000 s70 but i have been trying to figure out if it is an se or what? My insurance says its and Se but the back of the car dosent say anything but s70. It has all of the options except a winter weather package. I was trying to figure out if an Se could have a turbo engine because when i was getting my oil changed, the man said i had a turbo motor with out the turbo. When i am on the higway and i hit the gas pedal i fell a little lag before the car shoots off. Maybe it could be a glt se and the insurance just reads se. They even asked me if it was a turbo because they cant tell. Any thing u can tell me would be greatly appreciated. And also if anybody knows why it dosnt say SE or GLT or T5 on the back, i would be interested to know.

Volvo S70

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