I have a 2012 S60 T5 with 47,780 miles on it. I've regularly maintained it through the Volvo dealer and it's been a great car. Until Saturday. While driving on the freeway, it shivered (I'm not sure how else to describe it) and the check engine light started flashing. The car began to vibrate when I pressed on the accelerator and it sounded different. It was a subtle difference, but I know my car. It also took a lot to accelerate. When we got off the freeway and were idling at a red light, white smoke started coming out of the tailpipes. We stopped at the Volvo dealer (where I thought there was a service center), but of course they moved up the road a mile. So we limped the car over there (by now it's harder to get it to accelerate) only to find out they no longer service Volvo. We called a tow truck to take it to the nearest Volvo service center, because now the car won't start - it will turn over, but not catch. And it smells horribly gassy. The tow truck driver pumped the gas several times and got it started, but there was a lot of white smelly smoke from the tailpipes.

The service advisor told me today that the tech said they could replace the fuel injector pump at $2K, but it wouldn't likely fix the issue. They tested the pressure, and there was little to no PSI, and that it would be $4K to get in there and fix whatever was causing that issue, but they didn't feel that would fix it, either. Ultimately they said the only sure fix was a new engine, at a minimum of $10K.

When I asked them what could have caused this, they had nothing to offer. I'm at a loss as to what to do with the car; I don't want to fix it and keep it, because I will never feel comfortable driving it again, and frankly it's not worth $10K so replacing the engine is out. Mostly I just want to know if anyone has any ideas what might have gone wrong - I've never had a problem with this car until Saturday.

 

I'm not sure how the dialog went from low fuel pressure to "it needs a new engine". Causes for no/low fuel pressure can be 1) a faulty fuel pressure sensor 2) a faulty fuel pump 3) something clogging the fuel delivery (ie frozen fuel line in the winter or something is blocking the fuel pick up in the tank. 4) a bad relay or wiring issue going to the pump limiting the current or voltage at the pump. The tech can check for raw fuel pressure from the pump or test for metered fuel pressure at the injector rail. Note that a new fuel pump (genuine Volvo) goes for about $325 and they need to access the top of the fuel tank so there's probably another $300-500 in labor should it be a failed pump. However, there was a fuel pump recall for select 2012 Volvo S60s so you should call a Volvo dealer with your VIN handy to see if the recall applies to your car.

If you have smoke coming out of the tailpipe, it can either be oil (rings/valve seals, head gasket, cracked block or head) or coolant (head gasket, cracked head). The tech would need to test for HCs in the coolant or check for oil/water mixing in either the oil or the coolant reservoir. If it turns out to be a blown head gasket, the repair may run in the 1500 range, if its a cracked head, you'd need to shop for a replacement head or a new head and that can add another $2K. Finally, they'd need to test for compression to make sure the bottom end doesn't have ring or valve damage. Only if they determine the car needs a new long block would you hit the $10K number, at which point it would make sense to consider swapping in a low mileage used engine. I'd guess that a used engine with under 100K would go for about $1500 and then you'd need to get a labor estimate. Here I'd expect about 10 hours (at 120 an hour) plus incidentals so worst case you'd be back on the road for $4000.

I'd say your next step is to find a qualified Volvo shop to sort our the problem. A bad fuel pump wouldn't cause the engine to smoke - it would just feel like its running out of gas, thus the other tests would be in order.

 

 

by pressure test, did they say a compression test? a compression test is where they put a pressure gauge on a spark plug hole then crank the engine to see how much pressure the piston can generate on the compression stroke. A T5 should show about 160 PSI across all five cylinders (maybe less if the engine is cold). When you have a blown head gasket, usually there's adjacent cylinders with low pressure but not necessarily all five. If you have low or no compression in all five cylinders, a common cause is the timing belt went and you bent all the exhaust valves. Your mechanic should know to inspect the timing belt if he sees all zeros. If you fail a compression test, the head needs to come off the block regardless if its bent valves or a blown gasket. Replacing fuel injectors is wrong. They just snap into the cylinder head - and they typically don't fail all at once so I'm guessing he was referring to replacing the fuel pump but again you wouldn't get smoke and any other tests would be normal. There's definitely a communications issue going on here - you may be better off finding a different mechanic. Volvos are not very different from any other car, particularly other euro cars. If they need 20 hours just to pull the head off the car, then they are either not quoting you book rates or don't have much experience with european cars. If they ran a set of inobtrusive tests like a raw fuel pressure test, a compression test, an HC test (for hydrocarbons in the coolant) or an inspection, they should be able to provide the detailed results. Most shops will quote a 1 hour or 1.5 hour diagnostic fee if they need to run specific tests which can tell them what the likely cause is. That's a whole lot cheaper than suggesting they won't know what's going on until they pull the head. While its true that they can't tell if you have a blown head gasket or a cracked head or piston ring damage without pulling the head - they would be able to say there's no compression in cylinders 2 and 3 or they used an inspection cam and could see a bent valve... My two cents is that if the problem appears as serious as needing $5000 worth of repairs, find a shop with the experience and tools to do it right.

