NHTSA — Vehicle Speed Control Problems

2000 Volvo S80 (Page 2 of 5)

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
3 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
56,787 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.

2000 Volvo S80 engine problems

engine problem

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2000 Volvo S80 Owner Comments (Page 2 of 5)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #68

May 102006

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 82,400 miles

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

A 2000 Volvo S80 T-6 would on occasion change speed and jerk without warning. The problem initially was sporadic but became increasingly worst over a period of three weeks. A Volvo dealership checked the vehicle and found the electronic throttle module was bad and needed replacement. Repair cost exceed $1,200. Ouch.

- Elgin, IL, USA

problem #67

May 172006

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 67,000 miles
2000 Volvo S-80 T6, ETM part replaced in Dec 2004, in conjunction with complaint number 10145678; returned car to dealership on Saturday 5/13/06 to have software recall upgrade performed due to same conditions as present in 2004 incident - vehicle stopping unexpectedly in traffic. Car since Saturday has continued to stop in traffic 5 times, car was returned to service, now the service department is saying the ETM is ok, but I may have to pay to have the problem diagnosed- and could be another malfunctioning part that they did not inform me about on last service visit. They are expecting me to pay for part and labor replacement - which I believe is still in conjunction with the malfunction of the ETM. My wife and family are afraid to get into this car.

- Wheaton, IL, USA

problem #66

May 162006

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 28,000 miles
I purchased a 2000 Volvo S80 from carmax in Feb. 2006. The car only had 26000 miles on it so I thought it was a great deal. I contacted the manufacturer to see if any and all recalls had been performed on the vehicle. They said the only thing needed to be done was to have the electronic throttle module system to be upgraded in the cars computer. On 5-11-06 the Volvo dealer performed the upgrade. Within one hour of picking up the car it began to rev and surge with the air conditioner on as if the throttle was sticking. After parking it to run an errand I tried to start the car and it would start but then immediately rev up and then die. I had to get it towed to carmax which it was warranted under. Now carmax had the vehicle towed to the Volvo dealer to have the electronic throttle control worked on. The Volvo dealer diagnosed the problem as needing to replace the E.T.C. module, which they did. Now I drive the car home on 5-16-06. After two hours of the car sitting at my house I attempt to go somewhere but the car starts and immediately begins to rev like before and then dies. I will attempt to drive the car to the dealer tomorrow 5-17-06 to be fixed again.

- Antelope, CA, USA

problem #65

May 142006

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 122,000 miles

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

My 2000 Volvo S80 T6 stalls (typically in junctions) after 120K maintenance service / recall 155 ETM software upgrade. The service was performed on 5/12/06 at authorized Volvo dealer (128volvo.com). Since the service, the car stalled 5 times, and has been to the dealership three more times, without a fixing the problem. The dealer rejects my complains and wants this issue to "happen more frequently before taking action". sudden stalls almost lead me to a traffic accident already at least once; the dealership isn't concerned about traffic safety.

- Winchester, MA, USA

problem #64

Apr 082006

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 71,000 miles
I have a 2000 Volvo S80 T6 with several ETM or throttle control failures. I have had ist serviced twice and it continues to fail. My neighbor has the same problem. The vehicle stalls inadvertently and has stranded me in the middle of traffic where I narrowly missed being hit by a tractor trailer. My wife also was almost hit while making a left hand turn and stalling in the middle of an intersection.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

