ETM warranty vs. Volvo

[2001VolvoXC70]

I could use some assistance with this one so any thoughts or advice is greatly appreciated.

09/22/2011 - I had brought my 2001 volvo xc70 in for service to reset my SRS illumanation and shortly after leaving the dealership the message "Engine System Service Required" displayed. I called back to Volvo and asked the service rep if any codes were being thrown that may possibly send this message. He told me the only thing was a code in regards to irregular TPS position.

That night I did my share of research on the TPS and found out all the issues in relation to the Throttle position sensor and the failing ETM's. 09/23 The next morning when a service rep called to find out if I was happy with the service, I had an informed amount of information to tell him about the TPS and ETM, and how my car is under 200,000 miles and that it should be under warranty and be replaced. The gentleman told me he was going to have the General Manager call me.

I wasn't sure when my 10 yr warranty was finished. Nearly a month went by and I didn't hear anything from the General Manager so I called the service rep to express my concerns again and asked whether I can have the warranty applied for a new ETM. I really wish I called earlier but I didn't, so he told me that my Warranty expired 3 weeks ago (09/27). That my ETM was no longer covered because it was passed the 10 years. I complained to the gentleman and told him my situation and how I was asking for the warranty and service to be completed before 10 year expiration mark on the 23rd.

NOTE: According to the carfax report I have;
27/09/2001 Vehicle sold by dealer with 1 mile but it wasn't until 11/06/2001 @ 4 miles that a title was issued or updated with the first owner reported.

They also went on to Mention how there were no service reports issued stating that my car had ETM issues or that there were any issues present within the 10 years. However, I raged that the service rep had told me about the issue of TPS irregularity on the 22nd of September, but they seem to disregard this and say that it may be difficult to convince Volvo headquarters to go ahead with this since there is not direct evidence. So I made a service appointment to have them inspect my TPS/ETM and preform there tests. Of course it failed the test and I briefly saw the notes stating.... etm 9150 failed test at 80.43°.... i think this is what it said. I was again told that since my car is out of warranty that it wouldn't be covered and they will see if Volvo will cover it outta good faith.

So here I am frustrated at Volvo. This is the same dealership that reported me that my ABS module was faulty and in need of replacement at a cost of $1239 in parts and $118 in labor, only to self-discover all i needed was a $70.00 wheel sensor. I still have faith that they may come through with the warranty. I have asked them to coordinate all future corresponding via email so I have a hard copy.

What are your thoughts on this situation? Do you think the GM purposely didn't call me to void my warranty? Does anyone now if Volvo uses the date of sale or date of registration for there warranty?

Once again, any feedback is greatly appreciated.

[precopster]

Whether malice or avoidance is occurring is a hard thing to prove, however the point here is that the TPS (or ETM as it's known) had a fault code diagnosed earlier to the dealer recontacting you. The date of diagnosis is what is crucial in my opinion.

Even if the warranty is now void I think you have a case. It may pay to seek some legal advice just to have the upper hand.

If only you could ask Volvo to pay for an ETM that can't fail (like an XeModex)
BTW how many miles does your car now have. Most documented ETM failures seem to be at around 120-200K miles.

[JRL]

They have failed as early as 30K miles

[2001VolvoXC70]

Diagnosis from Volvo back in June of 2010

I have 106,000 miles. I also found a document from when I had my car codes scanned last year. I had a bunch of DTC found active/non active. One of the things is ECM-530D Malfunction Indicator lamp (MIL) TCM - Faulty Signal and the DTC is found active. Can you tell me what DTC stands for and whether this code is suggesting a faulty tcm?

[dcarlson12]

DTC is diagnostic trouble code
From what I can read from your 'chart' the ETM did not show any fault.

[2001VolvoXC70]

So with a few phone calls I found out that even though the customer service rep said he would have the GM call me, the message never got to the GM. I spoke personally with the service manager and the general manager and Volvo has decided to go ahead and offer the ETM warranty. Any recommendation for post service. Maybe a transmission drain and fill? Tran fluid was changed 2 years ago....

[JRL]

A drain and fill is ALWAYS recommended (IMO)