1999 Volvo S80 T6 from North America - Comments

Transmission failure twice.

Front suspension/ball joints twice.

Front struts.

Transmission shift lock twice.

Air conditioning.

Keyless remote is weak.

Emission sensor daily.

Dashboard display electronics.

CD player.

Power steering.

Various "codes"

I have not seen a car in this class that can compare to the sharp looks and comfort features of this Volvo.

The engine is fast, handling is questionable because of "comfort" adjusted ride.

That said, the style and comfort will never overcome the substantial frustration with the mechanical failures that I have experienced almost on a daily basis.

Only slightly less frustrating is Volvo's (and the dealership's) lack of "ownership" of the problem. Regardless of the cars current odometer reading, each trip to the dealer's service department yields one of two responses:

"I'm afraid that's going to be very expensive to fix" or,

"There's no problem, we checked the error code, reprogrammed, and everything is fine now"

Until next week.

This is the best car in the world if all you ever do is stay parked.

I have had my 1999 S 80 since May 2002. It is in the shop once again, this time to the tune of $1,200.00. To date, I have spent around $2,700.00 in repairs. The struts had to be replaced, ABS module went out ($850.00), approx. $400.00 repair something to do with the fuel line, now the head gasket and oxygen sensors in the catalytic convertor needs to be replaced. I had a 1996 S90 before buying this one. We never had a moments trouble out of it. When I get rid of this one, I will never own another Volvo, not the car it once was.

I am sad to say, but I too had many problems with my S80. It was always my dream to own a Volvo, and many of my family members have owned them without any problems. I bought a 1999 S80 T6 a few months ago. The car is super speedy and luxurious. It was a dream to sit in, but the dream soon turned to a nightmare when dealing with the constant barrage of check engine lights and funny noises. Not to mention the AM radio is lousy and the keyless remote only works within inches of the car. Within 3 months of owning the car, I was at the dealer 5 times to fix various things going wrong and to reset the many check engine lights that went off. My husband and I bit the bullet and traded the car in for a $6,000 loss. We now have a 2003 Honda Accord and I love it. I don't know if I will ever go back to Volvo again.

Wow, same story. I had a 740GLE which wasn't a major headache accept for mufflers and suspension problems that were not huge, but man this S80 is a killer. It's a 1999 S80 T6, everything from 18" wheels to the security glass option and it cost me a fortune. Well, I had a little oil leak and my ABS, STC, check engine light comes on and the dealer reply is $1200 power steering rack, $860 ABS module and oh by the way maybe $450 turbo seals that were replaced once already. At 52K miles, driving like a baby, not some hot rod, I think my Volvo days are over as well. Unless you have an unlimited pocket book in tune with the costs of maintaining a space shuttle, steer clear. These cars are endless pits of warning lights. While the ride is good and it's a fun car to drive, it's too expensive to maintain. I'm going to bite the bullet and move on.

I have purchased a pre-owned 1999 S80 T6. It has 38,000 miles and is in the shop currently with a problem that the Volvo Dealer can't diagnose or fix at this point. The car has a bucking/surge feeling when trying to maintain a constant speed. This is very noticeable at highway speeds, but also is documented at low speeds especially if going uphill. The "Volvo" bulletins recommend a specific software download, but that only helped for a couple weeks and the problem is worse than ever. Has anyone experienced this and knows what the "Fix" is?

The car's service engine light was also going off, but would reset after turning off car. The codes indicated a need to replace the electronic throttle module. This was done, but that didn't fix the bucking/surging problem. Must have been a coincidence. The extended warranty wouldn't cover that because they said it was an emissions problem and that area isn't covered!

I do like the looks, feel, and comfort of the car, but am frustrated with this current problem.

Sad to say that I am yet another sucker that fell in love with the look and ride of the 1999 Volvo S80 T6. This car had only $40,000 when I bought it 6 months ago. I did do some research and found that although it seemed to have some problems, I really wanted to get this car. What a disaster. I have had this car in the shop at least 10 times in the last 6 months. Lets see, new transmission, $3,000, the blasted emmisions light has never been off for more than one week, each time it costs $300 to $500. I love to drive this car, but I have put about $5,000 in it in repairs so far and have only had it for 6 months. I am starting to think that maybe I should just cut my losses and get rid of it. I have to say that I do have the cleanest car I have ever owned, I get a free car wash every time I take it to the repair shop.

I found this website because I was researching to see if other owners of the 1999 Volvo S80 T6 were having same problems as I am. I was having trouble with the right front end sounding like a rusty hinge, and warning lights for everything coming on. Thank God I had an extended warranty. $2500 of work and I'm still hearing lots of squeaks & rattles in the same area. Other problems; my headliner is coming off in several places, the side lights actually come out of their socket when going through the car wash, I just bought (3 months ago) 4 new tires and the outer edges are already worn??. I was SHOCKED when I went to trade it in and found out the resale value was so low that I was about 9K upside down. Now I feel really stuck. One Volvo dealership told me that the 99's & 2000's have lots of problems because this was around the time Ford took over and they were "rushed through the assembly line". Has anyone else heard of this?

