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Wow! I just found this site, and I am amazed how many problems I am having with my 2000 S40 that are comman to other drivers: I got my car serviced yesterday (22,000 miles, less that 2 years old):
1>. FUEL GAUGE! can only accept 12 gallons when empty when the tank is 16 gallons- dealer told me to come back with a full tank so that they can fix the issue.
2>. BRAKES! Had the brake pads replaced on the back for the second time, and the front for the first. CALLED Volvo to complain. The operator seemed to know all about this issue and only said that she could pass the info on to managment. This is amazing.
Volvo USA Customer Service- 1-800-458-1552 Please call. You can also e-mail Volvo at http://new.volvocars.com/contact/intro_cust_service.asp
3>. Rattles- service rep said that Volvos rattle... thanks a lot.
4>. Check engine light campaign- fixed with a software upgrade
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My 2001 S40 with 15,000 miles on it has exhibited none of the nasty characterstics that I have read about on here in the last year or so. When the fuel guage is reading empty, I regularly fill it with 13.6 - 13.8 gallons. A week ago, I had it in for the check engine light software update (which, the check engine light never came on I might add), the shop also checked out the brakes for me, 10mm on the front and 9 mm on the rear, so they should go for quite a bit longer. I have added 17" wheels shod with 215/40R17's, so naturally there is more road noise, but it hasn't developed any squeeks or rattles.
Does anyone else have a good S40 like mine?
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Nothing here. Most of these cars are built quite well. Remember, this model was introduced on the European market in '96. Information I've gotten from overseas message boards indicates very few problems. There are many examples of S40's going strong at >150,000mi.
With all manufacturers, some problems are going to occur in a small percentage of new cars. How about the sludge problems that thousands of Toyota/Lexus owners are experiencing? Unfortunately, it seems that many dealers will not properly address owners concerns when nuisance problems occur early in the life of the car. This is why you hear about these problems in the forum. The dealer is apparently not listening.
MORMIT
1985 245DL 231,000mi
2002 S40 4,200mi
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posted by
someone claiming to be mike
on
Tue May 14 12:38 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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You must be a Volvo salesman or just very lucky. You are certainly not part of the majority.
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Most people are satisfied with their cars, Volvo or non. My preference is with Volvo and I have had excellent experiences with this brand.
Though I sympathise with the few people who have had recurring problems, it is a fact of life that lemons are occasionally put out by every manufacturer out there. These are a minority of all cars that somehow slip through quality controls or were built on a Friday afternoon, who knows. This is only half of the problem for folks like Georgina. Some dealers are apparently not resolving issues as they should. This leaves an understandably ticked-off customer looking to vent a bit (here).
Besides, when you are satisfied, you generally have less to say....."Yup, still no problems.....end of story"
MORMIT
1985 245DL 232,000mi
2002 S40 4,200mi
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Actually Mike there are a lot of us who have had no problems with our x40's, we just don't tend to be as vocal as those of you who have had problems. I will say that I think the treatment those of you with problems are getting from the dealerships and VCNA is disgraceful and needs to be addressed. I have nothing but good things to say about the dealers I have dealt with (but this is in Canada and it appears that for some reason there are differences between the dealers in Canada and the US (perhaps Volvo is allowed more control by Cnadaian laws?) Of course this doesn't excuse VCNA for not acting properly to ensure that customers are satisfied. I do have to say that some of the complaints that are consistently heard are minor and are experienced with a lot of the european manufactures (and others as well) the frequent headlight bulb failures are quite common on BMW's, Mercedes, Audi's, and Porches I think it may have more to do with the design of the bulb (or the quality that was supplied by the bulb manufacturer), that said my car has yet to have a single bulb failure. The check engine light although annoying is as much a result of the OBDII requiremtns as anything else (and aparently there is a fix for it so hpefully this will no longer be a big issue), I had my check engine light come on once so far and it was when the tank was just about empty, no idea why it came on, but it hasn't happened again. The fuel guage not reading properly can be taken care of by the dealer by many accounts (though if you fill up when the low fuel light comes on you will only be able to put 12 gallons in (as it says in the owner's manual) Volvo has always had a "reserve" of 1/4 tank despite the markin on the guage looking like it is an 1/8 or less, I don't have a problem with this as I have driven Volvo's for many years and am used to it (I have been able to put more than 12 gallons in my tank, I have put up to 15 gallons in, so there is nothing wrong with the tank size or abitlity to use it).
The brake pads on my car are evenly worn, and have not used up more than half their material, the car now has 14,000 miles on it, so I expect to get 30,000 miles out of them (my car is a late 2001 so whatever changes Volvo has made to the pad material seems to have worked)
I hope that you can get the problems with your car taken care of so you can enjoy it for the remainder of your lease, and that your next car (whatever it is, obviously due to the poor service you have had it won't be a volvo) will live up to your expectations.
