1999 Volvo V70 from North America - Comments

Electrical.

Computer.

Lights.

Brakes.

Power steering.

I was a content and loyal Volvo driver up until my third Volvo vehicle which I leased in 1999. The only good thing about the car is that I can return it once the lease expires.

The car has had a myriad of technical concerns and problems. More importantly the car is well below my expectations and falls well short of what I would consider to be a luxury automobile.

Beyond the technical problems, I am of the experience and perception that the Volvo organization makes it quite difficult to find satisfaction for defective vehicles and is less than responsive. The only other company I can think of that may be less responsive was "Crazy Eddie".

"Crazy Eddie" was infamous for having its customers report problems with merchandise via a special phone in each store. A clerk in headquarters manned the phone. Of course the clerk had absolutely no authority or inclination to address customer concerns. This was by design a mechanism for "Crazy Eddie" to avoid and evade customer issues. Much like "Crazy Eddie", Volvo positions itself away from direct customer interaction. The shield in this case is Volvo's franchise dealerships that have no intent or power to address concerns beyond the warranty.

I found numerous instances of Volvo quality problems of a similar nature in the public domain. My guess is that Volvo may be milking the perception of quality that it developed over time. Because of this perception, the sale of Volvo vehicles may not be that hard to accomplish.

I can assure Volvo that should the quality of their product, and the responsiveness their organization, remain at the level I have experienced their future success will be short-lived. It takes a long time to build a reputation for quality and service, and a very short time to lose it.

My latest experience indicates that the car is far less than the 1992 and 1996 that I have owned. My recommendation to a perspective Volvo owner would be to avoid the car. Instead, I would heartily recommend the Chrysler LHS or 300M. You will find that both these alternatives are considerably less expensive than Volvo and are in fact higher quality vehicles.

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My experience with leasing a 1999 Volvo V70 wagon has been completely opposite to this post. After 48000 kilometres, mine has been completely trouble-free. My dealership has been fantastic. Volvo Canada has telephoned me twice since I got the car to ask whether I have been satisfied with the car and my dealer. Cost of maintenance has been very reasonable. Mileage is good. It is a pleasure to drive and I would recommend it to anyone as a dependable family vehicle. One last point, I am 6' 8" and I fit quite comfortably in the car!

I have had the same irritating problems that the others have posted. Living in the Washington DC, area this is a very popular car --- and not surprisingly I am always driving by other V70s with blinking signals, etc. ha ha.

It's a great when there is not an irritating little failure. But for the money, you don't expect this sort of thing.

My previous car, which I luckily still have (back up car!!!) runs like a charm every time I start it up. It is a 94 Acura Integra with 90,000 miles. I only bought the Volvo because it seems to be a safer car.

My T5 SE V70 2000 model has 35000 miles on her and has been back to the dealership 37 times... yes 37 times, But must add that volvo uk is now on the case. we will see what happens.

I have a 1999 V70GLT, it had been trouble free up until this year (2004) when everything went wrong.

The valve-train started making noises like a diesel engine, around 65,000 miles. I changed the oil with a 10/40 oil, (no success) I spoke to a friend of mine who has a mechanics shop, who told me, that the rubber seals in the sump has to be changed. I changed them and the noise went away.

The electronic throttle system failed around 70+K miles. It cost us,$1,500.00. The very next day, the car was hard to start, I treated the incident as a fluke and forgave it, it gradually got worse. I took it back to the dealership, it was diagnosed as a bad antenna and ECU wiring harness, at this point I had a fit of rage. The dealership discounted the repair cost, I forked out another $700.00 for the repair, the mechanic at the dealership who did the work, also left some of his tools inside the engine compartment. Less than a month later, the rear shocks failed, all of this happened under 80,000 miles. I will not discuss the brakes saga, and the generally crappy ride. This is my 5th Volvo.

I have read comments from UK owners who do not seem to have the problems of USA owners.

I will not purchase another Volvo until something drastically change.

We have an '04 V70 Turbo AWD that is now in trouble with same problem for the fifth time - yes, fifth.

Will be driving and everything will be okay until the car hesitates - kind of jumps - about three times and then all gauges will go off. The a/c fan works, but doesn't cool. The windows will not roll down. The turn signals are not operational. The brake lights do not work. The engine keeps going, but with less power. The brakes work, but pedal goes almost to the floor. NEEDLESS TO SAY - THIS IS VERY SCARY.

UNABLE TO LOCATE ANYONE WITH SAME PROBLEM AND THE DEALERSHIP DOES NOT KNOW WHAT IS CAUSING THE PROBLEM. I'm

scared to drive it.

Just recently purchased a 1999 V70 after being a very loyal

740 series owner. The car to me is the absolute polar opposite of the 740 series in a good way, very quite smooth refined not as costly as many seem to have said and lastly a pleasure to drive not have it drive me.

After spending over $1,500 on my Chrysler Lebaron with 78k miles and it being in the shop a good dozen times, all in the past 12mths, pretty much any car will seem more reliable to me. I kid you not, something goes wrong about every 5k miles! It's left me stranded for overheating problems twice in the past 4mths. I bought the car with 58k miles. Now, my transmission torque converter is acting weird, the engine hesitates badly, and the interior squeaks and rattles like crazy. A V70 would probably feel like a tank to me.

I just bought Volvo v70. 156 000 km (96 933mls). It was from Germany. I hope that is good for 450 000 km (280k). I have had good old cars: Toyota Hiace 1986, Toyota Corolla 1.6i 1991, Nissan Primera 1992. All has been very care free cars. Sorry to hear you stories about bad volvo's...

V70 from Finland -4C.

I have owned my V70 XLT for several years now and 165000 miles later it's still going strong. I have had a hand full of minor problems plus the expected driveshaft problem with it, but as long as it keeps going for as long as my old 850 (that had 345000 miles on it when a man in a van drove into it!), I will be very pleased..

To the person with 2004 V70 that has the problems (May 2008).

Yes, my 2004 S60 (non-turbo) is doing exactly the same thing. They have been unable to ID the problem. Have you had any better luck on finding the cause since your last posting?