coolant warning light?

[DADSCAB]

I got my 03 S80 D5 last Friday from a dealer in Hatfield with 54,000 miles on the clock. Drove it back to Oxford with no problems everything was running smoothly . On Wednesday afternoon the coolant warning light came on ' I topped it up with about a pint of water 'then phoned my mechanic who said not to worry but just keep an eye on things . Since Wednesday afternoon I've done about 400 miles 'and this afternoon the warning light came on again. This time the level had gone down to the min mark again. So I released the filler cap (while the car was still hot) and the level rose to about half way between the minimum and maximum mark by itself And the warning light went off. my mechanic has told me to wait for the car to completely cool down before checking the level and adjust accordingly. Then drive the car until it's hot and check it again. And if there's a problem he can look at it on Monday(but he is by no means a Volvo expert). Can anybody tell me what is going on with the magical pixie water that seems to in my car's radiator 'and let me know if there is a possible cure for this problem.

Thanks Simon.

best possible cure is get it back to the dealer who sold it to you asap you may well have serious problems which should be put right by him

[DADSCAB]

Originally Posted by chow

best possible cure is get it back to the dealer who sold it to you asap you may well have serious problems which should be put right by him

The problem is this isn't a Volvo approved car I bought it from an independent dealer and the second and more important problem is that the car is now a registered taxi (no warranty available on taxis from any dealer in the UK franchise or otherwise) sticky situation for me but hopefully somebody on here will come up with an easy solution or at least give me some pointers so that I can steer my mechanic in the right direction.

Originally Posted by DADSCAB

The problem this isn't a Volvo approved car I bought it from an independent dealer and the second and more important problem is that the car is now a registered taxi (no warranty available on taxis from any dealer in the UK franchise or otherwise) sticky situation for me but hopefully somebody on here will come up with an easy solution or at least give me some pointers so that I can steer my mechanic in the right direction.

im no legal expert but surely the car must be "fit for purpose "no matter whether its now a taxi or not, the car was clearly sold with a fault

[DADSCAB]

No I don't think so because i drove the car for 5 days before this showed up. I think it's just the general were & tear of a 54K car.

[PNuT]

my s70 did this.... first time head gasket second time cracked block

do the people who sold you it know its a taxi?

[DADSCAB]

yep i had to tell them. it's not the head the oil is ok.

[PNuT]

ive had a few leaks over the years on different cars & generally i have found that if the fluid level rises then usually its an internal leak somewere


i hope i am wrong!

[DADSCAB]

Not that either because there's no dampness inside the car. I spoke to Volvo today and they didn't seem very concerned about it. They just told me to let the car cool down then check the level and top it up if needed. That's what I've just done. I think I'm going to get it pressure tested on Monday. Incidentally the chap at the Volvo garage had worked there for 25 years and he said since the release of the S80 he has never known a head gasket to be repaired at the Oxford dealership. Reassuring considering no one has yet given me any cast iron (pardon the pun) possibilities for this dilemma ' well not without trying to scare the living daylights out of meHeartbeat now returning to normal.

[PNuT]

when i say internal leak i mean within the engine.... it holds pressure due to combustion pressures! the water dissapeers & the pressure shoots thu the roof... you may have a tiny leak somewere but IMHO loss of coolant IS something to be concerned about!