problem #63

Dec 152005

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 83,000 miles
Re: vovlo S80 2000 model year; car independently accellerated while being driven the car surged when in idle, then when put into drive, it suddenly accellerated without my pressing the gas. I was able to stop the car using the brake. When I took my foot off the brake, the car again accellerated. I stopped the car again, and when I took my foot off the brake it accellerated a third time. I turned the car off. As I was in an open parking lot, I turned the car on again to see if the problem was repeatable. The car again surged in ide, then accellerated soon after my putting it in drive. I turned the car off and on again, and the problem repeated a third time. Forty-five minutes later, the car was started without incident. It was brought to the Volvo dealer, where the mechanics repeatedly tried to duplicate the problem without success. We left the car at the dealership for eight weeks, basically refusing to pick up the car until they found the problem and corrected it. Volvo had a specialist look at the car, and the specialist was ultimately able to duplicate the problem. The specialist noted that the car was increasing, instead of decreasing, RPM's as it came to a stop. They cleaned the throttle module and updated the software for the throttle mechanism. We looked into Volvo's known problem with this model and found that the electronic throttle module (ETM) has frequently failed, causing cars to stall and accellerate unexpectedly. We obtained the service records of our (recently purchased, used) car and found that the ETM had already been replaced due to problems reported by the previous owner in 2003. One week ago, when the car stalled. The incident date entered below is approximate, but I can find out the exact date if that would be helpful.

- Apex, NC, USA

problem #62

Mar 182004

S80

  • miles

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

Consumer request reimbursement for previously repaired recall for electronic throttle system. The dealer replaced the wiper blades. The strut spring was replaced.

- Gaithersburg, MD, USA

problem #61

Jan 032006

S80

  • 48,000 miles
I have been having problems with my 2000 Volvo S80 hesitating as if it's not getting any gas when first beginning to drive it everyday. I have complained about this problem since purchasing this vehicle but the Volvo repair shop have not been able to fix the problem and they say they do not know what the problem is. Also my check engine light, stc light, and ABS light keeps coming on. I have also noticed that when these lights come on my car becomes hard to steer sometimes. After checking into this problem I have found that many other Volvo S80 's built around the same time as mine are having the same problems. I have complained about my car suspension making weird noises since having this vehicle and the Volvo repair shop says they can not find any thing wrong but when enquiring with others who own Volvo S80's, built around the same time as mine, many are saying they are having this problem also. The below information asks for an incident date but the problem with my 2000 Volvo S80 hesitating and being hard to steer occur often probably over 100 times.

- Snellville, GA, USA

problem #60

Nov 012005

S80 6-cyl

  • miles
My car started accelerating by itself. It would start to chug like it was going to cut off. There was little acceleration when I did give it the gas. I took it to the Volvo dealer in milwaukee and had it fixed. The cost was just under $979.73.

- Kenosha, WI, USA

problem #59

Dec 112005

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 70,890 miles
In August 2005, we took our vehicle in for routine maintenance at 67500 miles. I am the primary driver of this vehicle and had noticed some problems which were discussed with the service department. This vehicle had stalled at parking lot speeds and it had been sputtering at take-off. My husband presented the service department with a publication from the highway safety board which discussed a problem with the throttle body on the Volvo S80. As we were having the same problems described in this publication, my husband asked the service department to replace the throttle body on our vehicle. The service department was aware of the problem but as Volvo had not issued a recall, they were not authorized to replace this without the Volvo warranty company reviewing this issue with our vehicle. The warranty company did examine our vehicle, but declined to replace the throttle body at that time. On December 11, 2005 my family (husband and two children, ages 2 and 10 months) were traveling home to the atlanta area from nashville, Tennessee. While driving this vehicle, I noticed that it began to accelerate and decelerate and then completely lost power. We were traveling on I-75 South at interstate highway speeds and were able to get to the shoulder of the road when this happened. Unfortunately, we had to pull over onto the left shoulder as the two right lanes were in a construction zone. We were then endangered by traffic merging to the left which in some cases attempted to pass on the left shoulder. We had to have the car towed to nalley Volvo in marietta, Georgia which was approximately 34 miles from where we originally broke down. As this happened on a Sunday evening and no rental car businesses were opened, we then had to get a taxi to take us the rest of the way to our home. On Monday morning, my husband spoke with the service department about what had happened. The problem was diagnosed as a defective throttle body.

- Grayson, GA, USA

problem #58

Nov 282005

S80 5-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 77,636 miles

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

: the contact stated while stopping at a red light the vehicle stalled with no warning. The engine was restarted and again stalled. The vehicle was towed to a local dealership where the vehicle was inspected. The dealer determined that the throttle body needed cleaning and the software updated. After the repairs were made the vehicle was sold.

