Volvo....never again!

[T888]

This is my first, and I hasten to add, last Volvo I will ever have!

I have had this 1 owner, 69k mile, 2.5 10v manual of 1996 vintage since the 1st of Dec 2011, and I can say, wthout exaggeration, that for every hour of driving, I have spent a day under the bonnet!

This forum is excellent, and I have trawled it for hours, and found lots of helpful tips and advice.........but alas, I have reached the end of my teather with my swedish lemon!

I have fixed my own cars for years, and am more than competent with my extensive tool kit, but this car is so full of problems that I cannot commit any more time or money into it. I feel like its beaten me, and in a way it has, but I fall back to the old adage of, you can't polish a turd!

I have had the non start, poor running, misfire scenario that i read about on here over and over again! I have changed everything, all the many usual suspects, sometimes twice, and it still hasn't sorted it!

I made a fault code reader, but all I ever got was a 1,1,1 code of all good!

I left my code reader in the glovebox, such that I was using it so much, and this bloody car decided to lock me out of the glovebox by ensuring that the catch broke in its closed position!

The last straw, and I mean the very last, after a catalogue of wasted hours fault finding the starting, missing faults, was when, after leaving the car running on the drive for 10 mins, it decided that it would be nice for the clip holding the bottom radiator hose on to snap!! Dumping all its coolant while my back was turned!!
Its too early to tell if the head has suffered, and in a way I hope it has!

So I guess I am posting to say thanks to all forum members for the information within these pages, I hoped I could have stayed around a bit longer, but Volvo ownership is not the "reliable banger" motoring experience I had expected.

I am weighing this one in, first time I have ever done that, but the scrapyard deserves this one!

If anyone wants it for spares, let me know. The scrap man will give me £150 for it, so anyone here is welcome to it for the same.

Great forum peeps, just wish I had found it before I found the car!

[Axionknight]

A shame to hear it really, usually great and reliable motors, despite age and usually much higher mileage. What will you be repalcing it with?

[T888]

I always thought Volvo were bullet proof, but reading here, it seems not! Maybe I have just been unlucky! This is a second car, a work banger really, but I don't want to spend my days off under the bonnet of it!

Not sure what I will get next, but I know what it wont be lol.

[ShadeTek]

Sorry to hear about your woes. I have the same engine and year as yours and mine has been a fabulous engine. This seems to be your first post and I am wondering if you had asked earlier We could have helped you out more?

[RUTV70]

Can understand your frustration I guess...but you are gonna get a few probs with a 15/16 year old car surely.?..(the low mileage is not always a plus point.!!)
Generally the longevity of these beasts is way above average I'd say..and whilst they have their idiosynchrasies (which car doesn't.?) they stay the course better than most.
I hope you have much better luck with it's replacement.

Neil

[DaveC19]

A really great shame indeed. This is very rare. I have driven 2 Volvo estates (240 & 940) for almost 30 years with no problems other than normal maintenance (pads, ball joints & such). Just aquired a '96 850R estate with 140K on it and am looking forward to many more years of pleasure with the new toy
I can only imagine that at 69K your motor must have been pretty well trashed by the previous owner to give that much trouble.

[ShadeTek]

If you still have the car, give us some more details of your problems and let's see if We can help you out with this one. You have a large wealth of knowledge and experience in this forum, second to none!

[T888]

Originally Posted by ShadeTek

If you still have the car, give us some more details of your problems and let's see if We can help you out with this one. You have a large wealth of knowledge and experience in this forum, second to none!

Thanks for the offer, but it seems the subject of my woes have been covered over and over by other members in the past. I didn't want to post another thread that i feel has been covered extensively.

I have had a no start problem, solved by cleaning the Immobiliser antenna.
The missing at low revs, sometimes slight, sometimes so severe you wonder if you will ever make it home, I can't get to the bottom of! Its intermittent, which always helps lol!
I have changed plugs, leads, dizzy, rotor, coil, fuel pump relay, cam sensor. I have swapped all other sensors, MAP, idle valve etc with no joy.
I have checked for bad earths everywhere, and get good continuity readings.
I have checked supply voltages, to sensors etc.
I have run out of ideas!!

[ShadeTek]

Originally Posted by T888

Thanks for the offer, but it seems the subject of my woes have been covered over and over by other members in the past. I didn't want to post another thread that i feel has been covered extensively.

I have had a no start problem, solved by cleaning the Immobiliser antenna.
The missing at low revs, sometimes slight, sometimes so severe you wonder if you will ever make it home, I can't get to the bottom of! Its intermittent, which always helps lol!
I have changed plugs, leads, dizzy, rotor, coil, fuel pump relay, cam sensor. I have swapped all other sensors, MAP, idle valve etc with no joy.
I have checked for bad earths everywhere, and get good continuity readings.
I have checked supply voltages, to sensors etc.
I have run out of ideas!!

Have you cleaned the throttle body?
Have you replaced the fuel pump and or relay?

[T888]

Originally Posted by DaveC19

A really great shame indeed. This is very rare. I have driven 2 Volvo estates (240 & 940) for almost 30 years with no problems other than normal maintenance (pads, ball joints & such). Just aquired a '96 850R estate with 140K on it and am looking forward to many more years of pleasure with the new toy
I can only imagine that at 69K your motor must have been pretty well trashed by the previous owner to give that much trouble.

The previous owner who had it over 13 years looked after it very well, a FSH, mostly Volvo. I have old bills from his ownership and he always used genuine parts etc!

He is 83 years old, was reluctant to sell, a genuine car i thought!