NHTSA Complaint #10140053 — 2000 VOLVO S80

IN JULY 2005, I NOTICED THE CAR SURGING, PARTICULARLY AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. IT CUT OFF, GIVING A MESSAGE OF "REDUCED PERFORMANCE" BUT NO "CHECK ENGINE" MESSAGE. THE "REDUCED PERFORMANCE" MESSAGE IS NOT LISTED IN THE OWNER'S MANUAL. I WAS ABLE TO DRIVE THE CAR AT ABOUT 5 MPH TO A TURNOFF POINT. I CUT THE CAR OFF TO CONSULT THE OWNER'S MANUAL AND IT RESTARTED WITHOUT A PROBLEM. I ATTRIBUTED THE PROBLEM TO PERHAPS FAULTY GASOLINE. ON OCT. 9, THE CAR ABRUPTLY CUT OFF ON THE INTERSTATE, GIVING THE SAME WARNING MESSAGE BUT THIS TIME ALSO DISPLAYING A "CHECK ENGINE" LIGHT. FORTUNATELY I WAS ABLE TO SAFELY COAST ACROSS TWO LANES OF TRAFFIC TO THE EMERGENCY LANE. WHEN I TOOK THE CAR IN FOR DIAGNOSTICS (TO AN INDEPENDENT DEALER), HE SAID THAT THE THROTTLE BODY WAS BAD AND DIRECTED ME TO SEVERAL WEB SITES THAT DISCUSSED THE PROBLEM AND THE CLASS-ACTION LAWSUIT IN CALIFORNIA. ON OCT. 17, "JOHN" WITH VOLVO NORTH AMERICA'S CUSTOMER CARE HOTLINE SAID THAT THE PROBLEM WAS PROBABLY NOT COVERED UNDER MY EXTENDED WARRANTY BECAUSE OF THE CAR'S AGE. I POINTED OUT THAT IT HAS FEWER THAN 60,000 MILES. I ASKED HIM ABOUT A RECALL AND HE TOLD ME ABOUT THE PENDING INVESTIGATION BY THE NHTSA. I ALSO ASKED HIM FOR NHTSA'S TELEPHONE NUMBER, WHICH HE GAVE ME. I HAVE NOT TAKEN THE CAR TO MY LOCAL DEALER YET. I AM APPALLED THAT A COMPANY THAT PRIDES ITSELF ON SAFETY WOULD ALLOW PEOPLE TO DRIVE THEIR VEHICLES KNOWING THAT THE CARS MIGHT CUT OFF AT ANY TIME. *JB