NHTSA — Electrical System Problems

3.2

definitely annoying
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
42,992 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

1998 Volvo S70 electrical problems

electrical problem

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1998 Volvo S70 Owner Comments

problem #20

Jan 072016

S70 5-cyl

  • 124,300 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I purchased this car used December 16 2016 knowing it needed a lot of work. I have since gotten all the repairs done on Jan 4th 2017. I now need to get the car emission tested after driving 200 miles the readiness monitors are still not set and have since repaired the check engine light and still can not get an emissions test.

- Philadelphia, PA, USA

problem #19

Aug 122014

S70

  • 155,500 miles
Key stuck in ignition, &accelerometer, causes check engine light to stay

- Columbia, MD, USA

problem #18

Mar 032015

S70 5-cyl

  • 150,000 miles
Key will not come out of ignition.

- Columbia, MD, USA

problem #17

Jul 282005

S70 5-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 93,240 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Engine stalled leaving me stranded in an intersection in rush hour traffic. Engine would not restart. Police officer had to push me off the street because car would not restart. Dealer still has not identified the problem.

- Belleville, MI, USA

problem #16

Feb 012005

S70

  • Automatic transmission
  • 96,300 miles
98 Volvo S70; experiencing a loss of power and stalling; I've had two mechanics look at my vehicle and no one can pin point the problem. I went to my local dealership, dick dyer Volvo on August 2nd and they can not look at my car until August 19th. As a mother of a young child, it is frightening to pull out into heavy traffic. I emailed corporate Volvo on 8/3/05 and haven't received a response. This had been a recurring problem since Feb 05; about every 1-2 weeks my car will stall when I begin to slow down at a light.

- Blythewood, SC, USA

problem #15

Jan 152005

S70 5-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 117,000 miles
The vehicle was losing power, it shuts down. Usually it will start back. Can cut across traffic, and it will just stall. Took it to the dealer many times, and they could not duplicate the problem. They put different parts on it to narrow down the problem. There is no power steering after it stalls. Back in January the turbo went it out and they replaced it. The vehicle was still skipping. This started happening around January 15, 2005. The ABS control module was replaced.

- Southern Pines, NC, USA

problem #14

Oct 112004

S70 5-cyl

  • Manual transmission
  • 113,500 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

ABS/tracs failure.

- Wilmington, DE, USA

problem #13

Jul 012004

S70 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 10,002 miles
When the vehicle was being driven, the ABS light illuminated. The vehicle has had this problem more than three times in the last three weeks. There was a technical service bulletin concerning this problem. The warning lights indicated a problem with the ABS and the 4 tracking system. The consumer suggested that this might not have been valid due to a possible defect in the electrical module.

- Englewood, CO, USA

problem #12

May 012001

S70 4WD

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
I purchased a 1998 S70 Volvo from Suburban Volvo in troy Michigan. I took the car in for repairs for the air conditioning before the warranty expired. I was told to return if the A/C leaked. I was looking for a physical leak, which I later found out there is no physical indiciation of a problem. I returned the car on two more occassions to the dealership for the same problem. After the warranty expired, I was told that the A/C had a leak and I had to pay $1,400 to have repaired. I explained to the Suburban dealer that I felt I should not have to pay for the repairs because the car was sold to me with a leak. To further add to the story, I had taken the car in to be repaired for a recall on the lights. I am not sure if the recall was for the headlights or tailights. While in the shop, I inquired about the headlight wipers not working. I was told I needed to purchase a headlight motor at a cost of about 4 or 5 hundred dollars because the car had been in an accident. I was told no it had not been in an accident. I found out later (after the tire rod broke while being driven) that the tire rod had been damaged in an accident. I had repaired at a cost of $800 which I paid. Is there any type of relief for me since the car had been in an accident prior to me purchasing the vehicle? the A/C is not working, the check engine light constantly comes on, the driver side window doesnt work at all, the headlight wipers don't work at all. The A/C and headlight wipers have never worked properly since I purchased in February 2001. I have written the owner of the dealership and Volvo of North America (vna). The dealership never responded. Volvo of North America did respond and told me there was nothing they could do. Vna shared I had to work it out with the dealership. Have been reading that the check engine is an ongoing problem with some Volvo. The electrical system is presenting problems also. Do I have any recourse after owning the car since 2001?