As for Georgia I think that she should be looking into her options, somebody should be either fixing or replacing her car (the door panel thing would be the last straw for me, it sounds like the dealer could care less and that just isn't right, that said has she tried another dealer? I can't remember that is why I am asking) it never hurts to get another view on the problems.
Best of luck to those of you with problems, the rest of us are watching to see if they are resolved, and are checking our cars tosee they do not turn up on them.
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posted by
someone claiming to be w1zn
on
Wed May 15 05:35 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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My V40 00 with 25K miles has had no problems. Rear brakes are ok, There was 1 headlamp that did fail. A good friend who has an S40 01 with 27K miles has had 0 problems. Must be the Vermont roads and lack of traffic agree with the car. We both enjoy theses cars. Its probably the best car I have ever had.
The local dealers service manager who I have done buisness with for 20 plus years, suggested this vehicle as the most reliable of all the Volvo's they sell.
Must be a good dealer is very important.
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posted by
someone claiming to be Mike
on
Wed May 8 09:54 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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Volvo 2001 s40 - Thank I God I leased this tin can on wheels. Only 20 months to go. Here's a brief list of problems: There are others.
-Fuel Guage inaccurate.
-Rear Brakes replace at 16k
-Head lamps replaced(twice).
-Car starts when it feels like. Occassionally, the car cranks but will not turn over, then engine light goes on and off. Usually takes three or four attempts to get the engine to start. dealer never finds anything wrong.
-Computer replaced twice.
-Check Engine Light on all the time. I don't have it reset anymore.
-Rattles, plenty of them.
-Heated seats, can never be sure I have this option.
-Lumbar support. Can you notice the change if adjusted?
-Heater blower motor burned out. Maybe you got lucky and the recall fix prevented premature falure in you car.
-Fan motor shuts off sometimes when left in auto mode.
-O2 sensor replaced.
-windshield washer sprayer replaced (just a small item, but adds to the case that this car can't even compete with a Yugo)
When my daughter asks me why her toys don't work like they show on TV ads, I respond; I have the same problem with the Volvo, they are poorly made.
The only good thing about this vehicle is that it has so many air bags, I'm sure it will float, if by accident it is driven into a lake. On a serious note, I hope they deploy when really needed, but I have my doubts.
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posted by
someone claiming to be Georgina
on
Sun May 12 13:06 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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Hi Mike-
My car just turned 11k miles and not a year old yet and my problems include:
x2 Shift lock 1. solenoid & 2. brake light switch broke
x2 Fuel gauge 1. tank only takes 11 gallons & 2. needle gauge read inaccurately
Cruise control - pump broke
Rattles - passenger door buzzes and rattles with either music and/or road vibration (bass is usually set to 1 or 2) - dealer said that they can't do anything about it.
Kick Panel - came loose and rattled for awhile
Door Stop - came out of alignment, created a protruding dent on external door skin
Fuel gas door - came out of alignment, did not shut properly
I just await the brake pads to go out and maybe the A/C will start leaking like other people on here.
I am extremely dissatisfied with this tin! I'm wondering if my problems are at the lemon level yet? Have you looked into this with your car?
Georgina
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posted by
someone claiming to be mike
on
Tue May 14 12:35 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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Georgina,
In addition to those I mentioned, I have also experienced some of your problems as well.
Although I am also extremely dissatisfied, I have not pursued the lemon law. It is not worth the aggravation. I know someone who actually won a lemon law case, but it took a long time. My lease will be finished by the time a lemon law case would be resolved.
I hope things get better for you. For me, I'll just hang in there until lease expiration.
Good Luck
Mike
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I have a S40 2001 and my fuel tank does the same thing. At one point I would fill it up with gas and the gas gauge would take a day or so to go to the full point. So, I had a computer upgrade and that worked but thanks to these messages I too only get 12 gallons. I have had this car not a year yet and have always thought it had a 12 gallon tank. My car has had an exponential amount of problems and it needs to be lemoned!
Georgina
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Regarding the fuel tank, check this out
The S40 Fuel tank is something that's very odd on this car. While Volvo claims it is a 16 gallon tank if you own a 2001 S40 you'll notice that when you fill up it's only about 12.5 gallons. No Volvo didn't install the wrong tank in your car, while Carlos was convinced this was what happened to him, after consulting with Don at Volvoparts.com we made an interesting discovery. Due to the way the tank is shaped and the type of sensor it uses to measure the fuel, there is only about a 12 gallon capacity, or is there? Well, all in all, the way we look at it is, if you only fill up with 12 odd gallons, that must be all your using. Check out the pictures below to see the goofy shaped tank.
