Just thought I would tell the short story of how this recall came about. The headlights on my 1999 S70 failed one night while I was driving. Fortuntately, I was in my neighborhood going about 35 mph and did not crash. I discovered the problem was that the metal contacts in the headlight switch had failed. My car was out of warranty at the time. I researched the issue and discovered that the 1998 850 and earlier models had been recalled for the headlight switch, but that Volvo had not recalled the 1999 and newers EVEN THOUGH THE SWITCH WAS THE SAME.

I called Vovlo, explained the issue to them, and was told that I was essentially out of luck--pay for the repair myself. I told them I was shocked that a company reputed to be so concerned about safety would knowingly let its customers drive cars with defective headlight switches. It was then that I launched a web-based campaign against them, encouraging everyone I could find through web bulletin boards (including this one) to file a formal complaint if their switch had failed. Last year when I thought I had failed, I got a phone call and had a long discussion with a guy from NHTSA about the issue. He concluded that he should recommend a recall. Last October (I think) I saw the good news about the recall. Victory, at least a small one.

Moral of the story: Financial pressures sometimes keep car companies from doing the right thing. Determined, persistent consumers can push back and sometimes force the manufacturer to do the right thing.