Questions about my new to me 2001 XC70

[Rich V]

Hello all,

Picked up a 2001 XC70 automatic with 31k miles on Monday. So far I am enjoying the car very much, much different from the 1990 240DL Wagon workhorse it's replacing.

I have a few questions about the car that I have noticed, I have searched on some so I've probably answer most of them myself.

1. I notice a slightly rough idle in this motor. I know that the I5 motor is inherently a rough running motor, so it seems normal. It does cause a little bit of rattling of misc. interior pieces, which seems odd to me. Is it possible one of the motor mounts is started to fail? I hear this can be somewhat of an issue on these cars.

2. It felt to me as though it was going to neutral when stopped. I could definitely feel a bit of a lag in power application when letting off the brake and going to the gas pedal. It seems this can be disabled at the dealer via their computer. If it is this simple and safe I am considering having it done at the dealer next time I bring it in for service.

3. I seem to be hearing a bit of a creaking noise from the drivers front of the vehicle. It is not 100% consistent but it seems to happen under shifting engine load (and possibly braking, which does effect the engine load somewhat). I am again thinking it could be the motor mount?

Anything else to look out for on these cars? How about some upgrades that dont sacrifice drivability badly? :D

Thanks in advance.

Edit: I forgot to add that the car seems to want to die if I accelerate hard and immediately let off the gas to come to a stop. The lights will go dim as well. Is this a normal attribute to these cars?

[123]

Compared to a 240, it should feel much smoother. Idle should be steady. I would not expect anything on the dash to rattle. I have a 96 850R with 230,000km and it is smooth and causes no rattles at idle. When I test drove a XC70 I felt a hesitation from time to time between the time I pressed the accelerator and the time I got a response. Seems there are a few software upgrades to fix that kind of thing (manual gearbox anyone ;-) ? Maybe check if you have all the latest software updates? Let us know how it goes!

[Edmonds17]

There could be lots of reasons for a "rough" idle.

Unfortunately, one could be the dreaded throttle body defect. '01 XC's have an Italian "Magneti Marelli" throttle body. These units are defective. See the discussion on this website at the forum dealing with "1997-2000 V70..." Look for the "2000 Throttle Body Module" discussion. Usually the top thread.

30,000+ miles is a little soon for the defect to occur. Usually happens around 50,000 miles.

One of the frustrating things about the defect is that the "rough" idle happens without any dashboard lights being illuminated. Owner doesn't think anything is wrong until the dashboard light comes on. When this happens, the engine just shuts off. Sometimes the engine can be restarted, sometimes no. If it can be restarted, it will only run in "limp in" mode. Max. 30 mph.

I'd strongly suggest that you get this car into a dealership ASAP. Complain like heck if they say it is the throttle module. Your car should still be under warranty. If not, protest paying the $950-1,200. cost. Volvo has a "secret" warranty for owners that protest. (Volvo is currently a defendant in a class-action lawsuit in California for violating the California Secret Warranty Act which makes such "secret" warranties illegal in California.)

Don't let them clean the throttle body. As you can see for reading the thread mentioned above, cleaning won't solve the problem. Only solution is replacement of the throttle body. Problem is that the replacement throttle body is also defective. Defect will happen again.

Wish I had better news. Sorry.

Edmonds17

[texascanuk]

Yes there are software updates that you can ask for at the dealer if you want the transmission to stop lagging when you take off the brake. There is a feature called 'neutral control' that you can find in another thread and a tech notice that you can print to show the dealer. I had the update done this week on mine and it is more responsive now (sort of like a normal auto-tranny) when I hit the gas. I had complained about a missed 2-3 shift that happened a month ago (transmission flare) when I was accelerating gently and the motor started to rev up between gears. This may have convinced the dealer to do the update on warantee because other drivers have noted that they paid for an update on their cars. My wife said the car drives better now, even though she said that she didn't notice a lag when she took her foot off the brake.

[Raynald]

(...) 2. It felt to me as though it was going to neutral when stopped. I could definitely feel a bit of a lag in power application when letting off the brake and going to the gas pedal. It seems this can be disabled at the dealer via their computer. (...)Yes, it can. Great improvement. Check this (http://www.volvoxc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5943) out.

And welcome to the site, Rich V !!! http://www.volvoxc.com/forums/images/icons/icon14.gif

[Rich V]

Thanks for the info and warm welcome everybody!

I'm going to schedule an appointment with the dealer to have the 'neutral control' feature disabled as well as checked out. I know the previous owner just had it in at the dealer for service and they have had no problems with it thus far.

Edmonds17: Thanks for the info on the throttle body. I am an avid BMW enthusiast and work with them daily; none of their drive by wire systems have such an issue. Had I known about this before it would definitely have swayed my decision on purchasing this car, though it was admittedly an impulse buy. I will be keeping an eye out for any stand out symptoms.

If the throttle body issue does not become resolved I will probably sell the car after it failed once. No sence in keeping a car that I can expect to break down on me any longer than I need to.