|
This is a common problem with almost all Volvos that drives a lot of mechanics (even Volvo mechanics!) just plain nuts - because it creates symptoms in other electronics that are not logical to the troubleshooter. But the good news, is it's usually a pretty easy fix that you can do yourself.
The root of the problem is that Volvo, for safety reasons has daytime running lights, so most of the brake lights, turn signal lights, and side marker lights are on all the time that the car is running.
This is good for safety, but not for the bulbs since as they stay on they heat up. The heat causes the lead bead (or beads) at the bottom of the light bulb to soften slightly and over a few years, under the pressure of the terminal tab in the bulb socket, these lead beads mash down and eventually make poor connections when they're cold.
Replace all your light bulbs, and I'll bet you fix your problem. Then plan on replacing them as a maintenance measure every 60,000 miles.
I bought my '98 Volvo S90 for a prayer from a frustrated owner who got sick of taking it to a "european car repair specialist" and shelling out thousands of dollars (literally!) to replace all kinds of electronics, switches and who knows what else yet still not fix the problem - which was that when his dayime running lights were on, his turn signals wouldn't work. Turned out that the side marker/turn signal light bulb (which is a dual filament bulb) had lead terminals that had become flattened over time until they bridged together on the bottom of the bulb so that the side marker element was backfeeding electricity to the turn signal relay, keeping it from working properly. For $5, I bought two new turn signal bulbs and a Coke, and ten minutes later the problem was fixed and I relaxed under a tree with a cold refreshment. Drove that car for 2 years and sold it for $3000 more than I paid for it. I still think about the poor guy who spent so much on such a simple problem and finally unloaded the car on me for cheap - stupidity is expensive.
--
'00 S80 '98 S90 '78 264GL
|
