Volvo Review - Most unrealiable & most problematic car I ever owned

[Dolphin]

may i ask why u buy volvo in the first place? is it want to be out of the ordinary and trying to do something funny?

I bought it thinking it’s a safe car for the family. S60 was new then and Specs looks quite good on paper, but didn’t expect all these major failures and reliability issues, and all the rather painful experiences liaising with Volvo these two years. Not trying to do anything funny...

 

[Beepok]

I bought it thinking it’s a safe car for the family. S60 was new then and Specs looks quite good on paper, but didn’t expect all these major failures and reliability issues, and all the rather painful experiences liaising with Volvo these two years. Not trying to do anything funny...

hmmm, did u go all the way for safety and indent the automatic radar braking for pedestrian and cars? Volvo was one of the only manufacturer that time that can do this, if this feature has saved u couple of times over the years, I would say the car repaid itself already.

 

[Dolphin]

hmmm, did u go all the way for safety and indent the automatic radar braking for pedestrian and cars? Volvo was one of the only manufacturer that time that can do this, if this feature has saved u couple of times over the years, I would say the car repaid itself already.

That’s one of the safety feature that attracted us but no it didn’t really activate to save us in any situation as my Wife and I are basically safe Drivers. That feature is default in S60, hence no need to indent.

 

[Dolphin]

Next car can consider Japanese brand/made ? Feel and comfort are not there compared to conti but then is more reliable.

I owned Mazda, Nissan, Honda, Mitsubishi, Chevrolet cars before basically. Sedans & SUVs. Yes perhaps going back to Japanese is a much better choice... Lexus maybe next choice. Even my Chevrolet was totally problem free.

 

[trento]

Engine failure, clutch failure, gearbox failure sounds pretty reliable to you? LOL...

engine failure- u mention gaskets and oil leaks. perhaps not frequently checking oil levels led the leaks to become worse, leading to engine failure. i check my engine oil levels every few days. i know there's a leak so i check. engine still running great till today. the other alternative would be fixing the leak and not having to check of cos.

clutch failure- as mention, clutch will wear out. if u drive a manual car, at some point (depending on the abuse it gets) u also have to change the clutch. 85k mileage is reasonable for a clutch change. like brakes, clutch is a wear and tear item. i changed mine at 50k fyi.

gearbox failure- i believe yr car is a dual clutch dry gearbox? the part tat failed is the mechatronic unit as VW owners call it. again around 100k is somewhere there. I changed mine at 110k.

in short, nothing u experienced is out of the ordinary. my view is u didn't have the right mechs to advise u. U must understand for AD, they do things by the book and it's not always beneficial to the owner and worse of all, they charge an incredible premium. I've saved almost half the cost going to outside workshop and ordering parts myself.

bro, yr car is not less reliable than mine lol

 

[trento]

I owned Mazda, Nissan, Honda, Mitsubishi, Chevrolet cars before basically. Sedans & SUVs. Yes perhaps going back to Japanese is a much better choice... Lexus maybe next choice. Even my Chevrolet was totally problem free.

this i have to agree. if u just want to push the gear to D and drive with peace of mind, stick to the japs.

my relatives have driven their camry and civics to nearly 400k mileage in 10 years and only changed wear and tear items. even their normal autobox lasted that long and didn't even spoil upon scrap. im not kidding. when i told them the parts i changed, they all don't know what im talking about. This shows they really didn't change many things!

 

[Dolphin]

engine failure- u mention gaskets and oil leaks. perhaps not frequently checking oil levels led the leaks to become worse, leading to engine failure. i check my engine oil levels every few days. i know there's a leak so i check. engine still running great till today. the other alternative would be fixing the leak and not having to check of cos.

clutch failure- as mention, clutch will wear out. if u drive a manual car, at some point (depending on the abuse it gets) u also have to change the clutch. 85k mileage is reasonable for a clutch change. like brakes, clutch is a wear and tear item. i changed mine at 50k fyi.

gearbox failure- i believe yr car is a dual clutch dry gearbox? the part tat failed is the mechatronic unit as VW owners call it. again around 100k is somewhere there. I changed mine at 110k.

in short, nothing u experienced is out of the ordinary. my view is u didn't have the right mechs to advise u. U must understand for AD, they do things by the book and it's not always beneficial to the owner and worse of all, they charge an incredible premium. I've saved almost half the cost going to outside workshop and ordering parts myself.

bro, yr car is not less reliable than mine lol

Engine failure is due to pistons misfiring and also hitting and scratching on the engine block... and finally it failed. somehow it got so hot and was told “burns up” the engine oil in the engine to critical levels at one time...

Oil leaks is also another separate problem... sigh.

 

[trento]

This is usually the ignition coil, causing the misfire. Maybe workshop didn’t tell u replace soon enough. Engine failure is very rare. I know of friends with s60 n never heard of engine failure. Anyway my list is lot longer than yrs. and im still driving my alfa today!

Engine failure is due to pistons misfiring and also hitting and scratching on the engine block... and finally it failed. somehow it got so hot and was told “burns up” the engine oil in the engine to critical levels at one time...

Oil leaks is also another separate problem... sigh.

 

[Dolphin]

This is usually the ignition coil, causing the misfire. Maybe workshop didn’t tell u replace soon enough. Engine failure is very rare. I know of friends with s60 n never heard of engine failure. Anyway my list is lot longer than yrs. and im still driving my alfa today!

