MY XC90 v8

[V8IROLL]

I love the smoothness of the xc90 V8 the car drives like its floating, I mean it lulls you. The fuel economy is not that bad for a V8.

And now the BAD

I went to Patrick Volvo and bought a 2007 XC90 V8 with 37xxx miles on the clock. It was out of warranty by its in-service date.

When I bought the car the sales person "tola" told me they recently did the 37,500 mile service which according to their own records is un-true I found out today. I should have been worried because when I saw the car for the first time the "service soon"- message indicator came on, I was told by my sales person "tola" "I will send it to service, they just forgot to turn the service soon light off" after the mechanics did the service.

1-Emissions Evap Pump
30 to 50 miles and 3 days after purchase--- the check engine light illuminates, I thought to myself this can’t be happening. Took it to service (5 days after purchase) and they told me the Emissions Evap Pump has failed according to the computer. -

First service told me you will have to pay 600 dollars for your car that you have had for 5 days, - I said no way am I paying 600 dollars, then the service people got the
manager(Justin I think) who told me-You should have bought a GM warranty, I did not want a “GM” warranty on a VOLVO!!! The Volvo xc90 not a GM car(no offense GM).
Then the manager told me he will charge me 300 for the pump, I again told him no way!!!! I was really upset they made no effort to fix the pump free-of-charge seeing as I had the car 5 days and 30-50 miles. -----If I had the car for a month I could understand them not wanting to fix it. - BUT 5 DAYS? I told him Im not paying one cent for the new pump, for a car I have had 5 days total and 30-50 miles. As it stands the car will need this fixed to pass emissions.

!!!!!!!!!! BUT WAIT THERES MORE !!!!!!!!

2-Headlights corroded [A safety issue]
The headlights are a mess (they are hazed and corroded so bad they are like sand paper kinda odd for a 2007 model year with 37k mi )
Patrick Volvo was very sneaky about presenting the car to me they pulled the car forward so far over the curb stop, the space between the front of the XC90 and the bushes was less then half a foot( so unless I wanted to stand in Patrick Volvo's bushes, I would not have been able to see the headlights). Then "tola" the sales person, flung open the door and said “Get in”……..I had two small children waiting for me at home so I was not overly fussy looking at the car in detail, -------Besides I saw the pictures of the car online VIA cars and Patrickvolvo com none of the pictures showed these hazed nasty headlights.

!!!!!!!!Its more then just ugly looking headlights as the light coming from them at night seems dim-[An obvious safety flaw, from representatives(PatrickVolvo) from a car company that claims to be Volvo the "ultimate Safety Machine ]. -----------------I asked the manager about the headlights and the manager told me don't worry about it, its fine, we have a guy who can buff them out, --but the "guy who can buff the headlights out" came over and looked and told me he cant buff them out, he said he recommends replacement. I said even if the XC90’s headlights do corrode the car is a 2007 with 37k mi on it..... Its not old....

3-Fuel filler door hinge
The fuel filler door hinge is also broken which I would have no way of knowing until I put gas in the car.-I did not open the fuel door until after I paid for the car. When I put gas in it.
End of story is nothing is fixed I owe the bank just shy of 30k , my car wont pass emissions , my headlights are corroded, my gas tank door wont lock so it flops around waiting to be snapped off.

PLEASE THINK LONG AND HARD ABOUT BUYING ANY CAR FROM THE PATRICK VOLVO/PATRICK AUTO GROUP.....You will be screwed….You will buy a new to you car with low miles and the car will need new a(n) Emissions Evap Pump ,Headlights corroded-replacement,an Fuel filler door hinge, to be fixed with-in 5 days of ownership.


Emissions Evap Pump ===============================600
New headlights====================================1000
Fuel filler door hinge==================================80
__________________________________________________ ____
With-in 5 days of preowned car/new to me ownership cost 1680


If this is how they stand behind a car they sold 4 days ago, for our families sedan I will look elsewhere. Its a shame because Patrick Volvo is a VOLVO dealership which sells new ones and they don't care about their pre-owned customers or the brand "VOLVO" this tarnishes Volvo's name in my eyes. Its not Volvo's fault but Patrick Volvo does not stand behind 5 day old VOLVO' s.

[V8IROLL]

I the check engine light a pre-cursor to many more problems with my xc90 v8 ? With 37k mi I thought I would be safe. Its an 07 I have read what the people on here posted about their XC90 v8's from 05 and 06 , so I reasoned that certainly Volvo must have been able to iron out the kinks by the third year of production, but I don't know ? Issues with mine 5 days into ownership. If you have any share them.... I am even thinking about trading back in this XC90 and never buying another Volvo. I am really mad this is not my first Volvo its my 6th , I know Volvo's have problems but no other Volvo I have had new or used has ever acted-up with in 3 days of ownership , and the dealer acted up with in 5 days. [xc90t6x1 c70x2 v70Rx1 S40x1 XCV70x1] and now my XC90 V8......

