I have a 2015 V60. My car does not have a dip stick , but has the electronic monitoring. The problem here is that if you get a low oil warning in the dash, you have no way to tell if you are really low on oil or if you have a faulty monitor. A month ago the warning came up on the dash and then when I tried to run the measure oil process and it came up as "Not Available". Since the car was due for service I added some oil and took it in for service. Now just 1,200 miles past having the oil changed I am getting the warning again. The car is just past 50,000 miles. Any thoughts?

 

you need to have the car in for service asap. If you are lucky its a sensor or wiring issues but you'd need to measure the oil on the way out to know if you are running low (a dealer may have a precedure to measure manually..). Any leaks or signs of burning oil?

 

Car is going in tomorrow. The car is kept in a clean garage and I have seen no sign of an oil leak. I am very hesitant to add oil as too much oil can also be bad. I have run the motor and listened to it and it gives no indication that it is low on oil. I will provide an update when I know more.

 

I took the car in at the end of October and they said that they did a software update and that the problem was fixed. Now approximately 1,500 miles later I am getting the same message. I get a warning the the oil is 1 ltr. low. In addition when I try to do the oil level check process it comes back and says that function is not available. I dropped the car off today and got a loaner. They said that they were going to have to "open a case with Volvo" and may have the car for a few days. I am not feeling good about this. What I would really like them to do is install a dip stick.

 

As a dealer, I have seen this on several newer models. What I have noticed is that the oil does not have to be a full quart low, even half of that will trigger the low oil signal.

If the low warning comes on, then the sensor is signaling something. If a new sensor gives you the same warning after 1500 miles, then I would recommend adding 1/2 quart and see if that turns off the warning.

 

Tony,
Thanks for your input. What you suggest is logical, but my concern is that the oil really is not low. Last time it happened they told me I was getting a false reading. They said that they had some way to verify the oil level. The other issue is that the oil measurement function does not work when I am getting this warning. The dealer called late this evening and said that they had performed a couple service items from service bulletins. Should find out more when I pick it up tomorrow. Will let you know what they say.

 

The oil level sensor is a pretty simple device. After replacing the unit you are still getting the same problem and I would bet that after 1500 miles, you are down some amount of oil. Thus, the warning..

I have no idea how they measured the oil absent the electronic reading since those engines don't have a dipstick tube like some Mercedes do where you can do a verified reading

 

You know I also have no idea how they measured the oil level last time I took it in. I think I got the impression that they did it electronically and I assumed that they could do that by connecting it to some type of computer monitor.

When I picked the car up this time they said that they performed TJ 30087 replacing the oil trap. They were never able to explain to me why the measure oil level function would not work when I was getting the oil low warning message. The warning is now gone and the oil measurement function is working. While I was there they also performed service action S29842 replacing the spark plugs. Lets hope this issue is behind me, but for some reason I don't have a lot of confidence that is going to be the case.

 

Wow definitely a car that's going to need an extended warranty. I'd swear they're intentionally making their cars hard to fix so that they all end up in the junkyard at 60k miles

 

There's a way to accurately measure oil level on drive-e engines - using VIDA software at volvo dealer.
Also, there's an oil dipstick hole in front of the engine, plugged with a black round plug. It's possible to make your own dipstick and mark it with MAX when you know the level is correct, after dealer oil change for instance. This makes checking oil somewhat of a hassle but sure beats going to the dealer each time.

 

It's painful but when I wanted to know how low the low reading on my dipstick on my XC60 really was I drained the oil into a graduated container and did a manual measurement before putting in fresh. In your case I would make sure the container is clean and then just put it right back into the engine plus any additional needed to bring things back to full. I wouldn't do it regularly but in this case doing it once would let you know if the sensor is lying, if the 1/2 quart low estimate is right, or if something worse is happening.

 

I believe that this is yet another thread where the simple has become the complex.

The owner was between 1200 and then 1500 miles past the oil change and I would venture out that he was about 1/2 quart low. That's all that it was.

 

I bought a used 2013 S60. It has an oil dipstick, but no spare tire. What asshat at Volvo is running this s**t show??

 

other car models are using run flats or offer tow insurance in place of lugging a spare. Acura is one that comes to mine. Easy remedy is to go to a yard and buy a donut out of an another Volvo model with the same tire circumference (most volvo sedans use the same bolt/center hub).