Well, you know. That’s the frustrating part. I sent in the car about 4 times over 6 months as I know something was wrong... but each time, they returned the car saying they checked and diagnostic tools show it’s okay. What else can I do except to continue to drive. Until one day, the whole car shook badly in the middle on a major road and then engine went dead and damaged. That’s just the engine. Then the clutch spoilt, and was changed, then the new clutch also had a leak few months later. Then after that gearbox has jerks and sounds, went in a few times, they couldn’t diagnose the problem, again saying diagostics tools showed everything is okay, they did all they could. Couldn’t spot the jerks Nor sounds. Then finally now after 3+ months, whole gearbox needs to be changed. See my frustrations?

 

[trento]

Yep. Been there too. Yr gearbox issues are normal timeframe. Only engine is really could have been prevented. Suggest u source for a good volvo workshop outside

Well, you know. That’s the frustrating part. I sent in the car about 4 times over 6 months as I know something was wrong... but each time, they returned the car saying they checked and diagnostic tools show it’s okay. What else can I do except to continue to drive. Until one day, the whole car shook badly in the middle on a major road and then engine went dead and damaged. That’s just the engine. Then the clutch spoilt, and was changed, then the new clutch also had a leak few months later. Then after that gearbox has jerks and sounds, went in a few times, they couldn’t diagnose the problem, again saying diagostics tools showed everything is okay, they did all they could. Couldn’t spot the jerks Nor sounds. Then finally now after 3+ months, whole gearbox needs to be changed. See my frustrations?

 

[spurman]

I took a 7yrs old volvo s80 b4. Drove for 2yrs.

Yes. Its a comfy ride...
Maintainece really more ex. For first 2 servicing done normal workshops. So jia lat. Air con kaputting also. Went to gary engineering to service and then all was good.

Maybe its a old car. So problems bound to have. Almost failed gearbox lor but that was lack of the oil. Lucky gary managed to save it. Or i would have sold off earlier liao.

 

[HMAN]

Speaking as a Volvo owner, a S60 T4, the car has been extremely unreliable. Nightmare driving it. Fully maintained by sole agent but yet all the following failures.

My car in the 4th year, had a major engine breakdown & needed replacement. Before that, there were cases of engine oil leaks, changes of gaskets etc.

After the engine was replaced, immediately, the clutch totally failed and needed total replacement.

And shortly after, the gearbox failed and needed total replacement, all within a short 1.5 years!

Basically, I went back to sole agent around 10 times and the longest that I have to leave the car there is around One to one and half months.

It was a nightmare, totally painful.

My patience has finally run out.

What petrol are you using? Did you ever modify the air intake system ?
Your case of shivering and engine killed is Engine piston crack or C which is mostly caused by pre-detonation( piston is traveling against fuel fire flame. ). for modern Engine, direct fuel injection, this hardly happened as air is compressed first and fuel shot to engine after after compression stage and spark. Chances of predetonation is low.

Above is not true for older fuel injection car that mixed air/fuel before compression stage.



Next time when in doubt, check with other pro workshop backup with evidence and ask smart questions to your dealer workshop to prove that they are right.

Engine pre-detonation can be heard, if you accelerate hard, suddenly you hear very quiet click click click (imagine sounds of shaking sand over a tin can ).

Slap your car to a dyno machine, the car mechanic are very sensitive to detonation sounds.

Sent from Google PIXEL C using GAGT

 

[Dolphin]

Yep. Been there too. Yr gearbox issues are normal timeframe. Only engine is really could have been prevented. Suggest u source for a good volvo workshop outside

I tend to disagree that gearbox has to be changed in this type of timeframe.

 

[Dolphin]

What petrol are you using? Did you ever modify the air intake system ?
Your case of shivering and engine killed is Engine piston crack or C which is mostly caused by pre-detonation( piston is traveling against fuel fire flame. ). for modern Engine, direct fuel injection, this hardly happened as air is compressed first and fuel shot to engine after after compression stage and spark. Chances of predetonation is low.

Above is not true for older fuel injection car that mixed air/fuel before compression stage.



Next time when in doubt, check with other pro workshop backup with evidence and ask smart questions to your dealer workshop to prove that they are right.

Engine pre-detonation can be heard, if you accelerate hard, suddenly you hear very quiet click click click (imagine sounds of shaking sand over a tin can ).

Slap your car to a dyno machine, the car mechanic are very sensitive to detonation sounds.

Sent from Google PIXEL C using GAGT

I pump Shell, no modifications whatsoever. I also don’t speed. Very normal family driving.

 

[HMAN]

I pump Shell, no modifications whatsoever. I also don’t speed. Very normal family driving.

Shell 95?98? Which one?

Sent from Google PIXEL C using GAGT

 

[Dolphin]

Shell 95?98? Which one?

Sent from Google PIXEL C using GAGT

Does it matter? Volvo specs say 95.

I pump both before.

 

[Beepok]

Shell 95?98? Which one?

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Don't boliao la....

 

[Beepok]

Change to a Lexus Mr dolphin, I'm driving one for the past 4 years and only replaced alternator once and change engine oil before. Never top up or change any other fluids the car is silky smooth.

 

[urban_closet]

S60 D2 driver here, into my 4th year currently. no major problems thus far, i am aware of the diesel battery problem. Of course the resale value bites, so i will wait until the right time to sell.

COE 78K here

 

[onegoal]

I see all volvos on the road all looking silky good. Maybe TS unlucky.