Volvo needs to track their dealers very carefully and make sure they assist their loyal customers properly. Apple is very picky with who they let sell their computers because they want whoever sells their products to be educated about their products. [when you let people like Patrick Volvo use the marque it hurts volvos image in my eyes and the eyes of my friends, when I tell them about this ]When I have had a problem with my MBP, genius bar people tell me lets see what we can do to help you. I have left the genius bar not even paying for an adapter my dog chewed up....Why cant a premium car company behave like this ?

[cattlecar]

I'm going to be brutally honest here:
To purchase a used vehicle and not do a thorough walk-around and then get it checked by a third party is not wise. The headlights would have been caught by your or the third party.
I'm not sure where you are but some states have a 72 hour vehicle purchase return law. I guess that will not help now.

With the issues you have you need to go talk to the dealer principle. DO not go to service dept or to sales dept. Go into the dealer and ask the receptionist to see the dealer principle/owner. Discuss the problems with that person.
Be calm and no threats. IF no resolution then go to the newspaper or TV station, whichever has an active consumer reporter, and discuss it with the journalist.

[V8IROLL]

Thanks for your reply...

Ya I feel dumb..

I should have had it inspected, I was under the impression it went through the VOLVO exam. Because it was from a Volvo dealer, and it could not be certified because of its in-service date I assumed it was checked to Volvo's standards.
Thats the issue in my eyes of Volvo letting companies use their name. If it was "joe car dealer" I would have been very critical and inspected every thing, because of the name "Patrick-VOLVO", I thought was a SAFE bet. Maybe I really am that brainwashed to think Volvo means quality and safety.


I love my New used XC90 v8, though. That car is so smooth. As a parent I like that I can still have a little fun, and buy groceries, and car pool[perhaps not in that order] Its more fun then my V70R was, with 300-hp, its xc90 v8's smoothness I think....

[V8IROLL]

I don't know what to do at this point, Last night I'm driving back with my 2 year old , my XC90's first voyage with us. (2:00 A.M. )It was pitch black , way out in the sticks, and all this sudden there was the sound of stones hitting the car, then the Xc90 started making a sound like a flat tire(a slapping rubber sound), I thought crap what do I do ? try to make it to a gas station or get out and check? ? (I remembered this car has TPMS right away and it did not go off)

I saw Jeepers creepers one to many times(I was freaked out by the noise and the nothingness of the area and having my 2 year old with me on a dark road)So I drove the car to a gas station, I had no cell phone reception at all, the gas station was closed , some kind person stopped and let me use their phone to call AAA..
The person told me to start the engine so I did he says "OH it sounds like a belt" The slapping sound , upon closer inspection the belt was frayed down to 3 strings,

The Serpentine belt went bad at 38 k miles? on an 07? How much to fix this? Should I keep the car ? its repair bills are adding up quickly

What upsets me most is Volvo left me and my son in a very unsafe situation and it really really upsets me..If it was me by my self , I'm a grown man, as a parent it was a scary. If this car was inspected by VOLVO certified mechanics you would think they would bother to replace something as important as a serp belt.

[OldMBGuy]

V8IROLL,

1. A serpentine belt shouldn't be that expensive. We have not had one replaced on our 3.2 XC90 yet, but we did have one replaced on an MB R320 and it cost less than $150 parts & labor done by a competent and trusted indy of ours. As NOTHING is cheap to fix on an MB R-class, I suspect that the cost for the Volvo should be similar. And 38k is probably a little soon, but not worryingly so if you had any idea as to the provenance of the car. What is more worrying is that...

2. You bought a car with a belt in that condition in the first place. A frayed serpentine belt is an easy thing to see on any professional inspection, or even if you're a novice and just open the hood and take a careful look.

As you've no doubt concluded by now, when buying cars (new or used or really when buying ANYTHING) it's best to follow the sage advice of Ronald Reagan and "trust but verify." This rule is also so universally well known (and is so old) that it has a common Latin phrase; "caveat emptor."

And the internet brings you a myriad of resources for verification. Your first sign that something was amiss was that the dealer chose not to CPO that car. A 2007 V8 with under 40k miles would be a prime candidate for the CPO program, and really the only reasons a Volvo dealer wouldn't CPO it are all bad for the buyer.