 

As a dealer, when we bring cars through for reconditioning and maintenance, we typically find the spare tire flat. So Johnny Hamm, your observation of no spare is exactly what we find in the other cars (a flat spare is useless) and you end up carrying around 40 lbs of dead weight for nothing.

A spare tire is a throwback to the days when tires would blow out. You'd be better off to carry a spare something else since a flat tire is statistically down on the list of what will disable a care these days.

 

I've added the spare tire and under floor kit to my 2013 S60. I also carry a portable air compressor in trunk. So, while I don't check my spare regularly, I can when needed, inflate it.

A spare tire may be a throw back, but I'm old school, and appreciate the security. Haven't had a flat in over a decade though.

 

My 2016 XC60 with 62,000 miles just suffered a catastrophic engine failure last week. Dealer indicated "there is a loud knocking sound from internal to engine. No codes stored. Oil Level ok. No external leaks. Checked oil pressure at sensor port .4MPA at idle with cold engine. Noise louder from bottom end of engine than cylinder head noise coming from connecting rod bearing or wrist pin." They offered me a used engine with 59K for $11,890. To which I said no thank you. I have no gaps in oil changes. I am the only owner and have receipts for all the oil changes and other maintenance I have done on the vehicle. It has never been serviced at an authorized Volvo dealer. No extended warranty because I originally leased the car for 4 years (why would I buy a 5 year 50,000 mile extended warranty on a 4 year lease) and then bought it at end of lease (big mistake). Any help would be greatly appreciated as I do not know what to do at this juncture as I still owe a lot of money on this car. Certainly way more than it's worth with a non working motor.

 

Not sure why you added this to an unrelated thread - you can start a new thread if you like but there's not many options here. Unless you have an extended warranty, you will have to pay for the repairs. You are well past the factory warranty so I would not expect much if any good will from the dealer or factory. Based on what you've stated, the dealer assessed this as a rod knock - meaning the bearing between the connecting rod and piston or crack has failed, which to repair requires the engine to be removed, torn down and rebuilt. They've offered a more cost effective solution which is to remove/replace the engine with a used one. To get an idea of the cost of a used engine, you can search car-part.com to see what yards are asking. As to the codes/oil levels etc - parts do fail even when the owner follows all the recommended maintence recommendations. Its a low percentage but does happen so consider this just bad luck. I suppose you could save some $$ by sourcing your own engine or having an independent shop do the work but its still going to be a costly repair.

 

Something similar just happened to us with our 2016 XC. Catastrophic failure due to knocking rods. Just changed oil 4K miles ago and somehow it ran completely dry without any warning lights coming on. Did you talk to Volvo about your situation? It’s out of warranty but I’m hoping Volvo will do something for us because this seems really bad. Car was regularly serviced and well taken care of. How could oil disappear without any warnings? Mechanics looked at it and there are no leaks.

 

I am so sorry to hear this. It sounds identical to what happened to my car. I had a Volvo dealership determine what was wrong with it and what it would cost to get it back running. They called it a total engine failure. They noted the following on the diagnostic report "loud knocking noise from internal to engine, no codes stored, oil level ok, no external leaks. checked oil level @ sensor port. .4MPA at idle with cold engine noise louder from bottom end of engine than cylinder head. noise coming from connecting rod bearing or wrist pin." I called and emailed Volvo corporate with the estimate to repair the car and eventually after months of persistence they covered $9390 toward installing a Volvo Remanufactured Engine and the related hardware into my 2016 Volvo XC60. I supplied proof of all the oil changes (I ever missed one) and other maintenance I performed on the car (front and rear brakes). I was the only owner. Everything remained intact including the odometer after the remanufactured engine was installed. It was what they called a "remove and replace" type of repair. It came with a lifetime warranty and my out of pocket cost was a $2500.00 deductible. The lifetime warranty applied during my ownership of the vehicle and was not transferable. Once it was repaired we immediately traded it in for a new car, NOT a Volvo.
My advice to you is to be persistent. It took approx 4 months for me to get them to cover it. The email I used was volvo1@mailac.custhelp.com. The phone number I called was 800 550 5658. You can also try to get a Volvo dealership to help you but honestly mine wasn't tremendously helpful. I think Volvo thought they could continue to delay giving me an answer and I would just go away but I didn't and they relented. Good luck to you. I'm happy to help you.