Bulletins


BulletinBulletin dateReplacement BulletinItem no.SummaryAdded
POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
RTJ-2132407/10/200910032425Volvo: the 5 speed automatic transmission, aw55-50/51, has a bolt on top that anchors the b4 band, which applies 3rd gear. if that bolt is removed, the band will be disengaged and 3rd gear will be inoperative. this includes c70 coupe and03/24/2010
POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - CONTROL MODULE (TCM, PCM)
US1676101/05/201110037893Ready06/07/2011
US1676101/05/201110037893Volvo: there is a software update. *rm06/07/2011
TJ-US1676105/25/2012TJ-16761-1.1310037893Volvo: there is a software update. *rm updated 4/11/2012. *kb updated 4/13/12. *pe updated 5/15/12. *pe updated 6/4/12. *pe06/07/2011
400207/07/200610016434Transmission control module (tcm) upgrades available to correct complaints/symptoms. *tt09/12/2005
POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE - DIFFERENTIAL UNIT
RTJ-2210312/23/200910033045Volvo: rear differential housing, leakage and resealing. oil leakage/moisture from the rear differential housing halves can be resolved by resealing the housing and replacing the seals. the rear differential itself does not normally need06/28/2010

Consumer Complaints


Fail datemilesoccurencesPurchase date
POWER TRAIN
01/01/200885000
 I own a 2002 volvo xc70 cross country. while driving, and especially during down shifts, the vehicle would lose its connection to the drive shaft, causing the engine to rev up and the vehicle to jerk as it grabbed back into gear. the jerking has consequently caused me to break my motor mounts. a local mechanic diagnosed that the vehicle needed a new transmission. the dealer agreed that this was the only solution. all software updates have been done. the manufacturer has not been contacted, as they are a chinese company. the vehicle has not been repaired. the failure mileage was around 85,000. the current mileage is 125,000. the vin was not available. catastrophic failure. not fair to the owner. manufacturer should correct this common, expensive problem.
03/14/2011188000
 Tl* the contact owns a 2002 volvo xc70. the contact stated while driving 40 mph the vehicle stalled between gears. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer for a diagnostic test and was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. the contact stated the rear view mirror was also defective due to anti glare separation which made it difficult to see and also made the vehicle unsafe to drive. the failure mileage was 188,000.
03/14/2011188000
 Tl- the contact owns a 2002 volvo xc70. the contact stated while driving 40 mph the vehicle stalled between gears. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer for a diagnostic test and was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. the contact stated the rear view mirror was also defective due to anti glare separation which made it difficult to see and also made the vehicle unsafe to drive. the failure mileage was 188,000. rvk
03/14/2011188000
 Tl-the contact owns a 2002 volvo xc70. the contact stated stated while driving 40 mph the vehicle stalls between gears. the contact took the vehicle vehicle to the dealer for a diagnostic test and the dealer stated the transmission needs to be replaced. the contact stated he rear view mirror was also defective due anti glare separation which makes it difficult to see out of the rear view mirror. the contact stated the vehicle was unsafe to drive. the failure mileage was 188,000. jo
POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
06/29/201177950
 Tl- the contact owns a 2002 volvo xc70 cross country. while driving, the contact stated that the vehicle would down shift, causing the vehicle to jerk. a local mechanic diagnosed that the vehicle needed a new transmission. the dealer nor manufacturer were contacted. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 77,950. the current mileage was 78,000. the vin was not available. rvk
06/29/201177950
 Tl- the contact owns a 2002 volvo xc70 cross country. while driving, the contact stated that the vehicle would down shift, causing the vehicle to jerk. a local mechanic diagnosed that the vehicle would need a new transmission. the dealer nor manufacturer were contacted. the failure was not remedied. the failure mileage was 77,950 and the current mileage was 78,000. the vin was not available. nw
02/03/201195000
 Failure of the transmission on the road
10/09/201070000
 70k miles on 2002 volvo xc70 when unexpected surging started. occurs when driving up hill or up a grade. this serious and concerning problem continues to occur, with or without setting cruise control. this vehicle has excellent maintenance history record.
08/16/2010143000
 2002 volvo cross country transmission problem. the vehicle has 143,000 and transmission is going bad. according to the mechanic this is a common problem. the transmission slips and jerks when gearing down. i was going through an intersection and the the transmission slipped and almost caused me to get hit. the mehcanic said that i will have to replace the valve body in the amount of $2300.
