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Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

All,

I had scary moment about 1 hr ago. After I drove about 10 miles, the battery light came on first and then brake, traction control, and ABS lights all turned on. Stoped on the shoulder for a while and could not find any hint. So I decided to continue with emergency lights flashing (at about 50 mph). No issue with car performance, both engine and braking system. After another 10 miles, the battery light turned off; but other lights stayed on. after I restarted the car at the gas station, all lights were turned.

This is definitely an early warning. Have not got a chance to check error code(s) yet. What should I look, alternator?

Thank you,
Paul








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    Battery and other lights on - More trouble now P1057, P0772 V70-XC70 1999

    Right, more trouble now. I am losing faith in Volvo now. Too much trouble on a car with only 120k miles.

    In the middle of driving on highway today, brake and abs lights came on, then got flashing arrow and CEL. Odometer displayed -----. After restarting, only flashing arrow and CEL stayed during remaining of the trip.

    Used my scanner and it said there're 3 codes; but I only got 2 (see subject line). The other one is something like "MIL ON".

    Went to Autozone and had charging voltage checked without problem (had a brand new alternator).

    P0772 -- Shift Solenoid E stuck on
    P1057 -- don't know.

    Read the description on vicrocha's website. It seems my ABS unit is on its way out.

    Am I right on the ABS guessing? Appreciate your inputs.

    Thanks,








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    Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

    I think the first thing you should do is test the output of your alternator. This is easily done with a volt meter at the battery with the engine running. Get the car started and measure the voltage across the two battery terminals. You should see between 13.7 and 14.2VDC. If not, it is likely that your alternator or associated wiring is at fault. As others have noted, a slipping serpentine drive belt can be responsible as well.

    I think the other lights came on because the voltage being produced was insufficient for those subsystems.

    Good luck!








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      Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

      Thank you very much. You're right. With a charged battery, the car works fine.

      bought a $80 charger this afternoon. Charged the battery up to 70% (stuck there). Just put it in and checked the voltage while the car was running and I got 11.8 V! (I got 13.8 V from my 850). The serpentine drive belt is pretty new (about 20K miles) and I don't see any slipping (or how to measure slipping?).

      Is it a DIY job to replace an alternator?(Easy job for me to replace a serpentine drive belt) Is there any write-ups? Get a new alternator from Tasca will cost about $450. Are there good places to get good products with relatively lower prices?

      Thanks a lot.
      Paul








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        Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

        I haven't replaced an alternator on a V70 before, so I'll defer to others. The first thing to check on is whether you can replace just the brushes and regulator portion of the alternator, which is much cheaper and easier (you can on most of the RWD Volvos).

        The other option to consider is a used alternator-- you could probably buy 9 used ones for the price of one new one for $450.

        Good luck!








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          Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

          Thanks again.

          Indeed, I am checking some used ones. Have to find one quick since it is a headache having only one functional car in the house.

          Will keep you posted of any progress.








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    Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

    Ok, Didn't take the warning seriously caused me $80 this morning. During driving, all lights started flashing and even radio was on and off. Got jumped a few times and the car could not stay on running. The guy put in a replacement battery and the car was running fine. The battery, Die Hard from Sears, is about 5 years old. Hope it is the sole cause.








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      Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

      You're still going to need to keep an eye on it and try to find the root cause. The alternator didn't keep it charged for some reason - slipping belt or worn out alternator components?... find the problem so this doesn't happen again. A new battery will mask charging problems for a good long time, esp in the hot part of summer.
      --
      1998 V70 AWD->FWD->AWD Turbo 220k+








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        Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

        Thank you very much for your advice.

        I think I can rule out the battery problem. It should be charging system. Though the car can be jumped started, it can not stay running on its own. I also put the battery to my older 850. after the 850 was jumped, it can keep running on its own.

        So, now question is where I should start checking.

        The car is on my driveway. If it needs fixed by someone else (beyond my own capability), I can put in a fully charged battery in. Just don't know how long a fully charged battery can last?

        Thanks,








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    Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

    Fribblehead has a good answer. Don't forget to check the Serpentine belt, if it got real wet and started to slip, that would also trigger those lights with the alt first.

    Klaus
    --
    1967 220 belonging to C.A. lives on








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      Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

      Thank you, Klaus and Steve.

      I live in NYC and we had 7 inches of rain on Sunday.

      It's odd that I had no issue from my morning commute and got lights at about half way of my trip back. And in my few trials, the battery light always came on first and a few seconds later the other 3 lights(brake, traction, and ABS) lit up. There's no loose in battery wire connection and I didn't see any water under the hood. I am going to check the grounding wire.

      Thanks,
      Paul








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    Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

    Hello, Sure looks like your ABS unit has gone bad. You can look for a "cold solder joint" or send it out for repair. Search ABS module repair and you'll see what to do. Removing the controller from the bottom of the ABS unit with an E-torx socket is where you'll start. You can still drive the car. Kira








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      Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

      Thank you very much for your input. Just wonder why the battery came on first if it was an ABS issue?

      Now all lights are off (even after another short trip). I guess I can wait for the next occurance.

      Best,








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        Battery and other lights on V70-XC70 1999

        You don't happen to live in the Northeast (where there are monsoon like conditions)? In all seriousness if you are in an area where its been raining crawn under the drivers side dash and check for water leaks. They can be bear to find and they are little gremlins. There is a single torx bit that removes the lower portion of the drivers side dash area if I remember correctly and you can probably see a heck of a lot easier.

        If just your ABS and Tracs Off lights were on then you have a bad ABS module. You indicated your Alternator light was also on. I'd start by cleaning the battery terminals, clean/check the grounding wire to chasis and root around in the two fuse areas for obvious abnormalities.

        STeve







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