There's more at http://www.classiccats.cc/s40fueltank.html
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This one always confuses me I'm afraid. If I fill my car up when the low fuel light comes on I put aprox 45 litres (12.5 US gallons)of gas in, if I wait a bit I can easily put 55 litres in the tanks is 60 litres (16 US gallons) so for me there is no issue (this is in Canada) the tank should be the same so I think if you are putting gas in when the low fuel light comes on (which is when the car hits the "reserve mark) you will be putting in aprox 12.5 gallons (as it says in the owners manual) this has been Volvo's practice all along (from my 120 though every model (yes I have had at least one of each) to the V40 it is the way Volvo has always set up their fuel gauges. Now if your low fuel light isn't coming on at the right place on the guage (if you are way below the red area) then there is apparently a way to calibrate the fuel guage (it has been posted either here or on volvospy) so that it is working properly (I believe it was through software). In any case my car is proof that the tank will let you use more than 12 gallons(on one trip to the states last year I put about 15 gallons in when I couldn't find a gas station right away). In any case enjoy your car.
Scott
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posted by
someone claiming to be lrfedor
on
Tue Apr 30 05:33 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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Sounds like you have a pretty typical 2000 MY:
1. Still under debate here, but no fixes found. If you have a "fix", I'm sure everyone would be interested.
2. Many people have reported replacing brake pads and/or rotors at very low mileage. I am at 35k with my originals, which may be a record :) Different posts over time have had different info/results. You should go back in the archives on this one.
3. Rattles, squeaks - yes, from day 1 and getting worse...
...fixes I have seen - no
4. People are just getting the notices for this one. I'm waiting to hear what others think of the "fix" because my light has never come on. Did you get yours fixed yet?
Good luck getting anywhere with Volvo Customer Service. Many have tried, but with very little success. There also seem to be a lot of really bad dealers out there, which is a really bad combination. This also came as a really big shock to me (and I'm sure to others) when I thought I was buying a luxury car from a luxury car company. Even if it's the lowest car line they have, I thought the service would be in line with the type of company/products they sell.
Other common problems for 2000 MY:
a. Cars delivered out of alignment - should be easily fixed
b. ABS fault - TSB for software upgrade
c. Noisy fuel pump - TSB to replace
d. Noisy piston cooling valve - TSB to replace
e. Headlights that burn out frequently - some debate here on the actual fix, but covered by dealer either way
f. Whistle at ~80mph - either mirrors or door seal, depending who you ask
Good luck & keep us posted on your findings.
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posted by
someone claiming to be Ark
on
Thu May 2 14:56 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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I should agree, in my S4 2000 US:
- never fixed by dealer, multiple complains, fixed by another machanic.
-FIXED
- DEALER replaced bulbs after both gone in 5 months, good so far.
Rear brakes gone completely, 13K only!!! Fronts at 50%
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posted by
someone claiming to be Ark
on
Thu May 2 14:58 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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My reply above did not go completely, so here again:
I should agree, in my S4 2000 US:
Aligment off from day one - never fixed by dealer, multiple complains, fixed by another machanic.
DSA light -FIXED
Lights - DEALER replaced bulbs after both gone in 5 months, good so far.
Rear brakes gone completely, 13K only!!! Fronts at 50%
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posted by
someone claiming to be lrfedor
on
Fri May 3 02:54 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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It took my dealer 4 tries and finally 4 new tires with a 4 wheel/cross car alignment (done elsewhere) to get mine fixed. I can actually let go of the steering wheel and stay on the road now! Wow, what a concept :) It was especially bad because it pulled left, into oncoming traffic!
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posted by
someone claiming to be DavidSF ('00 S40)
on
Mon Apr 29 05:56 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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What's the fix for the fuel gauge problem? I think I have that problem too.
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posted by
someone claiming to be MORMIT
on
Sat Apr 27 12:52 CST 2002 [ RELATED]
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Huh....glad #4 was fixed at least.
I have heard that a more durable brake pad has been installed on late2001 & 02 cars. These ought to be standard replacement parts for you 2000. Ask your deler if they used the new pads on your recent brake job....or specify next time.
Rattles shouldn't be common in any car you pay over 20 grand for. Furthermore, a service rep should not dismiss your concerns so easily. Is there another dealer in your area? Also, before going to a dealer, have a quick look around the car in case it's something minor. I heard a rattle a few weeks ago. My first thought was that it was a headliner rattle that I've read about on the brickboard. Turned out to be one of the folding rear seats wasn't latched fully. Pushed the seat back, latch clicked, problem solved. I could see a less than trustworthy service rep charging you in a case like that describing the remedy as some kind of rear seat alignment adjustment.
Good Luck,
MORMIT
1985 245DL
2002 S40
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Well, my mechanic gave me good advice. He said he could not recommend anything above a 1999.
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