Volvo S80 loss of power problems

Filed Mar 10, 2021 · Engine, Transmission · 25,000 miles · CO

Tl* the contact owns a 2011 volvo s80. The contact stated while driving at low speeds, the stabilization warning light illuminated and started flashing. The steering wheel failed to move and vehicle loss power. The charging warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed an independent mechanic and the contact was informed that the alternator and battery needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred. The contact called pedersen volvo cars (4455 s mason st, fort collins, co 80525, (970)223-8500) however, the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 25,000. The consumer stated shortly after purchasing the vehicle the "charging system failure" warning light would intermittently illuminate while driving. The vehicle had an incident in which it would not power on. The battery was replaced. The charging failure light continued flash. The alternator was replaced, but the failure persisted. The consumer then experienced a total system failure wile driving. It was determined the battery was defective. The battery was replaced, but the warning lights returned. It was determine via service bulletin from 2015 the battery and alternator lost communication. The failure was due to the anti tamper unit. The manufacturer was contacted, but did not offer any assistance. However, the dealer offered a 15% discount.

Filed Oct 25, 2012 · Airbags, Electrical · 200,000 miles · CA

While driving my 2000 volvo s80 about 20-25mph all the sudden lost power to all my gauges, dashboard lights, power windows, & power locks. The radio was the only device that was working. The following message was displayed SRS-airbag service urgent. I have noticed a difference on my brake pedal that it does not respond as well as it use too there is a short delay when stepped on. Before this incident I had noticed a clicking noise on the driver side when a came to a stop like a relay chattering & also the AC would come on when the car is turned off. At times the following message would appear frequently alarm needs servicing. I don't know what is causing this malfunctions but if its a manufacturing problem volvo should be liable on correcting the problem & provide us with a safe vehicle.

Filed Dec 13, 2011 · Engine, Fuel system · 110,000 miles · WA · fire

Driving on freeway at night, experienced a sudden loss of power. Engine check light came on. Fortunately coasted to a stop on an exit ramp. Upon stopping observed smoke coming through the edges of the hood. Turned off the ignition and exited the car. Noticed a flame under the engine compartment. Within one minute the front end of the car burst into flames and burned in a bright yellow fireball estimated to be 20 feet high. It burned until the fire trucks arrived 20 minutes later. The heat was extremely intense. The hood vaporized, metal parts of the engine melted, tires exploded. Car had a full tank of gas and strongly suspect malfunction of fuel system. Had we been trapped in the car on the freeway, there could have been four fatalities.

Filed Sep 29, 2009 · Engine · 51,376 miles · MD

My 2004 volvo s80 has stalled dozens of times over the past 2 1/3 years. Sometimes it stalls while coasting to a stop. It will generally restart and you can limp home. This is a severe inconvenience, but not a major safety issue. However, it also has lost power and sputtered along at a very low speed while driving on the highway. This is a serious safety issue. My wife and daughter refuse to drive the car on the highway due to this problem. The car has been taken to a volvo dealer 6 times since may 2007 for this problem. Many times the problems was mis-diagnosed by the dealer and an expensive repair was performed which did not solve the problem. In may 2007, the car was given a tuneup and software upgrade to throttle control module. In june 2007, the electronic control module (ECM) was replaced. My total cost was $1,165 while the dealer supplied the ECM part as a goodwill gesture. Same problem in may 2008. Dealer replaced terminal ends in wiring on ECM at a cost of $215. Same problem in sept 2008. Dealer replaced the mass air flow sensor for $525. Same problem in dec 2008. Dealer replaced wiring from ECM to throttle actuator and covered the cost as a goodwill gesture. Same problem in july 2009. Dealer replaced the ECM at a cost $500; part was covered as a goodwill gesture. This appears to be the exact same problem covered by the federal safety agency action number pe05041 for 1999 to 2001 model years. In that case, volvo extended the warranty to 10 years and 200,000 miles for the ECM. That appears to be an appropriate remedy for 2004 model years as well.

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 13, 2009 · Acceleration, Engine · 77,415 miles · CA

While driving down the road, my 2004 volvo s80 2.5t will suddenly lose power, surge forward or enter 'limp mode" with a message of "reduced engine performance" followed by "engine service required." using an obdii code reader I discovered that these messages and my issue were caused by a problem within the electronic throttle module (etm). I took it into a local volvo repair shop and they confirmed that this was a throttle body issue. If this problem occurs while I am driving within the city, it is fairly easy to pull over to safety, but on the freeway, losing power in the middle of traffic can be dangerous, and this has happened to me, causing a near accident. The issue is recurring and while it does seem to "clear itself" it has returned multiple times. There was a defect investigation, opened july 26th 2005 under the federal safety agency action number pe05041 for the exact same issue, and exact same group of problems. The report found that the issue was limited to s80s manufactured between 1999 and 2001. I would suggest that this issue is not limited to only those model years but has affected other years as well. I base my suggestion on information found by searching various volvo owner discussion boards and finding others that have in fact been affected. Please take a look into this issue... As it has the potential to cause serious accidents as found in the original investigation.

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 Dec 23, 2008 · Engine, Transmission · 66,000 miles · TX

Driving along down an interstate I hit the gas to drive around a car when my transmission came out of gear and the service engine light came on I lost all power to the wheels and was almost rear ended I had no power to make it to the side of the road it is kicking back in but I can not drive above 20 MPH or above 3000 RPM or it will slip out and red line also my engine mount has broken for the second time when it slipped out my s 80 t6 is becoming a paper weight.

Filed Oct 31, 2008 · Engine · RI

Hesitation, surging, loss of power, etc. This car runs so erratically that I am even afraid to change lanes in traffic because I am just afraid that it is going to stop right in the middle and I am going to be hit by the car behind me. I am afraid to stop at traffic lights because the car wont accelerate and run normally therefore ill have upset drivers in back of me waiting until the car decides to move forward. This is very dangerous especially when you are driving with a lot of traffic around you. I have taken it to the dealer but they just say that if there are no messages or codes they cannot do anything about it because volvo wont reimburse them for the expense. This erratic behavior has been happening more and more often and I don't believe it has been a day that has not happened since it first started. I have had an upgrade, a cleaning but no replacement in sight.