Hello everyone,
We purchased a used 2009 XC90 a few months ago. Currently it has 98,000 miles. We were on a road trip when suddenly our display flashed "try slow down or shift up." We were in auto, so slowed down. Less than a minute later, our car stalled and when we tried to start the engine, it turned over but wouldn't catch. We got it towed home and the mechanic found all six ignition coils blown. He replaced them all, but wasn't able to diagnose the cause. He suggested that the computer might be the issue, and couldn't guarantee that we were in the clear.
Have any of you experienced this issue before, and do you perhaps know the cause?
Also, I'm bringing it in on Monday to have the codes pulled for a check engine warning. I realize this is likely a separate problem but it came on about four hours after the car was returned (perhaps 20 miles total of city driving.)

 

This is remarkable as the 6 coils should not all die simultaneously. This indicates to me a few potential issues however unlikely.

Very bad spark plugs that caused excessive current to build up in the coils for an extended period of time.
Or a fault to ground across the coils. For instance if the engine bay was power washed and filled the top cover with water.

I don't think it's the computer because it only supplies the signal voltage to the coils.

It sounds more like a central singular point of failure, but then, if the coils worked after a replacement, this may not be the case. (Unless there is a short that only presents itself when warm) in which case the original coils may be fine.


Finally, the upshift or slow down issue...this could be from a variety of things from an EVAP leak to a blown transmission. Cylinders misfiring can also cause it, misfires caused by, you guessed it, bad coils.


Get the codes read, let us know what they are.
If possible, get them read by Volvo or someone with Vida/DICE

Hows the driving now? aside from the light?

 

What was the outcome?

 

Replying to both original poster and Nichals.
I have 2013 Volvo S60 T5, 215K on it; regularly maintained.
I had the same error message (try slow down or shift up) along with check engine light (it would blink when going up a hill).
My regular mechanic could not diagnose the problem (three codes P0301, p0302, p0300 were found)
My mechanic found metal shavings on the spark plugs; unknown origin
I took it to Volvo and they are saying I need a whole new engine for $8000
They could not diagnose the problem either and said it would cost as much as a new engine to investigate

I just found this out this week...Has anyone had a similar outcome?

 

shavings on the spark plugs? Did they comment about debris in the oil pan? Did they note that you were running the correct plugs for your model? I think the Volvo tech was saying that to determine where the shavings came from (ie bearing/piston ring etc) they'd need to do a tear down which can cost as much as replacing the engine. Given you have 215K on the engine already, I'd probably start by doing a compression test (to see if there's possible ring wear) then measuring oil pressure. I'd also consider dropping the oil pan and clean the pick up/renew the oil pump o-rings to make sure its capable of producing full oil pressure under load. Then I'd drop in fresh genuine volvo plugs and inspect the coil wiring harness. If the misfires persist and you have good compression and new plugs, then you need to check if there's a fuel pressure issue or just a few weak coils. Note the codes are a generic misfire (P0300) and cylinder 1 and 2 misfires (301 and 302) so you may try swapping coils with 4/5 to see if the misfire codes move or refresh those two coils to start.

 

Hello, my volvo t6 have this problem i have 2 mothns and not fix it , can you hepl me
my volvo t6 have this problem i have 2 months and again not fix it, can you halp me please

 

Hello, i have never posted here before.
My transmission slipped while taking off from a stop light, I felt the transmission disconnect from the engine power at around 4500 RPM, followed by “slow down or shift up” message. Then rough running with misfire because of blinking engine light for a quarter mile and back to normal randomly. I have been told that i have transmission problems, i dont believe anyone.
Im convinced that it must have something to do with either the torque converter not locking, or even unexpected unlocking, or Engine problems. I have a very small rad leak, just changed transmission fluid just changed all spark plugs and ign coils 5k miles ago. Turned off neutral control. Help

 

First thing to do is scan for all stored OBD2 codes - you should see codes for the engine as well as the transmission. As to your symptoms - are you feeling slippage (ie motorboating where the engine revs are not proportional to the change in speed)? Are you feeling hard upshifts or downshifts? Any issues with shifting between the top gears ie 4 and 5 or 5 and 6? Any shuddering when accellerating? The latter two may be symptomatic of a torque converter issue, where the slippage is more likely the wet clutches. When you did the trans fluid change, what was the color and did you filter to check for any bits of clutch material? Hard shifts or flaring could be an issue with the solenoids (which hopefully will throw some codes). If you have misfire codes, then you can check coils, plugs, compression, clean the MAF, check for intake air leaks etc. Misfires can give the appearance of a transmission issue but they will certainly set some fault codes.

 

Hello,

I am going to document the result of my situation because no one else is following up. 2013 CX 60, ~88,000 miles. I was driving on flat ground, going about 40mph. I received an alert to "slow down or shift up" and an intermittent "Check Engine" light flash a couple times. The car began to sputter and I felt the transmission struggle to shift. I checked the shifter and I was not in manual or sport mode. I drove slowly to the nearest safe place to pull over, less than a mile from where I first identified the issue. Out of nowhere, white smoke rose from under the hood and smelt an awful burning smell. Check error codes and all cylinders stated misfires. Taking it to the shop today. Will report back with the verdict.

 

Volvo mechanic found that cylinder 5 heater coil failed and shorted. When it shorted it melted and produced the smoke and terrible odor. This is great news as no other components were harmed and this is a relatively cheap fix. Replaced all ignition coils and spark plugs as it is recommended to replace both between 80-100K miles. This is overall a great ending to what I thought was going to be an expensive repair to the power train. I hope this is helps someone who experiences this similar issue as it is quite alarming. Cheers!