Overall the problems that you've mentioned really aren't that bad for a 5 year old car, and they aren't particularly threatening to your safety. It's not the Volvo that left you and your son in an "unsafe situation," frankly (and please forgive the frankness), it was your negligence that did so.

The problems combined with the circumstances of your purchase do signify that you may have bought a car that wasn't particularly well cared for. Did you ask for service records or at a minimum the CarFax report? It's a little late, but I would certainly try and find out as much as possible about the history of the car and its maintenance ASAP, then at least you'll have a better understanding of what you're working with. Chances are that everything will be OK, but that you will have just paid $2k-5k more than you should have for the car, which actually isn't too expensive a "caveat emptor" lesson in the larger scheme of things.

[V8IROLL]

Thanks for your advice.

Your way off calling me negligent. Why should I not be able to drive my car late night with my son sleeping(This is why airlines recommend red-eye for long distance, so the children sleep), from our other house? how was that not reasonable to think I could drive a 2007 car with 38k mi a distance of 215 miles?

And yes I do feel my "Volvo" left us stuck in the middle of no-where. I did nothing with or to the car except for drive it. - whats it made for. Lets say it was winter and it did this, -5 like it gets in Wisconsin, the outcome could have been very different. (So yes I think the Volvo certified mechanics should have notice something this simple according to you) and at least warned me. -150 repair wouldn't it have made more sense for them to just fix it in the first place ? something as important as this belt? When the belt fails it can damage the 15,000 engine..

Some people on here must be rich, to think its expectable to spend money on a car you have had a few days, and then a few weeks latter more problems.

Prime candidate for cpo ?
They(VOLVO and the dealership) told me because of its inservice date it was not certifiable. So don't worry theres nothing wrong with the car...

These were Volvo sales people , or well they were authorized by Volvo to sell Volvo , they are also authorized by Volvo to fix Volvo's. I mistakenly felt some assurance.

[V8IROLL]

It has been fully serviced by our Volvo Certified technicians and detailed, as all of our vehicles are, so buy with confidence from - leading dealer group!

Is what the ad read.

I guess it was made to give false assurance- it worked on me. Sadly

[cattlecar]

The best technicians are not psychic. They can't tell you when light bulbs will burn out or when you'll get two flat tires or when a rock or something may throw your belt off. If there is something they neglected, that you know they neglected, then you have reason to be so depressed over this. The belt on that vehicle is not due for automatic replacement at 37K miles and it may have been in great condition when examined.

[OldMBGuy]

Thanks for your advice.

Your way off calling me negligent. Why should I not be able to drive my car late night with my son sleeping(This is why airlines recommend red-eye for long distance, so the children sleep), from our other house? how was that not reasonable to think I could drive a 2007 car with 38k mi a distance of 215 miles?

And yes I do feel my "Volvo" left us stuck in the middle of no-where. I did nothing with or to the car except for drive it. - whats it made for. Lets say it was winter and it did this, -5 like it gets in Wisconsin, the outcome could have been very different. (So yes I think the Volvo certified mechanics should have notice something this simple according to you) and at least warned me. -150 repair wouldn't it have made more sense for them to just fix it in the first place ? something as important as this belt? When the belt fails it can damage the 15,000 engine..

Some people on here must be rich, to think its expectable to spend money on a car you have had a few days, and then a few weeks latter more problems.

Prime candidate for cpo ?
They(VOLVO and the dealership) told me because of its inservice date it was not certifiable. So don't worry theres nothing wrong with the car...

These were Volvo sales people , or well they were authorized by Volvo to sell Volvo , they are also authorized by Volvo to fix Volvo's. I mistakenly felt some assurance.

I'm really not trying to be offensive, but buying a used car relying solely on the information given by the seller, without thoroughly checking it out, or paying an independent 3rd party professional to do so, or even checking on the Volvo CPO rules (which I believe specify a 6 year cutoff for CPO would likely fail the reasonable man standard for at least partial negligence, though I am not a lawyer and couldn't say for sure. You have to take some responsibility for your situation here.

And it's TOTALLY reasonable to expect to have to spend some money on a 5 year old used car, which is why one should ALWAYS get an independent 3rd party to do a PPO, and attempt to learn as much as possible about the maintenance history of the prospective purchase, if only to ensure that any potential repair costs are negotiated into the purchase price. Certainly you MAY be willing to forego that measure if a dealer is CPOing a car and is thus willing to stake Volvo's wallet on it's condition, or if you youreself know enough about the cars that you're willing to risk repair cost after your own thorough inspection, but it sounds like you didn't do any of that, ...and thus your situation.