NHTSA Complaint #10137309 — 2000 VOLVO V70

MY 2000 V70 VOLVO'S ETS SYSTEM BROKE DOWN THIS SUMMER, HAVING BEEN ON THE ROAD FOR APPROX. 5 HRS. I WAS TRAVELING HOME ON 95 FROM NY, & I WAS ON THE DC BELTWAY (495) WHEN THE INCIDENT OCCURRED. I WAS IN THE CENTER LANE, GOING WITH THE PACE OF TRAFFIC (OR A LITTLE SLOWER - I HAD MY 23-MONTH-OLD SON IN THE CAR WITH ME), WHEN THE CAR STARTED BUCKLING A LITTLE BIT. ABOUT .10 MILE LATER, THE CRUISE CONTROL WOULDN'T WORK, & I COULD NO LONGER ACCELERATE. I WAS QUICKLY DECELERATING FROM 60+ MPH DOWN TO 20. THE SHOULDERS WERE NOT AVAILABLE TO ME AS THERE WAS CONSTRUCTION ON THE SIDES, BUT I WAS FORTUNATE ENOUGH THAT THE CAR WOULD JUST GO FAST ENOUGH & TRAFFIC WAS JUST LIGHT ENOUGH THAT I COULD MOVE TO THE CLOSEST EXIT - ABOUT A .5 MILES FROM THE BREAKDOWN. MY CAR ONLY HAS 75K MILES - NEARLY BRAND NEW FOR A VOLVO - SO YOU CAN IMAGINE MY SHOCK WHEN I FOUND MYSELF BROKEN DOWN IN THE MIDDLE OF DC WITH A 5-YEAR-OLD CAR. A 107-MILE TOW BACK TO RICHMOND ($300), PLUS THE $1000 FOR THE FIX WHICH INCLUDED THE HEAVILY RECOMMENDED COMPUTER UPGRADE, & I AM STILL LEARY OF THE CAR'S FUTURE PERFORMANCE. (APPARENTLY THE DEALER KNOWS THAT THIS PROBLEM CAN HAPPEN AGAIN IF YOU DON'T UPGRADE THE COMPUTER SYSTEM). THIS SITUATION TURNED OUT TO BE A RELATIVELY SAFE ONE FOR MY FAMILY, BUT IT COULD HAVE EASILY TURNED DISASTROUS - IF NOT DEADLY. I COULD HAVE EASILY BEEN REAR-ENDED BY A FAST-MOVING VEHICLE ON THE BELTWAY SINCE SHOULDERS OF THE ROAD WERE NOT AN OPTION. CARS WERE WHIZZING PAST ME AT 70 MPH - I CANNOT BEAR TO IMAGINE WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF IMPACTED AT SUCH HIGH SPEEDS - ESPECIALLY WITH MY SON IN THE CAR. THIS ETS PROBLEM NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED IMMEDIATELY - ESPECIALLY SINCE SO MANY PARENTS BOUGHT VOLVOS TO TRANSPORT THEIR PRECIOUS BABIES BASED ON THEIR REPUTATION OF SAFETY. ALSO: THE CAR HAD NOT HAD ITS 60K SERVICE AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT (COMPLETED MID- AUGUST, AS WELL AS THE 75K SERVICE). WE ARE THE 3RD OWNER OF THE CAR. WE BOUGHT AT AUCTION IN PA. *JB