 

 

Repair costs these days are insane! I essentially junked my '03 V70T a couple of years ago when #3 came up zero and repair costs exceeded the value of the car (150K miles) Granted cars have changed - my 2015 V60 T5 gets twice the power on half the fuel compared to my 1960 Healey 3000 but at what cost? (I had a leaking Welch plug on the Healey -the plug was in the back of the head, about an inch from the firewall - pulled the head myself and, while it was off, took it to an automotive machine shop and had the valves ground then bolted it back on - total cost as I recall? ~ $100)

 

I agree that 20 hours to pull a head is out of line. Time to get another opinion.

I wonder what happened to this persons car because those are low miles for such a failure.

On my 16 V60 with a 2.5 the maintenance schedule for the timing belt is at 120,000 miles.

Hm? My recent purchase is a 2016 V60 2.5 and during my shopping, looking at other car manufacturers, one of my question was "does this car have a timing chain" I didn't want to go back to a belt. I could swear I asked the Volvo sales guy the same question and he said chain. Apparently it is a belt. Not exactly thrilled but I only have 20,000 on the car, I only drive about 7,000 a year so I have a few years to go. But I knew that my other Volvo's had belts and I could swear that the guy said a 2016 V60 2.5 has a chain. Researching I see "Volvo V60 3.0L 90 Engine VIN Character 2016, Timing Chain Kit" so I guess the sales guy was wrong. Errrr!!

https://volvornt.harte-hanks.com/man...chedule-v1.pdf

 

The 3.2L six (e.g. 2008-10 V70) had a chain driven cam.

 

Thanks.

On a 2012 a fix will probably be less than junking the car. Seems there isn't a consensus yet on what happened.


In my recent shopping spree for a car, my anecdotal evidence is that car manufacturers are again embracing chains. I know you lose some MPG, they may be a bit nosier but on an interference engine a belt failure is a BIG deal. When my 95 Subbie non interference broke a belt it was a tow home, one and a half hours of work (inc. cleaning up) and away I went.

Not to say that chains don't have their issues but you usually have some heads up about such issues.

So the next time the V60 needs a new belt will be years down the road and by then, I will have grown lazy enough to pay someone to do it.

 

They should do a cylinder leakdown test to determine the source of the lost compression without having to pull the head. But in any possible case, the repair is expensive.

 

Hi!
My Volvo is S60 2012 T5 118.000 miles.
I bought this car in December 2018 (95.000 miles) and It works fine until now. I did regular maintenance (oil and break).
Last week was changed oil and filter in a shop.

My issue started yesterday.
I was driving and suddenly my car broked down. I had to tow it to my house.
Today, I can start it but I don't feel comfortable drive until to the garage.

I did a short video were showing up white smoke and leaking something like oil from exhaustion.
My issue looks like with this thread



Any idea of the issue size?
Does anyone know what happens?

I live in NJ/Elizabeth and I am looking for a garage to fix it.

Thanks.

 

Thomas Miller <etimer@gmail.com>

4:10 PM (1 hour ago)

to Volvo












I'm going to guess you may have a head gasket issue. To me that would be a little bit unusual at such low mileage but it could happen??. Yep, white smoke and spitting liquid might mean it has happened. Did the car overheat?

Have you checked the coolant reservoir to see if some has gone missing? What does that oil look like on the dipstick, any milky looking stuff?

Turbo seals maybe but that wouldn't' be my first guess.


Hope I'm wrong on the head gasket.

 

No overheat!. I did not receive any alert in the dashboard. Suddenly The car was losing power.

Yep! I checked the coolant reservoir after some thread that I read here. 2 or 3 months ago a put some coolant cause I receive an alert message in the dashboard, but nothing too much to fill for maximum. Now, after issue, I notice that coolant was to the minimum level recommended.
I do not know if It is regular to down a minimum in 2 or 3 months or it was cause of the issue.