09/22/2009828851
 Slipping transmission while driving on straight aways and up hills on both of my volvo's purchased as certified pre-owned vehicle's. the first vehicle (2002 volvo s60 awd) was traded in but the second one (2002 volvo xc70 awd) was repaired - both after 2 years of ownership and with warranties that had just expired. the slipping transmission occurred constantly while driving and would cause the car to slam into gear when accelerating and propel the car forward once the transmission engaged. i took the volvo to the service shop and was told there wasn't an issue then when i brought it back again they explained that i would need a new transmission. when i took the xc 70 to a certified volvo transmission specialist (not the dealer) we tested the transmission fluid and the test came back as positively showing the existence of radiator fluid which had leaked into the transmission fluid. the volvo specialist explained to me that in recent years volvo had made a change to how the transmission fluid was cooled. as a direct result of this design change to awd vehicles (all awd's) the transmission fluid was cooled by flowing through a pipe directly attached to the radiator. over time the radiator fluid caused the cooling pipe to corrode and as a result radiator fluid was leaking into the transmission fluid causing the transmission to fail. besides rebuilding the transmission the radiator also required replacement because we had to fix the leak at the source or it would continue to happen. even though the repairs were made the problem could present itself again over time. it took only 80,000 for my volvo xc70's transmission to fail. this seems like a serious design flaw and according to the multiple transmission specialist i spoke with they are seeing this problem more and more with all awd volvo's from 2000 to present day models. *tr
01/21/2008800001
 Our 2002 volvo xc70 has a tendency to jerk ?violently? forward ?shift flare? and harsh shifting problems at low and high speeds without warning and has done so on several occasions while riding with our family; frightening everyone in the vehicle and potentially causing a serious accident. the frequency has increased over the past year to the point we are unable to operate the vehicle without serious risk of injury or accident. we were denied warranty service by a south atlanta volvo dealer (that has since gone out of business) and by volvo north america during the warranty period. there are literally thousands of internet postings with the same complaints. namely, there are several primary issues including but not limited to the ecu brain of the car malfunctioning, software malfunctions and tcm malfunctioning. the jerking is very freighting and could send one to the hospital with severe neck and nerve injury. we have contacted volvo north america, volvo worldwide and parent company ford motors. the vehicle had an extended warranty contract that was breached by an authorized dealer and by volvo north america. *tr
12/15/200771400110/21/2006
 Transmission on my 2002 volvo v70 xc started to exhibit shift flare and harsh shifting that gave control problems at low and high speeds. dealer downloaded new transmission software and inspected and cleaned the tcm (throttle control module). tcm was not replaced as dealer claimed it was not part of recall program. have driven the car for the last few weeks with no noticeable difference in shifting problems. contacted volvo north america's consumer support to file report this morning. visited several online forums concerning the issue and found thousands of posts regarding similar problems with cars using asin-warner aw55-50 gearbox. especially helpful were posts at volvo- forums.com and swedespeed.com. one post was from used volvo dealer complaining of the effect on his business in 2001-2003 volvo cars saying that the problem was worse than the etm recall issue. this is a serious problem effecting the safety of thousands of volvo drivers. volvo needs to correct the problem.*cn
05/16/200754900205/23/2005
 2002 volvo xc70 with transmission problems. customer states that the transmission is slipping, bucking, and jerking when shifting into lower gears. *kb the vehicle had a significant oil leak from the engine turbo oil return. the headlight and rear marker light would flicker when the consumer drove over bumpy roads *jb
12/04/2004280003007/01/2002
 There were transmission, acceleration, deceleration and drastic lurching problems that had been occurring for the past 14 months. *bf the lurching problem was not duplicated. the problem would occur in parking lots when the consumer foot was removed from the brake and prior to touching the accelerator. the stick shift would lock as well. *sc there was a re-occurring squeak in the steering. *jb