The Volvo Died Again.... Left Me Stranded.... Then Came Back?

"JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!" (jqj213)
10/25/2014 at 12:56 • Filed to: volvo, v70R, vikkie, Christine, issues

I am convinced my car is possessed by Swedish demons. If you listen closely, you can hear the engine going "Bork! Bork! Bork!" Also, I am renaming her Christine. Full story after the jump.

As you know, I am trying to sell the Volvo. I got her looking great, all detailed and cleaned. Brand new headlights, engine running great, half a tank of gas, and fixed all sorts of trim pieces. She was ready. I was meeting someone who works at a Ford dealership. he wanted to put it up on the lift and maybe make a deal. It was a fifty minute drive. I took her onto I-75 for the first time. She cruised the whole time at 80 MPH with no issues at all. After thirty five minutes, we got off the highway and onto some smaller roads. She was fine the next 10. Then, not even 1 mile from the dealership, my whole dash lit up. The transmission went into limp mode and I lost all power and my air conditioning. No, the car didn't overheat. It just happened out of no where.

I limped into the dealership and told the guy that it was fine and just died. He limped it into a bay and we plugged the code reader in. We got P??? which said "Unknown error. See dealer." Well seeing that we were already at a dealer we were confused. We cleared codes and hoped for the best. No luck as the car stayed in limp mode and began making bad noises changing gears. There also was now a massive delay between changing from park to drive. There's like three seconds of delay before it lunges forward. Also, my right rear brake caliper is seized up which explains why I pull to the right when I brake. I was offered $600 and a ride home. I refused, saying I will get it running.

So, now I had to get home. This was a fifty minute drive... at 80 MPH. I was stuck in limp mode. And I had to be at work in like an hour and fifteen. First thing I do is call my boss saying I might be a few minutes late coming into work today because of car issues. Of course, of all people to answer, its the actual store manager, who is in charge of everything and very intimidating. He says "Don't worry about it. Happens to everyone. I'll see you when you get here." I was more pissed than they were because since I started working at 14 (16 now), I have never once been late or called out. So this bothered me. I pull onto the road, in the slow lane, hazards on, 25 MPH. This will take a lot of time.

I just keep watching the minutes go by as I get dirty looks and horns from fellow motorists. It wasn't my fault my car decided to be a bitch. It was hot outside and my AC was not blowing right again because of this. Things got funny about an hour and a half later when I turn into my neighborhood.

I'm sitting at a stop sign and all the sudden the car dies. I was just about ready to cry and push it the last mile home. I decide to try and restart it. And... HUZZAH! It came back to life! There were no check engine lights on. I was out of limp mode. The funky delay in shifting disappeared as well. I was so confused. I babied the car into my driveway where she is now resting.

I have come to the conclusion that she doesn't want to leave my possession. It was only when I was away from her potential new owner that she decided to work again. Also ironic, the damn door ajar light finally left me alone as well.

I ran inside, got into my uniform, and got to work only 10 minutes late. No one said anything to me. I was more stressed here than anyone else. I guess they are just used to it by now.

So, what have we learned? Swedish demons inhabit my car and she will not let me sell her. I need to sell her still. I cannot handle this.

As always, thanks for reading.

DISCUSSION (15)

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/25/2014 at 13:06

Terrifying.

Steve in Manhattan > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/25/2014 at 13:10

I may be talking out of turn here, but I'm guessing there's one electrical fault that's calling all the craziness. You should check in your area to see if there's a really good Volvo diagnostician. It may be a matter of replacing one or two things that no one knows exist. Then you'd be in love with the car again.

Vicente Esteve > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/25/2014 at 13:11

Holy crap thats weird! I hope you can get it running well to be able to sell it.

Sasquatch > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/25/2014 at 13:18

I used to own an S60R and still have a Saab 9-3. The Swede' s don't like low voltage at all, my Saab did something similar when a battery was going bad. Could be a bad cell and low voltage causing pcm issues. Start there. Check out swedespeed.com for more detailed help.

For Sweden > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/25/2014 at 13:18

This is one instance where you should turn it off and on again by disconnecting the battery overnight

Your boy, BJR > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/25/2014 at 13:25

Fuckin' swedes, man.

JGrabowMSt > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/25/2014 at 13:38

Find/Check all grounds on the car, wire brush them, make sure nothing is borked.

Also, yank the battery, take it to a parts store and ask them to test the battery. Entirely possibly you have a bad battery.

Luckily the SL hasnt given me trouble, but the battery has one dead cell, so Im sure there can be a problem.

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > JGrabowMSt
10/25/2014 at 14:46

The battery isn't even 2 years old yet so I don't think that's it. I'll test it anyway but it might be a bad terminal or some funky wiring. I just need to check all of these grounds again

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > Steve in Manhattan
10/25/2014 at 14:47

Id love to.. But the nearest is over an hour away. I dont fully trust my car getting there...

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > For Sweden
10/25/2014 at 14:49

Thats the plan for now. Im leaving it overnight and will be looking at maybe some new battery terminals since mine are kinda rough.

Steve in Manhattan > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/25/2014 at 16:03

I'm not necessarily talking about the dealer, but about a Volvo specialist. Sometimes the best mechanics are solo or work for a private shop. You can try looking here: http://www.cartalk.com/mechanics-file…

Tom and Ray's listeners report on mechanics, and this link lists the good ones. Let us know.

Steve in Manhattan > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/25/2014 at 16:05

Oh, and there's always a tow truck if it dies on the way.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/25/2014 at 17:02

You wish your car could do this:

sortofindian > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/26/2014 at 13:13

Faulty ABS Modules cause that kind of issue all the time on Volvos

twochevrons > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder!
10/27/2014 at 09:25

Sounds to me like it could possibly be a faulty ignition switch – especially the fact that it is intermittent, and turning the car off and back on would fix it. I haven't had it happen in my Volvo, but I did have a bad ignition switch in a VW Cabrio that gave similar symptoms – didn't get limp mode, but weird issues with it dying, dash lights coming on, various accessories not working, heater fan not working, that kind of thing.

In the 850 (and I think that the V70 kept this system), the transmission gets its speed information from the ABS computer, which is very sensitive to power fluctuations. If the ignition switch drops the power for a moment, the speed signal will probably go all over the place, and cause the transmission to go into limp mode.

The ignition switch is a cheap part, and is attached to the left side of the steering column by just a couple of screws, so it's not a hassle to change. It might be worth a go.