V70: General 1st time v70 owner with questions about the car

[Fogmeister]

I bought a 2014 V70 D5 the other day.

Got a warning on the dash “low battery charge” and the star stop is unavailable. I’ve done a couple of long drives in it. Is it worth waiting or does it need a new battery?

Second, there is a button on the centre console with the letter A with a circular arrow around it. What is this for? It has a green LED but I have no idea what it’s doing.

Lastly, there are some square metal holes in the side wall of the boot. They look like something attaches into them but I’m not sure.

Pictures in link https://imgur.com/a/GY9pehV

If you could help that would be great! Thanks

[hal9000f]

Originally Posted by Fogmeister

I bought a 2014 V70 D5 the other day.

Got a warning on the dash “low battery charge” and the star stop is unavailable. I’ve done a couple of long drives in it. Is it worth waiting or does it need a new battery?

Second, there is a button on the centre console with the letter A with a circular arrow around it. What is this for? It has a green LED but I have no idea what it’s doing.

Lastly, there are some square metal holes in the side wall of the boot. They look like something attaches into them but I’m not sure.

Pictures in link https://imgur.com/a/GY9pehV

If you could help that would be great! Thanks

All Start/Stop, low battery and charging answers foy your P3 V70 should be here:

https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showt...ery+start+stop

https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showt...ery+start+stop

https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showt...ery+start+stop


I use those square metal holes to fasten cargo with elastic rubber bands.

They can also be used with cargo nets I believe.... and maybe with some volvo accessories like metal cargo holders and stuff to drive dogs in Volvo cages :-)


Don't know about the button...

[Sotosound]

Originally Posted by Fogmeister

I bought a 2014 V70 D5 the other day.

Got a warning on the dash “low battery charge” and the star stop is unavailable. I’ve done a couple of long drives in it. Is it worth waiting or does it need a new battery?

Second, there is a button on the centre console with the letter A with a circular arrow around it. What is this for? It has a green LED but I have no idea what it’s doing.

Lastly, there are some square metal holes in the side wall of the boot. They look like something attaches into them but I’m not sure.

Pictures in link https://imgur.com/a/GY9pehV

If you could help that would be great! Thanks

It can take several long journeys for start/stop to begin working. Moreover, unless the main battery and aux. battery are in very good condition, it won't work at all.

The start/stop on my good lady's 2018 S60 D4 isn't working at the moment, and this is probably because, firstly, the car sat at the dealer for the first 8 or 9 months of 2023 before she purchased it, which won't have been good for the battery and, secondly, the battery is 6 years old.

After she acquired the car a year ago, it took quite a few commutes from Aylesbury to Cambridge before start/stop began to function, but even then it was a rare occurrence and almost a cause for celebration.

Conversely, my own V70 D4 happily engages start/stop at every opportunity, which tells me what we should be expecting from the S60.

Nowadays, it never works on the S60, so I know that the battery is tired and should be replaced soon-ish. A check of battery condition for both batteries will therefore be the order of the day when it gets serviced on Monday week.

Having said all of that, apart from start/stop not functioning, there are no other indications of battery failure in the S60, suggesting that the battery and charging aspects of the S60 are possibly almost over-specified.

So... how long is one of your "long drives", and on what kinds of roads?

[Stu B]

The button you mention disables start/stop but if it’s not working anyway you won’t need to press it every time you start the car like I do

My V60 did similar after purchase, no start/stop and battery warnings but otherwise behaved fine. I tried a slow charge on the main battery to no avail so got the Volvo dealer to sort it out via selekt warranty. It needed a replacement main battery, aux battery was apparently fine.

[FreshAir]

I had the same when I got mine. Car dealers don't keep the battery topped on on the forecourt, this is the end result as the voltage is left at lower levels sometimes for weeks which shortens its life.

Battery charging logic errs very much on the side of not charging if it doesn't have to for 'eco' reasons (thanks to EU regulations and the mpg tests). It's amazing how far you need to drive to get it to fully recharge by driving.

The warning means main battery is below 12.4 volts. Radio will not stay on more than 2 minutes after turning off, and stop start won't activate.

Maybe OK if you charge the battery back up, charge on positive terminal plus body/engine not the battery earth.

At least you don't 'need to' turn off the stop start when you start the car.

[Georgeandkira]

"... charge on positive terminal plus body/engine not the battery earth."

Is this common prudence or instruction specific to these vehicles?

[hal9000f]

Originally Posted by Georgeandkira

"... charge on positive terminal plus body/engine not the battery earth."

Is this common prudence or instruction specific to these vehicles?

These cars have BMS - Battery Monitoring System and if you don't charge them that way, the BMS will not know the battery has been charged and can mistreat the battery and give false Low battery messages. AGM batteries are sensitive to overcharge, it may kill them...

Other cars have BMS too, so, it is not specific...

[Kev0607]

In a car with a Battery Management System (BMS), am I correct in thinking that its not as simple as just swapping the old battery with a new one?

The car needs to be told, via diagnostics, that it has a new battery.

[Clan]

Originally Posted by Kev0607

In a car with a Battery Management System (BMS), am I correct in thinking that its not as simple as just swapping the old battery with a new one?

The car needs to be told, via diagnostics, that it has a new battery.

No, just change it... it will relearn it's battery data