Head Gasket!? Pray for me. I will need!
I am a student English Learner living in NJ and I do not any idea of how much will cost it.
On monday I will tow the car to the garage (Meineke). at that condition, I worry to drive until there (6 miles away from my house)
Thank you. I appreciated your clue.

 

I almost didn't buy my 2016 V60 because it has a belt. Yes chains have service needs but those needs are far less than the need to replace a belt. You don't replace a belt, it breaks and bye - bye engine.

That also beings me back to the question of interference engines. I had a belt break on an old non-interference Subaru. I knew it was a non-interference engine, I knew miles were high on the belt. Belt broke and nothing happened except a car stuck on the side of the road.

All this stuff is so they can eek out a few more MPG.

 

Hi Everyone!
I got my Volvo fixed.
I spent 1000.00

Issues listed in the attachment:




Thanks @urdrwho !

 

Glad you're up and running!

 

I had a similar experience to the original poster and now I am being told that I need a new engine to the tune of $8K.

 

Likely a misfire. Maybe worn spark plugs or a bad coil.

 

Hello, I'm having problems with my 2012 s60 81K miles cant be repaired. What is engine # ? I'm trying fight Volvo on this, I think they had a bad batch of eniges

 

This is in regards to a vehicle I purchased on March 30, 2021. It is a 2012 Volvo S60 T5 VIN #YV16622FS4C2056728. When I purchased the car it had 99,489 miles on the odometer and when the vehicle became an issue it was at 104,409 miles on the odometer. I purchased it on Craigslist from a physician in Maine. On December 1, 2021 I was driving the vehicle on the highway and it stalled without warning after almost crashing into the vehicle in front of him. I was able to pull over, start the car back up and drive it home. There were no warning alerts or check engine light that came on the dashboard. Keep in mind that the car had 1,000 miles until the next oil change. After browsing the internet, we realized that the car had a recall because their vehicles were not warning the driver that there was low oil pressure allowing the driver to continue driving until the engine seized (Recall #R29436; National Highway Traffic Safety Administration campaign #13V592000). The recall was repaired by Prestige Auto on 1/2014. I contacted Volvo of North America who opened up a case and then had the car towed to Portland Volvo in Scarborough, Maine for an appointment on December 14, 2021. On December 15, 2021 Portland Volvo informed us that the vehicle’s engine was beyond repair because of an unfortunate mechanical failure due to lack of lubrication. Later that evening I received an email from Jemmy at Volvo of NA stating that they would cover $750 of the repairs. I emailed her back asking her to wait for a quote from Portland Volvo on how much it was going to be to repair the vehicle. On December 16, 2021 I was informed by Portland Volvo that she spoke with the district manager and that a used engine costs between $10-14,000. Volvo of North America has now decided to retract their $750 offer to help because the car is now out of warranty but it was due to a manufacturer's defect. I spoke with Tammy at Prestige Auto (the dealership who fixed the repair) and was told that if the repair was actually fixed then it would have done its due diligence and alerted the driver that there wasn't any oil pressure. I have also read articles on these kinds of issues and it states that a recall is to be repaired until it fixes the issue, and obviously the issue wasnt fixed the first time. I asked for an appeal and without being able to speak to the person who is handling my claim, they sent me an email saying I was denied the appeal and there will be no further response to my email. I was also told by Portland Volvo through email that “Volvo may state that it was known by you since 100,000 miles that there was a mechanical fault and it was driven until the engine failed” but I have over a dozen photos of the dashboard that shows from the time I bought it up until the time the engine seized there weren't any warnings that the car was having a malfunction. I asked her to please have the District Manager look at the photos and explain to me how I could have known that the car was malfunctioning and I have yet to receive an answer. I've asked continuously to speak with supervisors and managers at Portland Volvo and Volvo Cars of North America but have been told that they cannot give me the information for the people who are making the decision. Not only has the car been seen periodically throughout its lifetime at Volvo dealerships but was seen in July 2021 due to two recalls that needed to be fixed at Volvo in Exeter, NH. They did a multi-point inspection on the car and everything passed and only 3,500 miles had been put on the car since. I have been researching this on the internet since this issue occurred and this seems to be an issue with several owners of the 2012 Volvo s60 T5 cars with engine code 62, which mine is.
FRUSTRATED!