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Volvo XC90 T8 complete engine failureViews : 7138 Replies : 42Users Viewing This Thread : |
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May 19th, 2022, 15:55 | #1 |
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Volvo XC90 T8 complete engine failure
So, my tale of woe is as follows.....
I have had my XC90 T8 from new, first as a company car, then bought from the lease company at 3 years and 85k miles old. I then ran it successfully for another 3 years whilst protected by an aftermarket warranty. When this warranty ran out in March 2022 I had some soul searching as to whether i kept the car, but figured that it was running well and I might as well keep it. The mileage was about 130k and I could not find any warranty company which would insure it either because it was a hybrid, or because of the mileage - or both. So I decided to keep it and run it without a warranty - I mean what is the worst that could happen? A couple of weeks back it started making an odd high pitched metallic whine from the top of the engine, or the auxiliary belt area. It was particularly noticeable just as the engine was turning off, so with the hybrid turning the engine on and off with some regularity, I heard it just cutting through the wind noise and so investigated further. That was the Monday morning. By the Wednesday I had the master tech at my local dealers put their head under the bonnet and he said "I really don't like the sound of that". It was back with the dealers and me in a courtesy car the next day. They started the strip down..... I thought maybe a big bill, a supercharger, or a turbo maybe? Maybe a couple of grand? So, what has actually happened is that the cams have eaten through their bearings, and into the bearing journals. It has also damaged the head. We caught it really quickly (or so I thought) and the engine is not full of swarf, but basically the head, cams and bearings are all scrap. Whilst the master tech was diagnosing, the noise was getting a lot worse very very quickly. So I cannot just rebuild it and send it to auction as the engine would be obviously shot. We still do not know if they have simply worn out, or whether there is another as yet undiagnosed issue with oil starvation. The car has done most of it's life on the motorway, and for the last 3 years at least this has been at a constant 70mph doing the same commute. I have even been managing the use of the battery so that the engine does not constantly switch on and off on my daily commute. It has a full complete Volvo Service History. It has never missed an oil change. So now my options are as follows: Send it to a breakers, getting about 9k for it (which would also break my heart) Put on a second hand head and new oil pump + belts, bolts etc.. - £7k cost As above but with a new head - £8.4k cost Stick a new Volvo engine in it - £9.3k cost Stick a 2nd hand engine in it - £10k (go figure, Volvo engine from Sweden is £500 quid cheaper than a secondhand engine from a UK breakers) After a lot of soul searching and calculating I have decided that the best thing to do is a new engine. Neither the 2nd hand head rebuild or the new head rebuild would give an re-assurance and the replacement engine looks remarkably good value by comparison. The car is sitting looking very lonely in the dealers yard and awaits an engine from Sweden which looks like being 4-6 weeks for delivery. As I understand it, Volvo UK have offered very little in the way of goodwill, so I don't expect much off that bill. That said my main contact has been off for a week so I need to catch up with him. During this process I had a good chat with a number of independents. It would appear that this problem is not unheard of, and also that these engines tend to eat balance shafts, which then self destruct, swarfing up the inside of the engine and writing it off. I have heard of another T8 with exactly the same issue as mine (it had a warranty). As ever Volvo Riverside Doncaster have been superb and brilliantly helpful, but there is not a massive amount they can do to soften the financial blow - although they have helped as much as they can. So there I am. There is a big gap in the drive where my car should be and once it is fixed and back (maybe mid June if I am lucky?) I have to decide what to do. Sell and get a Polestar 2 through work, or keep driving it and worrying about another big bill. I think I might be going for the Polestar 2. Oh and this engine is basically the same in all SPA cars. Mine is one of the earlier SPA cars and with a reasonably high mileage. Either I am just unlucky, or there are going to be a lot of very expensive failures as these cars age. Happy days.
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Currently:- MY16 XC90 T8 Momentum, Magic Blue 176k miles. MY17 V60 T4 Power Blue. Previously:- 1997 V70 T5 exPolice; 2005 V50 2.0D; 2013 XC70 D5 |
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May 19th, 2022, 16:19 | #2 |
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Sorry for your predicament, and if you've got an engine on route, my thoughts are redundant, but if one of the considerations is getting rid of it, would spending the least amount on it, to get it sold on in working condition, not have been the most prudent route, or was there a consideration that second-hand head wouldn't have even got it running ?
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May 19th, 2022, 16:25 | #3 |
The Brit Brick
Last Online: Aug 13th, 2023 09:39
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Location: Warwickshire
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Ouch!
Theres a slim chance of goodwill if it has a full dealer history, although at that age and mileage the best you're liable to receive is not a lot. Hopenit gets sorted with the minimum of expense and grief.
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2005 C70 2.4T Collection convertible. 40,000 mile sunny day toy. |
May 19th, 2022, 16:35 | #4 | |
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Quote:
I would be uncomfortable selling as a private sale with any of the options other than the new engine. Also if I spent 7k on a secondhand head and it packed up 1 week later before I got it moved on then I would have no comeback, be 7k down and back to square one. And as someone else said there is nothing for sale at the moment. Even if I ordered the Polestar tomorrow it would be October before I get it.....
__________________
Currently:- MY16 XC90 T8 Momentum, Magic Blue 176k miles. MY17 V60 T4 Power Blue. Previously:- 1997 V70 T5 exPolice; 2005 V50 2.0D; 2013 XC70 D5 |
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May 19th, 2022, 17:08 | #5 |
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Last Online: Yesterday 15:00
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I think I'd do the same as you.
It's annoying and frustrating, but much like the reason you bought the car from the lease company, you know the car, you know it's foibles. I'd be pressing Volvo for Goodwill Gesture of course. |
May 19th, 2022, 17:45 | #6 |
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All things considered, I think the new engine option is the best solution.
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MY17 XC90 D5 Powerpulse Momentum: SENSUS, Osmium Grey, Blond, Walnut, Xenium, BLIS + CTA & RCM, Winter Plus, Fuel-fired Heater, Heated Rear Seats, Power Extensions, Tinted Windows Coming soon: XC60 Ultimate Recharge MY24 |
May 19th, 2022, 18:38 | #7 |
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Maybe I might crowd fund it......😀
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Currently:- MY16 XC90 T8 Momentum, Magic Blue 176k miles. MY17 V60 T4 Power Blue. Previously:- 1997 V70 T5 exPolice; 2005 V50 2.0D; 2013 XC70 D5 |
May 19th, 2022, 19:59 | #8 | |
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Quote:
It’s unfortunate but I totally agree with what you are doing |
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May 19th, 2022, 21:37 | #9 |
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Last Online: May 1st, 2024 06:08
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Agreed..
New engine for sure. The rest of the car is still good I assume, and even if your car was a1 (with a good engine), adding £10k to it on a trade in won't get much.. so a refreshed t8 seems tempting!
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'19 V60 D4 Ins Pro 160k - '04 Civic type R - '19 Mazda 2 115 |
May 19th, 2022, 16:26 | #10 | |
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