NHTSA Complaint #11317557 — 2009 VOLVO S80

THE SUBFRAME/ENGINE CRADLE HAS A LARGE ROT HOLE WHICH IS INCREASING IN SIZE AT A HIGH RATE. THE CAR IS ONLY A 2009 WITH LESS THAN 100K MILES ON IT (AND WAS MAINTAINED VERY WELL ITS WHOLE LIFE) BUT THIS STILL OCCURRED. I'VE MET A LOT OF PEOPLE WITH S80 V8S WHO HAVE THIS SAME ISSUE. IT SEEMS THAT THE DESIGN ON THE CAR IS FLAWED WHERE THE EXHAUST IS TOO CLOSE TO THE SUBFRAME, SO THE HEAT EVENTUALLY WEARS DOWN THE PAINT AND THEN RUST STARTS. THIS IS A MAJOR STRUCTURAL COMPONENT WHICH ALSO MAKES THE CAR VERY DANGEROUS TO DRIVE AT THE MOMENT. ADDITIONALLY, VOLVO HAS A 12-YEAR, UNLIMITED MILE CORROSION WARRANTY, YET THEY WON'T HONOR THIS. VOLVO FIRST SAID THE WARRANTY WAS ONLY GOOD TOWARD SHEET METAL. WHEN TOLD THAT THE SUBFRAME WAS MADE OF STAMPED SHEET METAL, THEY THEN SAID ONLY PAINTED COMPONENTS. WHEN TOLD THAT THE SUBFRAME IS PAINTED AND THE RUST WAS ACTUALLY CAUSED BY THE PAINT FAILING OFF FROM EXHAUST HEAT, THEY FINALLY JUST SAID 'NO'. THERE HAVE BEEN MUCH MORE MINOR ISSUES WITH CARS THAT HAVE CAUSED RECALLS. WITH THIS ISSUE BEING DANGEROUS AND COMMON, IT SIMPLY NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED. AS AN OWNER, I SHOULD NOT BE FORCED TO SPEND THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS AT THE VOLVO DEALER TO KEEP MYSELF SAFE AND CORRECT THE MISTAKE THEY MADE WHEN INITIALLY DESIGNING THE CAR. THE IMAGE PROVIDED IS FROM ABOUT A YEAR AGO. I PUT MY CAR ON THE LIFT YESTERDAY AND SAW THAT THE ROT HOLE IN THE SUBFRAME WAS NOTICEABLY LARGER. IN THE PHOTO, IF YOU ZOOM IN, YOU CAN SEE THAT THE RUST IS SPREADING BEHIND WHERE IT'S ALREADY VISIBLE. IN PERSON, YOU ARE ABLE TO TELL THAT THIS IS A VERY SERIOUS ISSUE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.