NHTSA Complaint #10131957 — 1999 VOLVO V70

THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULE IN MY VOLVO V70 FAILS WITHOUT WARNING. OFTEN AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS, THIS RESULTS IN A SUDDEN LOSS OF SPEED (ALMOST AS IF THE BRAKES WERE SUDDENLY APPLIED). THOUGH VOLVO'S OWNERS MANUAL INDICATES THIS CAN HAPPEN, AND RECOMMENDS RESTARTING THE CAR (UNDER THE SECTION ON THE ETS LIGHT), I AM CONVINCED THE REPEATED FAILURES CONSTITUTE A SAFETY HAZARD. WERE IT TO OCCUR WHEN CHANGING LANES OR MERGING, I FEAR THE SITUATION COULD BE QUITE BAD. ALTHOUGH VOLVO RECOMMENDS REPLACING THE ETM FOR $1000+, I AM RELUCTANT TO DO SO, NOT LEAST BECAUSE OTHERS WITH THE SAME PROBLEM HAVE SPENT THE MONEY TO REPLACE THE MODULE, AND THEN ENDED UP WITH THE SAME PROBLEM AGAIN. RECENTLY, THE INCIDENTS ARE OCCURRING AS OFTEN AS ONCE VERY 15 TO 30 MINUTES.*JB