I have a 2000 S80 T6 with about 64K miles on it. I bought it with 32K less than two years ago. The weekend after I bought it I was on a two day trip out of state when the car stalled making a left turn. The car restarted and I proceeded to my destination. Since then the stalling comes back about every two months, the dealer replaced the throttle body after receiving a code, but usually gets no codes. After much frustration I asked to just trade the car in only to find out that the car is worth $13K less than what I paid for it 21 months before. The salesman's response was that this is a problem model and the public is weary of them on resale. Its very frustrating that a dealer would not only refuse to stand behind a car their company built, but also be so free to criticize it.

This is an email I sent to Volvo (I don't) Care:

To whom it may concern,

My wife and I have been loyal Volvo customers since 1999 when we bought our first new

Volvo - a 2000 V70 cross-country wagon. We have had a great experience with this vehicle in terms of reliability, quality and longevity. We still own this vehicle and it now has 96,000 miles on the odometer. However a couple of years ago I bought a 1999 S80 T6 Volvo certified vehicle and have had nothing, but problems with it. Fortunately for me I had purchased an extended warranty. A few weeks after buying it I garaged it for about 6 months as I was working in Europe for this period of time. I came back and had to jump start the car and a few minutes later was stranded. I called the Volvo On Call Service and they could not locate me as having coverage and would not service my call - I called AAA and was towed to the Dealer where I purchased my vehicle and they told me I need a new battery - which I paid for. After that a support Strut broke and that was repaired. After that an indicator that my coolent level was low came on and the dealer just topped it up. This happened a couple more times and the dealer tightened a couple of hoses. We then relocated to Connecticut where one morning I lowered the passenger side window and it came off the track. I went to a local Volvo Dealer in CT and had it replaced. After that my low coolant level light came on again and the CT dealer told me I had a leak in the radiator and it was replaced. They also found some issue with the engine where they replaced some gaskets - I had to pay for some hoses replacing. Then after that the air bag warning light came on and again I had to take it in and they replaced a control unit. There have been several other stops back at the dealer (about every 2 weeks), one where I was stranded - the car shut down - I again called the Volvo on Call service, but there was a recording that said they were too busy - call back later (I actually called back throughout the day - but eventually had to call AAA) - This time it was a failed battery and a failed alternator. The latest and most inconvenient issues have been that I have been stranded on the highway 3 times in the last week or so - car shut down - was told I ran out of gas by dealer - (while it was low it was at top of red region) - couple of days later same problem - car shuts down, stranded - rejoined AAA didn't even bother calling Volvo On Call Service. Car towed in and they told me there was a failed component in the fuel system (equivalent of a distributor on older vehicles). This weekend (one day later) same thing happens - on way with my son to an appointment and car shuts down - same failure as last two times - the car was towed (AAA) to dealer again and they are currently looking at it.

I have decided that I cannot keep this vehicle and I need a new one. While I like my other Volvo car and would like to buy another one I find it hard to convince myself or my wife that the new generation of vehicles is as reliable and have the same longevity as the previous generation. I cannot believe all the problems that I have had with this Volvo Certified car - what do you have to say about this situation? Why should I buy another Volvo?

- also as an update - after the dealer kept my car for 10 days replaced another electronic module, test drove it, I picked it up

and got about 10 feet beyond the dealer lot and the car shut down again, they are now on their 4th shot at fixing the same problem. The sad part is the extended warranty does not pay for diagnostic work and the dealer and their technicians have proved that they do not understand the problem and are not capable of fixing it.

I have owned my Volvo S80 since february, 2005. I have only ever had two problems with it. It has 38000 miles on it, and the codes needed to be reset at 36,500 for the tranny, SRS air bags, and the 02 sensor had to be replaced. This was taken care of by the dealer I purchased it from. The next problem was my alternator failed. This caused my battery to die (original battery, anyway... needed replacing) and I needed a new serpentine belt. All in all, plus a discounted labor cost from my friend, 800 dollars in repairs. This was not two months after I purchased it. Now, you all are saying you won't go back to volvo... but remember that the 99 was the first year they ever made the S80 and is bound to have glitches. I fell in love at first sight and didn't consider that, but the first year of any car has problems that the manufacturer can't foresee. The older models, like the 240's, were reliable because there was so much less to go wrong. When you buy a car with a lot of options, you run the risk of more stuff going wrong. I'm going to find a nice Honda, probably used. In a few years, i'll get another Volvo S80, perhaps a T-6, and get an 02 or 03. I'm still in high school. I can't afford to have this car.