- Grosse Pointe, MI, USA

problem #11

Jan 251999

S70

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
Electrical problems since shortly after purchase of vehicle, to dealer 25 times. Dashboard light would come on, indicating that headlights were not working when in fact they were. Dealer stated vehicle had a bulb and socket problem, taillight bulb failed, signal lights flash very fast, side signals sockets and bulbs shorted, 4 running light contacts melted, front headlight shorted, left front headlight inoperable, and bulb indicator illuminated. Door locks inoperable, windows would not go up, master window control switch faulty, and speakers distorted. Seat belt plastic part cracked. Transmission sticks on lowe gear, happened twice. Gas light comes on even when tank is full. Washer fluid inidcator illuminated, washer jets inoperable, wiper blads replaced, right side mirror did not adjust all the way out. Front and rear brake pads worn, rotors replaced, brakes cause screeching noises. Engine light illuminated, cable under engine loose. Humming noise while driving, dealer replaced right front hub, left and right front stabilizer links. Mudflaps loose. Evap valve replaced.

- Manalapan, NJ, USA

problem #10

May 011999

S70

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Vehicle is experiencing problems with the headlights, signals, speakers, and tail lights going out several times, possibly due to an electrical problem, the battery failed.

- Lexington, KY, USA

problem #9

Jun 011998

S70

  • miles
Erratic transient chemical fumes in passenger compartment, smells like hot plastic, dealer has not been able to replicate, however radio replaced twice, antenna motor replaced twice, sixteen bulbs (some with sockets) replaced since 6/98, all possibly related to overall electrical system problems.

- Ada, MI, USA

problem #8

May 011999

S70

  • miles
Vehicle is experiencing problems with the headlights, signals, speakers, and tail lights going out several times, possibly due to an electrical problem, the battery failed.

- Lexington, KY, USA

problem #7

Jul 151998

S70

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
Possible electrical system failure, several times the following fail: All headlights, brake lights, and the gear shift selector bulb.

- Middletown, NY, USA

problem #6

Jul 151998

S70

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
Possible electrical system failure, several times the following fail: All headlights, brake lights, and the gear shift selector bulb.

- Middletown, NY, USA

problem #5

May 172000

(reported on)

S70

  • miles
Due to a problem within the electrical system bulbs in the headlights/tail lights and signal lights prematurely blew out.

- Springfield, VA, USA

problem #4

Oct 201998

S70

  • miles
This car has a hx of electrical problems. As you can see, both headlights have burned out(at night) as have the brake lights. The left turn signal operated at a different sequence than the right one. We have information that these light failures are somewhat common with this model..our safety concerns are obvious. The manufacturer has not proposed any solutions other than replacement of the bulbs. This is not satisfactory as there is apparently a major electrical problem.

- Toledo, OH, USA

problem #3

Dec 031997

S70

  • miles
1. 12/23/97: Car died in slow freeway traffic; restarted after 5 minutes, but "check engine light" stayed on. Diagnosed as problem with air mass sensor, which was replaced. 2. 11/11/98: Right rear door lock failed; motor replaced. 3. each of front headlight bulbs burned out with less than 15K in mileage. 4. 1/13/99: Rt and lt outer tail lights burned out; bulbs were replaced. 5. 3/3/99: Right turn signal began flashing too quickly; both rt and lt turn signal sockets were replaced. 6. 4/28/99: Tailights again failed, sockets and bulbs were replaced; 7. 4/29/99: Left turn signal flashing too quickly (even though socket had been previously replaced on 3/3/99 to deal with anticipated corrusion problem). My wife and I have have had more service problems with this car than in 25 years of owning all of our other cars combined.

- Oakland, CA, USA

problem #2

Nov 241998

S70

  • miles
Electrical S.a.S. relay causing engine cooling fan to stay on.

- Unknown, UN, USA

problem #1

Feb 131999

(reported on)

S70

  • miles
Shortly after purchase car started "bucking/ would feel a lunging forward while driving at high speeds or while idling at stop signs. Complained to dealer was told "they know about the problem" - it is a software problem I was not informed of this prior to purchase. Said Volvo is aware of the problem and their working on it. It is my understanding a computer chip is defective and it is firing fuel into the injectors randomly. I asked if this is dangerous, could this cause a fire, etc. And was told no. I have taken the car in twice and had this problem documented and they have done nothing. It has not improved, only become more frequent. The car surges when at stop signs, it feels like another car has bumped into me. This also occurs when driving at high speeds. I purchase this car "new" and was not advised of this problem. If I had known this I would not have bought car. Also whether the car is in drive or park, this surging occurs. Also a few weeks after I purchased car the O'ring cracked and oil and transaxle grease was leaking out, unbeknownst to me immediatley. When I took it in was advised the ring had not been installed properly at the factory and it had broken. I asked since all that fluid leaked out has any damage been done or would this affect the performance in the future, was advised no. This car is a lemon. Please help me.

- Tarpon Springs, FL, USA

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