XC90 transmittion of engine vibration through steering wheel

[Jim314]

Originally Posted by Kasia29

Jim - my car is the 6 cylinder. Vibration only occurs at idle and the vibration drone is loud enough where husband and I both hear, along with anyone else that gets in the car and we tell them to listen for the drone sound. If the car was bought used and was a few years old I would be more lenient.

I am not sure if Volvo has changed a design or why some do it and some do not - but I strongly disagree with the response that this is considered normal when the car did not do this for first 4,000 miles (3 months or so).


In the states, Lemom Law deals with the manufacturer directly, when the car is less than one years old and multiple attempts by the dealer do not fix the issue. You either get a new car or your money back (minus taxes which are pretty hefty of over $3K) --- I am sure it is not an easy process but worth looking into.

I hope the dealer can fix the noise and vibration.

If the engine is generating excess vibration, then some disgnostic codes would presumably be set. Has the dealer scanned for codes?

The Volvo 3.2L is an inline 6-cyl (Volvo short inline six or si6) which has special features which make it short enough to fit transversely in the XC90 and the new V70 and XC70. A straight-6 is nearly perfectly balanced and so almost completely vibration free even at idle. But as time has progressed since the introduction of the Volvo si6 in about 2007, Volvo has changed the tuning to achieve better fuel economy and more power. I suppose it is possibly that this has had the unwanted side effect of increasing engine vibration at idle, but I doubt that Volvo would plan to have these vehicles shake at idle.

I think, but I'm not sure, that Volvo uses vacuum controlled engine mounts even with the 3.2L I6. As I understand it the vacuum mounts are only on two of the mounts and the vacuum is controlled to make the mounts softer at idle and stiffer as the engine is revved. I would wonder if the control for these two mounts is not working or one of the mounts has failed.

When my V70 was still under warranty a vibration appeared. It was barely detectable at idle or at low speed on level ground, but definitely detectable when going up a steep hill at low speed. It turned out that the catalytic converter had failed internally. The mechanic detected this by tapping on it with a mallet. The dealer replaced the catcon under warranty, even though there was a scrape across the underside or the vehicle indicating that the vehicle had been driven over a hard object. Neither me nor my wife remembered doing this.

[Rawas]

Originally Posted by Kasia29

The frustrating part is that the car did not do this for the first 2-3 months while we had it. Last month or two we have noticed it and hear it and feel it. Volvo Corporate (USA) claims this is normal. Of course the manufacturer will try to deny any issues so they do not have to fix anything. I wonder if it is a design flaw - however if all cars did this wouldn't this get a lot more complaints and noise, I would think so.

Going to compare with a friend's 2008 XC90 and see if the car does it too - same engine and car as mine. If it doesn't then it shows that not all cars do this - had a loaner from a dealer that did do it too, a lot less and after driving car for 2 hours the noise went away.

May consider taking legal action to get the car bought back - don't want another XC90 as it can have the same issue. Also, will the noise keep getting louder and how will that affect my resale value down the road plus I am so upset and frustrated by this experience and the lack of dealer and Volvo fixing this issue.

To save you the hassle of borrowing your friend's car, mine is an 2008 3.2, I did not experience any vibration neither at idle nor at full power. Tow years of ownership.

[chf]

Same problem here with a 56reg D5 ... Vibrations are atheir worst level when reverse gear is engaged. It is so bad that the satnav screen is shaking !!! Does anybody has an idea of what a dealer would charge for fixing this ? Alternatively can anyone recommend a trusty independent in the midlands, warwickshire, Leicestershire or near derby ?

Many thanks

[bigtree]

Could possibly be the front vacuum engine mount/pad,

Have a look here: http://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showth...=142469&page=2

1 available on ebay here: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1606921891...84.m1438.l2649

Straightforward to do,

• Remove splashguard
• take the load of the engine with a jack, with a 2x4 piece of wood to spread the load
• remove vacuum pipe
• remove bottom bolt
• remove top bolts (3 into engine block) and nut onto top of mount
• fit new pad (jack the engine up a little to align holes.)
• Replace splash guard

as for independents, CP motors are in tamworth, not used them myself though http://cpmotors-volvospares.co.uk/

[alexander1989]

Originally Posted by danny 17

xc90s suffer from various vibration problems, the engine pads is mainly noticable when stood still with the engine running, this is because the engine pads are controlled by a vacumm to either harden or soften the engine pads to compensate for the engine vibrations which take place, the others are the transfer sleeve which transmits drive the angel gear, the splines wear on the inside resulting in a loss of rwd and possiably vibrations as the splines try to grip but then loose grip when under acceleration, the others are a incorrect balanced propshaft, i have seen a few of these in my 7 years with volvo but there not all that common but its still a possiablilty. this would give a vibration through the floor plan etc.. alos rear wheels inbalanced would also cause bad vibrations through the florr plan etc.. hope this help

Hi!
I test drove a few D5 Volvo XC90 (all 2004-2014) and they all exhibit slight vibration on the steering wheel which is the strongest during idling.
Is it normal behaviour for D5 engine or engine mounts could loose their property with aging and I can expect it to disappear when engine mounts are replaced?

[gmonag]

The D5 does produce some vibration at idle, which is why the XC90 is fitted with the vacuum mounts. They soften when <1500rpm and harden during normal driving.
Perhaps you are just sensing the normal idle vibration if they all are the same.

[SwissXC90]

Originally Posted by alexander1989

Is it normal behaviour for D5 engine or engine mounts could loose their property with aging ...

Absolutely.
New engine mounts always work better.