Alternator problem v70 2008
 

Hi folks, I have a V70 (Aug 2008 D5 Sport) on which the alternator has just died. I had a tensioner recall last year and wonder if anyone has had problems with tensioners or alternators? The car has 41,000 miles on it. I would have thought a Volvo would be a bit more reliable! The repair cost is estimated at £750+ at a Volvo dealer. Any thoughts on whether another source of parts might be better?
Many thanks

take it off and get it reconneda lot cheaper mate easy easy job

Thanks for that. It is what I did in the end. It transpires there is no new one in the UK and has to come from Sweden. I only found that out from a dealer in Wawrick; my local dealer promised me they'd have a part the next day!

just fitted a new alternator today £640

We have a September 2008 V70 D5 sport R-design, had the recall last year. Its just turned 40,000 miles this weekend !
That seems very expensive for an alternator. Who did you get to repair the alternator ?

Thanks
Simon.

A crowd called Unit Exchange. They were brilliant, picked up the unit from a garge in Belfast and would have had it back within 3-4 days (their time was only 1-2 hours!). I found them on the internet. They were knowledgable and polite, which is more than I can say for SMW Volvo in Belfast and Volvo Customer Relations (who seemed to me more interested in getting me to say that I knew I was driving the car away from the dealer at my own risk). I did phone a Volvo dealer in Warwick and they told me the part was unavailable in the UK, would take 4 days to arrive from Sweden and the cost was £650. The problem with the alternator was a burnt out rectifier diode which you can buy on ebay for a few pounds. I think that Volvo dealers and their mechanics ( or technicians!) lack the knowledge and expertise to do anything other than replace parts which are priced exorbitantly.
I emailed Volvo Global Customer Relations on Friday and am still awaiting a reply