2001 Volvo V70XC engine problems

Filed Sep 5, 2013 · Engine · 160,000 miles · UT · fire

Tl*the contact owns a 2001 volvo v70xc. The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH, smoke emerged from the passenger's side compartment and the engine caught on fire. The fire department contained the fire and the vehicle was destroyed. The contact did not sustain any injuries. A fire report was filed and the manufacturer was notified. The vehicle was not inspected. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 160,000.

Filed May 1, 2013 · Brakes, Engine · 134,000 miles · CA

I own a 2001 xc 70 volvo which I just bought with 133900 miles last friday april 26, 2013. The dealer showed me the maintenance records including a 3 month old california safety inspection report. On april 27, 2013, I was driving on a downhill stretch when all of a sudden, the car engine lost power, kicked like it wanted to jump ahead of me, all indicator lights flashed, and the car stalled and shut down rendering the brake and steering system inoperable. I had no means to control the car as it rolled down hill. I engaged the reverse gear causing the vehicle to stop. I called dealer right away. He told me to bring the vehicle to his mechanic the following monday on 04/29/2013. The mechanic inspected the vehicle and test-drove it and could not find any problems with the vehicle. He performed a diagnostic computer test and got an error message indicating an air intake problem. He asked me to bring the vehicle the following morning so he can test drive it more and find out more. While driving home, the problem recurred again, this time in the middle of a freeway. It was dangerous...luckily I was in the far right lane, so immediately I coasted to the side, with my hazards lights on and pulled to the side where the vehicle stopped itself. Imagine driving 80mph on a california freeway, and all of a sudden, the vehicle loses power, the engines kick jumps, and without your input, attempts to engage a higher gear but then stalls and immediately shuts down and the brakes and the steering wheel jams.. That is not safety. As I await for the mechanic to address this issue, I am filing this complaint because this is a safety issue. A car that passes a safety inspection test should not be abruptly shutting down in the middle of traffic and render the brake system and steering wheel inoperable.

Filed Aug 8, 2007 · Engine · 102,500 miles · VA

7/26/07 traveling on I-77 and the car ran great. Suddenly, in same manner as car did approx 2 yrs ago on same interstate rpms dropped, car lost speed, no response at throttle, and within a few seconds we lost power, brakes, steering. Since this seemed just like 2 yrs ago (we reported this incident in 2005) we thought maybe the car will start in 10-15m. After 15-20 m of attempts where car started & immediately stalled car did start and ran fine. Since 2 years ago dealers were unable to diagnose & correct we continued to drive that evening and again the following day. The following day the car stalled again on I-? Near atlanta, but this time in more traffic with difficulty getting car to side safely. Again car started like the evening before. Again-similar fuel level. We traveled 2 1/2 more hours on interstate. At destination and local dealer found no faults so no correction was made. After this 2nd occurrence we filled up more often 1/2 full or more. 2 days later and 7 more hrs on road without any problem.. As we arrive. Check engine light came on. Although car ran fine we took car to local dealer 1 hour away. They said they had a catalytic converter error but they didn't have one in stock. I told them I wasn't sure this was the problem that was causing the stalling because it stalled 2x (+1x 2 years ago) before the check engine light came on. I called my local dealer to discuss and he said he didn't think the catalytic converter was causing the stalling. Again, no definitive answers. After we left the dealer, the check engine light was off and it has stayed off. A couple of days later we drove the car 9-10 hours on the interstate to get home. Again, I kept the fuel levels approximately 1/2 tank and above. The car performed fine. We are very concerned about the stalling. When I check other complaints listed it appeared that someone else may have had a similar issue with low fuel stalling. Please don't hesitate to call to discuss.

Filed Aug 13, 2006 · Engine · 65,000 miles · TN

The engine performed a shut-down/reduction in power procedure while accelerating in heavy traffic. "performance reduced/engine system service urgent" notice appeared on the information screen. I had to quickly move out of the way to prevent causing a major accident. After resetting the warning light, I proceeded driving to get to an appropriate location to wait for assistance. The engine shut-down again.

Filed Mar 7, 2006 · Acceleration, Engine · 68,000 miles · CA

I have a 2001 volvo v70 xc wagon. The car was revving high for a while when shifting gears, I took it to the dealership, and they told me there wasn't a problem. About a month or so later the etm failed. I was being left stranded at freeway off ramps, and green lights when the car would suddenly die. It's a miracle I wasn't rear-ended! After a terrible experience trying to get the dealership to honor the etm warranty, (they only cleaned the etm they did not replace it-saying it wasn't bad enough!), a month has passed and now my transmission has failed! The dealership gave me a $5300 estimate for replacement as it is unrepairable! I took it to our regular mechanic, and he told me the transmission failure @ 70,000 miles happened because the etm wouldn't allow the torque converter do whatever it is a torque converter does, and that caused the oil to heat up and then the resulting transmission failure. He said there is no one around who will touch my transmission. I have to use a dealer to replace it. I am completely devastated and cannot afford to replace the transmission. The car is a lemon. It has almost caused me to be involved in accidents, and I'd really appreciate it if someone could contact me about what resources I have. You are welcome to test my car! I have read on the internet about others who are experiencing the same problems with their etms and then subsequent transmission failures. Please help!

Filed Dec 24, 2005 · Engine · 62,500 miles · VA

I am an owner of a 2001 volvo xc70. It recently broke down in nyc with a "decreased performance" message shown on the computer as well as jerking and lag in all forward movement. The car was seen at martin's manhattan after being towed. They found nothing wrong when plugged into the computer. Drove the car home from nyc to richmond va. During this time the car displayed a moderate lag during highway speeds when acceleration was needed(I.e. Hills, passing). Took the car into moors volvo to have them do what I thought would be a more detailed investigation. They also found nothing and said they "upgraded" the software. Then, this morning dec. 24 2005 the car once again gave a "reduced performance" message, lagged, only moved forward with marked inhibition and would vibrate terribly when in neutral. If I can be of any assistance please feel free to contact me.

Filed Oct 27, 2005 · Engine · 44,000 miles · MD

My 2001 volvo v70 xc with 44,000 miles began racing and stalling when I came to a stop; dashboard message appeared indicating need for urgent engine system service. I immediately took it to service center where they had to replace the throttle body. Service center indicated they have seen a rash of this problem.

Filed Oct 17, 2005 · Engine · NY

I was in a 2001 volvo xc 70, making a left turn when the engine suddenly cut off leaving me with no acceleration as I tried to cross a busy intersection. I had two kids in the car and thank god no one was coming the other way. The car then started to shudder and I turned it off.

Filed Aug 18, 2005 · Engine · 93,140 miles · OH

While driving my 2001 volvo v70 xc, the car stopped running and displayed the message - reduced performance mode. I got the car to the side of the road and turn off the engine. When I restarted it ran ok again. I took it to my volvo certified repair shop and they found in the recorded fault codes a bad electronic throttle body control unit (etc). They test drove the car and it stopped twice on the technician. Once at highway speeds! I had it the unit replaced. This is a serious situation that needs investigated. Two other cars at this shop had the same problem. Volvo should be required to issue a recall and fix this serious defect. This is a safety issue as the car loses all power and the power assisted brakes and power steering become inoperable. This is under the federal safety agency action number pe05041.

Filed Aug 17, 2005 · Engine · 93,143 miles · OH

Car displayed message reduced performance mode. Car runs at 2 MPH. This happened while driving at highway speed!