- West Dundee, IL, USA

problem #57

Jul 272005

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 69,345 miles
In mid 2005, I started having problems with my Volvo S80 (yr 2000) idling at stop lights. The idle would fluctuate from 400 to 1100 rpms. At times this would cause my car to die. While it was a nuisance at stop lights, it started to fluctuate at higher rpms and three times while on the interstate going approximately 55 mph the car died and I have to put in neutral and restart while in rush hour traffic. I took to service place and they did a diagnostic, and removed and cleaned the throttle body before replacement. The following codes were found in the ECM 9160, 9150, 904C 903F 9040 and 130A. After they reset the faults and removed and cleaned the throttle body, they test drove the car and the same idle and (and it died) problems existed. They replaced the throttle body actuator assy, upgrade engine management software to work with new actuator. Since they have replaced the electronic throttle body I have had zero idling problems to date. I have all copied of my paperwork if needed.

- Collierville, TN, USA

problem #56

Jan 022005

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 96,565 miles
When merging onto hwy. Car lost power while trying to accelerate to enter lane. Car behind me almost hit me and swerved into the other lane where he was almost hit by another car. The electronic throttle system of my car failed. Volvo is replacing these per an extended warranty. Had I known about this problem, I would have had the car repaired before there was a problem. I had to have the car towed and was then told this was a common problem with this car. Why has there been no recall. I am the only private owner of this vehicle, having purchased it from a dealership. Yet when I called Volvo about this problem, they found my neighbor's car in their database, but not mine. I feel there are others being put at risk due to the autos throttle system failure. I have seen a letter sent to a television station stating that these cars have a problem they call, "limp home mode". well, mine was almost "dead in the road mode" I hope there are no deaths due to this problem. I have had my car fixed, because I could not drive it unless I did. I will not purchase any more Volvo, due to the omission of the truth concerning this vehicle. Thank you. Brenda tilley.

- Ararat,, NC, USA

problem #55

Oct 262005

S80

  • miles
200 S80 was accelerating spontaneously and lunging forward. The car crashed into a garage wall while coasting into a parking space, and the accelerator was not depressed. The electronic throttle module was replaced. The Volvo dealership mechanic could not get the computer error code, or appreciate the symptoms when he test drove the vehicle, and had to call my local mechanic (who identified the faulty ETM) for help. Volvo will now reimburse all customers who paid for throttle module repair/replacement in the past. I found this out only after I went to my dealership's service department and lodged a complaint about the ETM repair.

- St.Louis, MO, USA

problem #54

Dec 152004

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
December 2004, ETM / speed control fails on expressway. Car slows dangerously - uncontrollable throttle. Taken to dealer, two weeks out of warranty - all repairs $1,000, out of my pocket - no assistance by Volvo - complained to North America hq - no response. Told at service desk this was not an issue with other vehicles - after reading several news articles and the various issues surrounding this S -80 component - it is apparent there is a major issue with this component at Volvo.

- Wheaton, IL, USA

problem #53

Oct 152002

S80 5-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 56,000 miles
The contact states the vehicle surged and lurched when stopping. The electronic throttle module (ETM) was replaced in the vehicle once, two years ago. The problem recurred. A certified dealer was contacted, who completed diagnostic testing, but captured no codes. After several failed attempts while the ETM was under warranty the dealership could not diagnosis the problem. Now, after the warranty on the ETM expired, the dealership has diagnosed the problem, the ETM needed to be replaced again at the contact's expense. The contact was not the original owner of the vehicle. No repairs further have been made.

- West Milburn, FL, USA

problem #52

Nov 162005

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 124,956 miles
I just bought a 2000 S80 Volvo with 125K miles on it and it has been surging up and down when I slow down and sometimes while I driving down the interstate. Just the last couple of days while slowing to turn into work it died nearly causing another car to rear end me. I has has also died a couple of more times today, luckily on a side street, both times while slowing down. I can see my tachometer surging up and down with the engine almost stalling out everytime I stop. I have been told this may be in part to a faulty throttle control modlue. Please check into this for me as I am getting afraid of driving my car for fear of an accident.

