1999 Volvo S80: sudden loss of power

Filed Jun 29, 2009 · Engine · 178,000 miles · 00

I was driving on the highway and I felt a loss of power. I pulled over and the car shut down. I tried starting it but it backfired and stalled. It took me a while to find out what was going wrong. Finally I unplugged the maf (mass air flow sensor) and drove back home with an extremely weak and dangerous car. I drove it like that for a few days. I had no choice because I had no other way to go to school. I changed the maf sensor but it didn't do much. I went to a local shop and had the throttle body cleaned. I could now drive with my maf plugged in but it wouldn't drive properly and would occasionally stall. I learned that volvo had alot of etm (electronic throttle module/body) failures on their s80's. So they issued a recall that they apparently have a hard time respecting. I went to a volvo dealership (volvo laval) one of the worst dealerships I've been through, by the way. The service manager didn't want to know nothing about my car and simply told me my warranty was over (although it was supposed to expire may 26th, it was actually may 19th that day, so I had a week left). He didn't want to know nothing about my situation and cut short and asked me and my friend to leave after insulting us. Now my car stalls occasionally and has a rough idle. The dealership didn't even want to diagnose the car for free although it is a design mistake by volvo. I now have the choice of either spending 1600$+ on a throttle module or just drive my car and deal with the stalling.

Filed May 5, 2009 · Brakes · 95,000 miles · CT

Tl*the contact owns a 1999 volvo s80. The contact stated that the vehicle would idle high and then low. The vehicle would slow down as well. When he released the accelerator pedal, the vehicle would lurch instead of gain speed. The failure occurred every time the vehicle was driven. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer and they stated that there was not enough vacuum in the system, which caused a loss of power assist to the brakes. In reference to the federal safety agency campaign id number 06v441000, both the dealer and manufacturer stated that they could not assist because the vehicle was ten years old. The current mileage was 100,348 and failure mileage was approximately 95,000.

Filed Mar 20, 2009 · Acceleration · 121,000 miles · NC

Tl*the contact owns a 1999 volvo s80. In 2008, the dealer downloaded the throttle software on the vehicle; however, it continued to stall and lose power while driving 30 MPH. The manufacturer stated that the federal safety agency campaign id number 06v441000 (vehicle speed control) was closed; therefore, they would not assist. The contact will have the vehicle repaired. The failure mileage was 121,000 and current mileage was 122,000. Updated 04/24/09. *lj updated 04/27/09.

Filed Feb 21, 2008 · Brakes · 125,000 miles · VA

Brake booster leaking vacuum causing the car to mis fire and run erratic and die in middle of traffic. The booster quits working which make it a death trap and hard to stop. Lose of power brakes.

Filed Jun 7, 2006 · Acceleration · 101,000 miles · CA

Just after entering the highway and attaining highway speed my 1999 vovlo s80 lost power and had to be coasted off the ramp. The emission service warning came on and the vehicle was idling very rough. The car was towed in to a repair shop and the computer codes indicated the throttle module had failed. After hearing that their was an extended warranty issued I checked the website and learned that this had happened to others. Fortunately this power failure occurred while in the rt hand aloowing the vehicle to safely exit the hwy without incident. Had this loss of power occurred in ione the interior lanes then this incident would've ended in a collision and most likely resulted in injuries to my family. This condition warrants an immediate recall.

Filed Apr 10, 2006 · Acceleration · 97,230 miles · TX

1999 s80 loss power while driving, service urgent light illuminated. *ts the dealer replaced the electronic throttle module.

Filed Apr 1, 2006 · Electrical · RI

I was driving on i95, I was in the middle lane and my car started losing power. I had to get all the way to the break down lane and shut off my car for a few minutes. I started the car up and it seemed to be fine but about 5 minutes later it did it to me again and completely lost power. I called my mom and told her about what happened and she told me that the same thing happened to her when she was on her way home from work the day before and when she went on the highway as well. Luckily I wasn't in heavy traffic so it was easy for me to get into the breakdown lane if not I would have been stuck in the middle lane or god forbid gotten into an accident. I called the volvo dealership next to my house and made an appointment for tuesday morning I told him my problem and he told me that I have to bring in the car for a diagnostic check. I'm pretty sure my car will be covered under that new extended warranty of 10 years/200,000 miles but I'll have to wait and see.

Filed Nov 10, 2005 · Acceleration · 113,000 miles · NC

Dt: the contact states while driving on the interstate the vehicle accelerated and experienced a loss of power. The engine did not stall, but operated at a reduced speed. The engine slowly resumed power and the contact was able to proceed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who determined that the problem was with the electronic throttle control module. Volvo offered no cost assistance. The consumer had the etm replaced. *ak updated 12/27/2005.

Filed Nov 7, 2005 · Acceleration · 127,489 miles · AL

Dt:the contact stated this vehicle was experiencing the same problems mentioned in the federal safety agency investigation pe05-041. This has happened many times. The last time this happened the vehicle was traveling about 40 MPH ,and it lost power/stalled. The vehicle was pulled over without incident. The vehicle was restarted immediately, and would not go faster than 20 MPH. The vehicle was taken to a service station. They were unable to assist the contact. The vehicle was taken the dealer. The problem was diagnosed as the etm by their computer error notice. He was not the original owner. The problem has not been fixed. The manufacturer has been contact, and they offered no assistance.

Filed Sep 29, 2005 · Acceleration, Engine · 53,000 miles · PA

Dt:the contact owns a volvo s80 vehicle. It intermittently stalled/ died, and lost power. The electronic throttle module failed and was cleaned three times. *ak the line seal and gasket were replaced due to an oil leak. The top engine torque arm was cracked.

Filed Sep 25, 2005 · Electrical · 147,000 miles · MA

1,2) volvo s80 stalled while my wife was driving 60 MPH in rush hour interstate highway traffic. Car lost power, would not accelerate, power steering lost; she got the car to the side of the road just in time before a one-lane construction barrier; otherwise, traffic would have been backed up for miles for a long time (there was no turn around available for tow-truck in this part of the interstate, the tow-truck would have had to back up the highway or try to make it up the grassy divider embankment to get to her stalled car. Luck was on her side; no injuries, and no blocked traffic-this time. 3) car towed to volvo dealer, where it restarted. The dealer service department could not find the source of the problem, reset sensors and replaced a vacuum hose. I am concerned that this car has a defective etm valve and that the car is still a danger to drive.

Filed Sep 22, 2005 · Fuel system · 100,575 miles · TN

(1) on more than one occasion the volvo s80 has had shuttering of the engine at idle. (2) on more than one occasion the volvo s80 has placed the occupants at risk of bodily injury due to the loss of power and sudden acceleration in high traffic situations. (3) the volvo s80 has been to the dealer on two occasions - the first occasion, I believe the throttle body components were cleaned and the warning light reset - the second and latest visit, on sept 21, I was informed that the throttle body needed to be replaced at an approximate cost of $850 and that my ABS brake module also needed to be replaced at an approximate cost of $830.