First issue - terrible vibration between 45-65 MPH. This feels more like a side-to-side than anup-down vibration and I feel it more in the seat of the pants than the steering wheel. If I let off the gas it completely goes away. It really only occurs when there is any kind of torque to the wheels - accelerating or going up an incline. What do I check first? Drive axles? How do you check for a bad drive axle? Wheel alignment? Wheel bearings? I know for sure my upper and lower torque arm bushing are bad. My CV joints are fine; no clicking/popping when turning. I recently replaced the upper torque bushing only to have it seperate in less than a month. Most of the vibration stopped when I first replaced it and came back after I noticed that the new one had seperated again. So...

Second issue - what the hell does "Check Brake Light" mean if my brake lights work?? It comes on every time I press the brake pedal but my lights are on...

Third issue - "Transmission Service Required". Bad bad bad or just a reminder to change the fluid?

My main concern right now is the vibration. I need to get this repaired ASAP as I travel 24 miles to and 24 mile from work every day all highway. I feel like a 007 martini.

Thanks in advance.

 

sorry i cant help you with your other issues but the transmission service required light had come on and it ended up being just a fluid change so i hope this helps with that issue.

 

I had similar vibrations and I just replaced the upper motor mount bushing that attaches to the strut tower bar. That took care of the vibrations. I also replace the lower front trans mount bushing as I hear that is a weak point.

I am thinking you need to check out the lower trans bushing, mine was shot. If that is bad it could cause excessive wear on the upper you just replaced causing it to fail. I replaced mine with the poly bushings from IDP, the stock are just too weak and you'd be replacing them every 40K or so. Well worth the money and they are easy to install yourself with hand tools.

I replaced both drive axles prior to the mounts, one was really really bad the other may have been fine, but the mounts were causing a lot of vibration.

Here are the links to the poly mounts at IDP:

http://www.ipdusa.com/Volvo-S80-1999-2006/Transmission-&-Drive-Train/QBM-Performance-Lower-Transmission-Mount/p-76-586-2182/

http://www.ipdusa.com/Volvo-S80-1999-2006/Performance/Upper-Engine-Stabilizer-Mount/p-76-634-234/

 

Thanks. I just ordered the IDP mounts and will update after I get them on.

Still wondering about how to tell how you have a bad drive axle if the CV joints are OK (no noise). Does the drive axle go bad ever or is it always the CV joint?

 

i had this problem, almost identical, fine up until like 40 mph, and only when there was a load on the wheels. and when you let off the gas it went away. well i ended up having a bent CV axle. At first it is going to start out like this, then it will get very bad, i learned the hard way, driving 3 hours with the car vibrating like hell. but if i were you i would definitally have your tranny fluid swapped, and while they are under there have them check to see if one of your axle's is warped, or bent.

 

Yeah, tranny fluid change is definitely on the list.

How in the world does a drive axle get bent or warped??

 

may reasons, i believe that mine got bent from hitting a pot hole, anything that has a strong enough force on the axle can bend or warp it, and if it has enough force the axle could break in half. but i would definitally have it checked out. if you do end up needing a new axle there is a place here in massachusetts that sells used ones for 50 dollars with a one year warranty, and can next day ship it to you, or if you live in MA and want to pick it up they can also do that, but it is a great deal. Volvo wants 500 just for the axle w/ out installation.

 

Does your $50 get you a full axle assembly with cvjoint/boot or just the axle?

I've seen the online for anywhere from $60 ea. to $500 ea.

I'm curoius as to what you get for your $60.

 

Your "Check brake" light means that your brake pads might be low or under the factory ammount!

 

Have done my front brakes and didn't see anything that I would have thought was a sensor to determine how much brake material is left on the pad. Did I miss something? I do a visiual inspection every time I rotate the wheels or if I suspect they may be getting nearly worn away to the point of needing replacement...

 

Well it is a sensor.... I would say it might be one of 2 things... Either you need new pads or maybe the sensor might be going... Bump this to TECH! Wait till he is on and can answer this for u.

 

Well, replaced the upper & lower torque arm bushings last night and vibration is still there. I took a peek at the drive axles while I was under the car and the passenger side has a completely torn boot so that one needs to be replaced for sure.

Does anyone have any tips, tricks, advice or know of any special tools I'll need before I tackle this job? I plan to go ahead and replace wheel bearings, ball joints, struts and end links while I have it torn down.

Also I have heard about visco vs. non visco axles. Which is which and how do I know which ones I need? Mine is a early production 99 S90 T6.

http://www.car-stuff.com/carparts/vo...195210615.html

 

Sorry to hear the mounts didn't solve your problem. Definitely sounds like an axle. I ordered my axles from here: http://www.europartsdirect.com/epc-items.asp , they were good quality and shipped fast. On the Visco clutch, the axle will appear to have an extra CV joint and it is only on the right side, not both.

 

the 50 dollars that i spent got me the whole CV joint axle with boot already on it, that was from this specific salvage yard. Not sure what euro parts does. My CV joint boot was also ripped and i figured this to be the cause of my problems, so i also replaced the boot, that solved the problem for maybe a week, then right back to the vibrations again because it turned out the axle was actually bent. Not sure if you wanna take the time out to do the boot and put the whole axle back in, and then later find out that you still need a new axle. i would definitally have it checked out, considering that your problem sounds exactly like mine, before you go ahead and do all this work to find out you did it for nothing.

 

Thanks xkontour98. Did you do the job yourself? Anything I should look out for?
I've replaced drive axles before on a VW Golf but I was younger and a lot skinnier then...

 

I won't be able to order all the parts I'll need until next week and the shuddering is getting worse (occurs at all speeds now).

The car feels like it's literally going to rattle itself apart and this is my daily driver. Am I runnig a real risk of a catostophic failure if I continue to drive it in this condition or does it feel worse than it is. I need to know ASAP because I can't afford any further repairs if the car falls apart on the road before I can get under it with a wrench.

I am babying it as gently as I can...

 

I was considering doing it myself, but my mechanic only charged me $60 res axle so I decided to same some time and blood and had him do it.

 

Had front struts/mounts replaced and the right axle. The CV joint was about to seperate it was so shot. For whatever reason the mechanic opted to not replace both axles even though I instructed him to.

All vibration gone but I now feel a great deal more torque steer. How much torque steer is normal on these cars? When I first got the car it was bad on hard acceleration and full boost on a gear change. Now I can feel it during normal driving on all gear changes and of course under harder acceleration.

If I hadn't poured so much $$ into this car I think I would otherwise drive it off a cliff.

 

Unless I'm gunning it, I do not experience any torque steer.... something's not right. Possibly related to the other axle....

 

Hi,just want to put in my 2cents on the topic.This was a nightmare problem for me(the vibration)..replaced cv axels,replaced brake rotors,replaced tires..3 different sets and brands,replaced ball joints and bushings..still,didn't cure the problem..at the end replaced the rack & pinion and that was it....very costly and frustrating to pin-point...lucky for me it wasn't the S80..was my Acura...so good luck and I hope it's not the rack& pinion..very expensive!!!!!