1999 Volvo S80

[garyfry]

My wife fell in love with the 1999 Volvo S80 and bought a used one with 113,000 miles on it. We (I do say we because she is my wife) didn't do our research and didnt notice any problems. We bought a 3 year 36,000 mile warranty that should keep it running. Two questions: Does anybody have any good stories about the S80. Second: What should be the main areas I look for before the warranty expires. Thanks.

Gary

[matthew1]

Good stories? Well, they don't actually get "good" per se, they just get less and less bad .

My dad's '99 S80 is doing well. Some factory recalls (ball joint, for one) and an intermittant ABS light but that's about it. But -- he drives it like a grandmother. I think that's the key to its longetivity so far.

It's a nice, quiet car. Good looking, and full of unexpected luxuries like exterior lights that illuminate the driver/passenger door and ground with a press of a remote button.

[Les]

I have an S80 1999 (purchased new) with 59K. The usual problems to be expected with a new model (then), and an occational service that was not exptected (a door lock that kept popping up, a crack in a motor mount, and a problem with the ABS computer) but in general it runs great, best pickup of our 3 (we have a 98 S 70 and a 97 850)
Good luck with it.

[dryckman]

My girlfriend's 99 S80 has a rumbling sound coming from the passenger side front wheel. I can feel it though the steering wheel and the passenger side floor board. I have not raised the front wheel and checked for tightness. I have wiggled the front wheel with the tire on the ground and everything seems tight. I suspect she has a possible bad ball joint or other worn front suspension component. Did or does Volvo have a S80 factory recall on this item? The car drives like a dream and both of us are very happy with the car.
Thanks in advance!!
Dave
ps love the web site!

Good stories? Well, they don't actually get "good" per se, they just get less and less bad .

My dad's '99 S80 is doing well. Some factory recalls (ball joint, for one) and an intermittant ABS light but that's about it. But -- he drives it like a grandmother. I think that's the key to its longetivity so far.

It's a nice, quiet car. Good looking, and full of unexpected luxuries like exterior lights that illuminate the driver/passenger door and ground with a press of a remote button.

[dryckman]

The NTHSA campaign number is 00V238000 for the front ball joint recall.

http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/probl ... search.cfm

This is kind of a screwy website. I was searching for complains on the S80 and there are a number of Electronic Throttle Module(ETM) complains, but they are listed under many components. Anything from ignition system to vehicle speed control. It appears that most owners are not aware of the problem with the ETM and paid for different repairs to try and fix this problem. I have seen anything from PCV to ignitor modules being replaced to try and what appears to be an ETM problem.

[bajaman]

I've had a 1999 S80 T6 for about 3 years now and have a sort of love-hate relationship with it. The car IS fantastic; great power decent handling (for a front-wheel drive car especially) a near-unbeatable interior, awesome sound system, and cool exterior styling.
The downside is the maintenance cost. I purchased my vehicle with 60,000 miles on it and it has about 90,000 on it now. I've spent about $2500 on repairs. It EATS coil packs and mass-airflow sensors, for some reason. Other than that it has had just routine maintenance items (drive belts, motor mounts, etc.). This is NOT what I expect from a car that cost over $45K new. In comparison, my brother owns a 2000 BMW 528i and has had no cost. Zip....zero....zilch.....in over 40,000 miles of driving.
The only way I would ever purchase another Volvo would be with a full-coverage extended warranty.
Tragic, as the cars are so close to being world-class automobiles.