- Cabot, AR, USA

problem #51

Nov 192001

S80 6-cyl

  • 22,815 miles
In October 2001 while driving at night headlights went off. The following day while crossing the street the car stalled. Approximately ten minutes later was able to start the car, and at the same time headlights came on. Car was under warranty, and the mechanic repaired the throttle body & gasket. In June 2004 car stalled again. Replaced sway links and program down load $338.19. In December 2004, car staled on the road again. It was towed to the repair shop, they replaced the throttle body, mass air flow, mfi module- at cost of $2098.96. The contact did not take this car on any longer trip. Due to stalling on the road, frequent loss of headlights and numerous other mechanical problems the contact believed this car was unsafe to be on the road. 11-16 E-mail ; first time the car would not respond to the accelerator pedal. Stopped turn the car off and tried to restart it again. After few attempts the contact was able to restart the car. The right door mirror failed and the ABS control module was replaced. Updated 02/07/06.

- Morton Grove, IL, USA

problem #50

Oct 262005

S80 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 49,086 miles
I own a 2000 Volvo S80 2.9 - VIN: [xxx]. I had purchased the vehicle new from bridgewater Volvo in NJ on Aug 15, 2000. I have 49,100 miles on the car and I have maintained the vehicle impeccably in the last 5 years of ownership. Two weeks ago the car started stalling and the message display read "reduced performance". my wife uses the car to commute to work and the stalling of the car on the highways put her into a potentially dangerous situation. She was able to safely pullover and the car would re-start again every time it stalled. She finally got home and after the second day of the problems she left it in the garage and used the second car for commuting. She then took it to the Volvo dealer in Edison NJ. Volvo of Edison diagnosed the problem and here is the direct qoute from their bill - "performance reduced light fault trace ECM 91A7 and ABS 00B1-found internal fault in ETM and brake pedal position sensor replace and download ETM and brake pedal position sensor" since the car is no longer under warranty I had to pay the following amounts: Parts - throttle body, gasket & sensor = $655.42 labor - $472.50 taxes = $67.68 total = $1,195.60 I called Volvo customer service to complain about the pre-mature failures and their response was there is nothing they can do about it. I also stated that I am dissatisfied with their product quality and I may not consider buying another Volvo product. The customer service rep told me that in that case Volvo may not even consider reviewing my case as I may not consider buying another Volvo. In addition to the above problem last year I had a cooling fan failure which was covered under warranty just before it expired. Now I have never ever received a recall notice from Volvo on any problems. I understand that there was a recall on the front suspension ball joints and I do not know if Volvo during the routine service visits ever applied the recall fix. Updated 07/17/2012 information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act

- Edison, NJ, USA

problem #49

Jul 152005

S80 5-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 102,000 miles
I get performance reduced messages on my 2000 Volvo S80 message console, and the car will slow down almost to a stop. This has happened more than 100 times to me - even at highway speeds. I have to put the hazard lights on, and make my way off of the road on to the shoulder. If I turn the car off, and restart the car, (often several times), the car seems to "reset" and I can often drive on. Westside Volvo of cleveland, Ohio has quoted me between $1,200 and $2,000 to fix this problem, and has told me it is the "ETM". my car has 106,000 miles on it. The dealer has told me that the unit was "designed only to last until 100,000" miles, and that only a Volvo dealer can replace it - because of computer software that must be encoded on the part. I purchased this car used with 59,000 miles on it, thinking I would get a car that might last me ("Volvo - for life..." happens to be the company's marketing slogan). However, I cannot currently afford the repair, and I cannot afford to get another car. I am forced to drive this car and it is unsafe. I have had more than 5 incidents where there was almost a crash - mostly due to this "performance reduced" happening at highway speeds on multiple lane highways in heavy traffic. Please do something about this - please help me. Thank you.

- Amherst, OH, USA

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