Last week I bought my first Volvo, a 2000 S70 base with the normally aspirated engine with 99,700 miles on it.

Yesterday I had it on the highway for the first time and several times it surged on me, it didn't take off, but there would be 2-3 brief surges and then back to normal. That was disconcerting.

I got it home and started reading up about it and found all the ETM discussions and was pretty disheartened.

I don't have a code reader yet, I'm thinking of either buying the Actron Auto Scanner from for about $90 with an online coupon, or the Autel MaxiScan for about half that price... thoughts? The major advantage to the Actron is that I could go get it right now, and not wait for shipping.

Anyway, as of yesterday:
-Surging and hesitation, though it seemed that if I put my foot down it would get better.
-"hunting" at idle
-rpms would drop to about 700 when I came to a stop and then come back up
-no warning lights
-no "limp home" mode

Yesterday i disconnected the MAF and drove around for a bit, didn't notice any surging, but i didn't go on the highway. Also, it was still hunting still, and the idle was dropping when I stopped.

Today I took off the ETM and cleaned it. ETM has the white label, but the car idles at 900 rather than 850, so does that mean the software was updated, but the ETM not replaced under the extended warranty?

Anyway, I cleaned the ETM which was pretty fouled, put it back in and drove it for about 45min (with the MAF reconnected) including a stretch on the highway, and it certainly seemed better.

Observations after cleaning:
-no hunting at idle
-idle never dropped below 900 at stops
-didn't notice any surges or hesitations
-no warning lights (except for the check engine as a result of disconnecting the MAF)
-still feels a bit rough at idle

So it seems that the cleaning helped. The reason I'm writing, though, is that there's still more vibration than I would anticipate at idle, it's not likely to rattle any of my fillings loose, but I really wouldn't call it smooth, either. I know that i need to replace the lower rear motor mount. But I don't really have a baseline for what the car "should" feel like. Am i feeling normal Volvo engine vibration made worse by the bad mount, or is it rough idling? I can't really tell, any ideas?

I've read where people say that their engines idle so smoothly they barely know the car is running, but in other places it seems to be suggested that the 5 cylinder has some inherent vibration and it's just the nature of the beast.

What are your thoughts? And my apologies for the long post.

 

Alright, a full day, 60+ page views, and not a single response... I'll add a brief update and cross my fingers.

Took it back on the highway today for a while and the surging came back. It didn't seem as bad, but maybe it's just because I was expecting it. Did about 25-30 miles with the MAF attached.

Disconnected the MAF and it was still surging. In addition, with the MAF disconnected it was hunting at idle again, and dropping well below 900 RPM when I stopped.

When I reconnected the MAF it stopped hunting at Idle, though it dropped just slightly below 900 RPM when stopping, dipping only to about 850 or so.

Other than that the car seemed to drive ok. The power seemed adequate, and the vibration nominal both at idle and at speed.

I guess the next steps are to hook up a code scanner and check the voltages?

Anybody?

 

Without reading any codes it's kind of hard to properly diagnose the problem. But reading everything it sounds like a etm issue.

 

Did you get some MAF safe MAF cleaner? Disconnecting the MAF is not going to help you if its running badly and will only set a code.

Take it to Autozone or somewhere like that and get them to read the codes and clear them when done.

 

The MAF code reset itself after I re-attached it. Took it to Advanced Auto Parts, read no codes.

It's still surging on me.

I had read elsewhere that disconnecting the MAF would help to isolate the ETM. It makes sense that if a faulty MAF was causing the surging would go away if detached, though it might trigger other probelms.

I'll get some MAF cleaner and give it a shot.

I'll also check the voltage at the ETM plug once the engine has cooled off enough to stick my hands down there.

The idle continues to be steady after cleaning, occasional very minor fluctuations where maybe the needle moves enough that it's not dead center on 900, but the edge of the needle still lines up with the edge of the 900 mark, but generally dead on.

Also, at stops the idle continues to be more stable. It will occasionally drop slightly below 900, but only to maybe 875 or so, not down around 700 like it was doing before cleaning.

 

My morning diagnostics went like this.

Voltage at battery 11.76
(it dropped from about 12.6 after being parked for about 16 hours)

Voltage from pin 5 to positive terminal 11.76

Voltage between pins 5 and 6 11.68
(checked this twice it was definitely a bit lower than the battery)


Pulled fuse #2 with the ignition on and the ETM clicked on, whined for about 6 secs and then turned off.

This seems to be pointing to the MAF at the moment, no? Or could the .08-.10 drop in voltage be accounting for the surging?

 

You need to find your parasitic power loss.

Cleaning the MAF and it runs better is a sign the MAF may not be cleaned adequately or you didn't use MAF safe cleaner?

Can't help with the voltage thing. No clue what that should be. Maybe someone else has some input.

 

Got my code reader in the mail today... I got four codes, but still no lwarning lights on:

P0113 (Intake Air Temperature Sensor 1 Circuit High)
P0102 (Mass or Volume Air Flow A Circuit Low)
P1612 (Electronic Control Module Incorrect Coding)
P0645 (A/C Clutch Relay Control Circuit)

I suspect that the p0102 is still there from when I disconnected the MAF last week.
I also disconnected the IAT when I was doing diagnostics and cleaning, additionally the main air intake wiggled loose from the air box, and was sucking up air from the engine compartment, which easily could have caused high air intake temps.
Likewise, I disconnected the ETM when I was snooping around.

The p1612 worries me a bit, and I can't find much about it. But on the positive side, is it possible that all it needs is a software upgrade... one of the free ones they offer on 2000 and later model years?

 

Clear the codes to get rid of all the codes that may be resultant to messing around with sensors

 

Yeah, I cleared the codes, cleaned the MAF. No dice. Frustrating. I'm getting some hesitation/surging occasionally when accelerating from a start.

 

Alright sir I have some answers(possibly :P). I can almost guarantee it is the etm. check out this post (http://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/for...ic.php?t=17252).
I have personal experience with the etm. My mother has a 99 s70 and her etm failed on her and I drove around a lot in the dreaded "limp-home" mode. As you have read there is a known problem with the 99-01 etm. Essentially there is a moving part (besides the plate), that will always fail no matter what over time inside the etm. Volvo sadly knew of this but got away with only a warranty extend instead of a total recall. I did a ton of research and found this out. There is a Canadian based company called xemodex that totally rebuilds the etm without the moving part. So that means it will never fail again and it does come with a lifetime warranty also. To make it even better, they ask for you cars Vin# and they program it into the new etm and all you have to do is literally drop it in your car and it works. You can not get better then that. Go to there website (xemodex.com) and look it up. It is much better then getting the same failing etm over and over again. No software update will fix the etm problem. If anyone says that, they are wrong. I sadly don't think people realize this problem has been fixed finally and they still get the same failing etm( the post said he was on his 5th etm as of late 2008).

I would not touch anything else until you do the etm correctly. I don't know if I agree with the mass going out right after the etm but I don't see why it could not. They both share common symptoms. That is my 2 cents. Hope it helps.