Did the Mini finish off the old T5 wagon?

wwilme · Post by **wwilme** » 02 Nov 2010, 04:37

My wife bought a Mini Cooper when the kids got old enough to get in and out of the car themselves - something about not wanting to be like the rest of the Annapolis preppy Moms. I have always told her that the old kid-getter, a 2001 V70 T5 with 149k could blow the doors off her new car. Last weekend we met to pick Halloween stuff for the kids and were almost home on some surprisingly empty streets. She pulled up next to me a gave her Mini a few quick revs to which I responded with a few of my own. The light turned green and we took off. The 2.3 litre turbo launched the old wagon way out in front and I accelerated full on all the way up to the normal speed limit and then let it coast while my wife caught up at the next light. Didn't seem like any undue stress on the car and the rpms did not get into the red.

At the light the Volvo was now running really rough – like maybe not on all 5. (I got the same exact feeling in my BMW 318 last year when the oil cap came off after a quickie-shop oil change - once replaced vacuum was restored and all was well). I was hoping for some easily visible problem like that in this case, but no such luck. I had just replaced the upper engine mount that morning so I was hoping that maybe it was something to do with the turbo hose which I had to disconnect and push aside to get to a bolt. Everything is tight and there is no air escaping at either end of the turbo hose that I can tell. My wife says the car smelled slightly of something burning, although not surprisingly I couldn’t smell it. There are no knocks or any other strange noises. The oil and coolant look no different than before. I tried driving it again last night to see if there was anything else I could tell. The "roughness" is fairly even as you accelerate and the car definitely lacks the power it had before. The check engine light is now on constantly and actually flashes when you hit the gas hard. Could something have blown or stuck open when I punched it?

Post by **JRL** » 02 Nov 2010, 05:45

Maybe a coil took a crap, they can fail at any time
Without knowing what the code is all we can do is guess.
You should not drive with a flashing CEL though...... at all!

1foren · Post by **1foren** » 02 Nov 2010, 08:03

Sounds just like a coil. The easy way to check this is to take the cover off to expose the coils start the car and unplug one at a time. You should notice the idle becomes ruff on ones that are working. The one that is bad will make no difference when you unplug. Just burned Two last week...

Post by **priapism** » 02 Nov 2010, 10:07

I had the same issue on the S60. I don't think that poor car had ever seen more than 4200 rpm, then we got it and drove through the central valley at triple-digit speeds. CEL showed misfire on cyl #2. I replaced the coil on that cyl and did all the plugs and it ran perfectly. Honestly the coil looked okay, I'd try just replacing the plugs (you gotta do that eventually anyways) and see if it runs better before dropping the 60 bones on a new coil.

Post by **priapism** » 02 Nov 2010, 10:08

Also you can sometimes tell if a cyl is not firing by touching the exhaust headers when it's warm--the cyl that's not firing will not be as hot.

Post by **matthew1** » 02 Nov 2010, 15:44

It could be a semi-blown off hose like this: https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums ... 69#p120369

wwilme · Post by **wwilme** » 07 Nov 2010, 08:15

Thanks for the advice, guys. Started pulling coil wires and found a dead No. 3. $59 later at Pepboys and we're back in business except for the CEL. It did loose power with a good stab on the peddle and you could hear a wooshing sound on the post coil test drive, but I found the turbo hose had blown off - guess I didn't tighten it enough on reassembly.

So I really should get a code reader now. What's the best choice for an amature like me who will hopefully only need to use it once?! Does it only read engine management stuff, or will it tell me why the airbag message is on (not the light, just the digital message)?

Post by **pkc303** » 07 Nov 2010, 08:31

Autozone will read your codes for free. They won't reset them, but you can read them. To reset them you need only disconnect the battery for a short while. Be sure to have your radio code, as you will need it when you reconnect. The code readers will only read the engine/emission stuff. You would have to have the Volvo ($$$$) tool to read more. However, most people can help you here with other items. The codes get you in the right direction.