Help...
 

Okay, I really need some help trying to figure out what is wrong with my car as the Volvo dealership has not been helpful and my local mechanic can't figure out what is going on. I have owned my XC70 (2001) for a year and 1/2 and ever since I bought it, it has been doing the same thing. First of all, the check engine light has been on the whole time I have owned it, even when I took it to the Volvo dealership. Secondly, it shakes as though the engine is lugging and when I switch it to tiptronic (sp?) it is in 5th gear when I am going about 25 mph. Driving this way is fine on the highway but going through town drives me crazy. I am constantly waiting for it to shake... Thirdly, at what seems like completely random intervals, the rpms will shoot up and it will shift to a higher gear really roughly. I have had the air flow sensor replaced and although the check engine light went off for about 2 days, it quickly came back on. My local mechanic cannot figure out what is happening but he thinks it might be something with the transmission and has told me to start saving in case it goes out. I am extremely frustrated and not sure where to go from here. I have read about faulty ETM's and my make and year fit the profile but I would think that the dealership would have caught this... I also read that most of the problems happened at highway speed and mine only happens around 25 mph and has been doing the same thing for a year and 1/2. Thanks so much for taking the time to read this and any input would be great. Also, please know that I am a very inexperienced person when it comes to cars and I hate to say this but I am a women and I don't get the same treatment from dealerships and mechanics as I wish I did. Just an FYI but I would be grateful for any help as I love my car but I am ready to get rid of it.

Oh yes, my car has around 124,000 miles on it...

Have you replaced coils and spark plugs yet?
Do you happen to know what the codes are that is tripping the check engine light?

No, I haven't replaced the coils or spark plugs... I am guessing that might be a good place to start. Do you know about how much that would cost?

Also, I don't know about the codes, how could I find that out? I live in the UP of Michigan and my closest Volvo dealer is in Appleton (Green Bay) which is about 3 hours away. Is there a way to do it without going to the dealership? Or can I do it myself?

Thanks so much for your time, I really appreciate your help!

The mechanic you have working on the car is he able to pull the codes?
The coils are about $53.00 each and up in price. You will need 5 of them.
You can get the spark plugs for like $2.00 each x5.

See if your mechanic can pull the codes. If he can post them and we can direct you in a better direction.

Okay, I will call him tomorrow and see about the codes. I will post again when I find out if he is able and then what they are. Thanks again :)

Your welcome anytime. That is what we are here for to try to help.

There are a lot of OBD II code readers that will give you the basic stored codes. Google on "OBD II scanner" and you'll see lots of results. It's worth your while to spend $100 and have one of your own.

Definitely get the codes pulled and find out what they mean. Post them here too so forum members can help.

My wife has the same care (year, model, and almost mileage) we just had to replace 2 coils that went bad. Weird thing is before we had the coils replaced we had a check engine light with codes P0400 and P0402 (EVAP system leak) Since I replaced the coils to get rid of the misfire code they generated, the other one has gone away too. Been 2 weeks so far.

Gotta love it

Glenn