NHTSA Complaint #10448849 — 2003 VOLVO XC70

I WAS DRIVING MY 2003 VOLVO XC70 AT THE POSTED SPEED LIMIT (55MPH) WHEN THE DASHBOARD SUDDENLY WENT BLACK AND ALL OF THE GAUGES, INCLUDING SPEEDOMETER, TACHOMETER, GAS GAUGE, AND CLOCK STOPPED WORKING. EVERY WARNING LIGHT LIT UP. THE VOLVO DEALER ADMITTED THEY HAD SEEN THIS ISSUE BEFORE. THE COST TO REPLACE THE DIM WAS OVER $1400.00 AND I HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO PAY IT SINCE I WAS NOT GOING TO DRIVE MY CAR WITH NO SPEEDOMETER OR GAS GAUGE. THE DIM REPLACEMENT IS NOW ONLY WARRANTED FOR TWO YEARS, SO I MAY FIND MYSELF IN THE EXACT SAME BOAT IN THE FUTURE IF THE NEW DIM ALSO FAILS. RESEARCHING THIS ISSUE ONLINE, I FOUND THAT THIS WAS A KNOWN PROBLEM, PARTICULARLY FOR 2003 VOLVO MODELS. AFTER FINDING THE NHTSA WEBSITE, I ALSO FOUND THAT SOMEONE ELSE HAD RECENTLY REPORTED THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM AND ALSO NOTED THAT THE DIM FAILURE COULD IMPACT THE PROPER OPERATION OF THE AIRBAG SYSTEM. CLEARLY, THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE THAT IS AFFECTING MORE THAN JUST A FEW ISOLATED VOLVO OWNERS. VOLVO SHOULD ASSUME RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS PROBLEM, ISSUE A RECALL AND PAY FOR THESE REPAIRS. THE DIM MODULE IS A COMPUTER PART AND ITS FAILURE IS OBVIOUSLY NOT THE RESULT OF EXPECTED "WEAR AND TEAR." INSTEAD, IT APPEARS TO BE A DEFECTIVE PART THAT THE MANUFACTURER SHOULD REPLACE TO PREVENT ACCIDENTS THAT CAN BE CAUSED BY THE SUDDEN LOSS OF THE DASHBOARD SYSTEM AND POSSIBLE NEGATIVE EFFECT ON THE OPERATION OF THE AIRBAGS. PLEASE DO WHAT YOU CAN TO HAVE VOLVO ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM. THANK YOU. *TR