Not a Volvo owner yet, but...

[philbo]

Hi everyone,

A short while ago, I took a V70 2.4 petrol estate for a test drive - 2002 vintage, 115k miles on the clock.

Have to say it was a lovely drive, very smooth & comfortable. But just about every warning on the dash (oil pressure, airbag etc.) was on. Potential vendor said that he'd checked this with a garage, and it was a knock-on effect of the battery having flattened: the car had been standing for a few months (though he thought the owner had been turning it over fairly regularly)

Just wondering if it'll rectify itself (e.g. am I likely to need to spend any money to get the engine managment system warnings cleared?)

The other noticeable thing was a lot of condensation inside the headlights (even given that it's a hot day).. should I worry about that?

Thank you for your consideration - I've not been a Volvo owners so far, but I need a decent sized estate, & you do get an awful lot for your money with an old Volvo.

[billtomo]

Get him to have it checked properly,there are wiser heads than me on here they'll give you the advice you need,personally I wouldn't commit til your sure

[S24SDJ]

A flat battery won't throw an oil pressure warning. ****ty service history, blocked strainer/failed o-rings on the pick up pipe will do that for you. Did it say to pull over when safe or to stop immediately on the DIM?

Airbag light will need Vida to remove it, not a generic code reader.Think Volvo will charge you circa £50 + VAT to turn it off.

Never come across headlight condensation myself. Are they cracked?

Check its had a cambelt as its ready to snap at that mileage. Thats a £400+ job at the dealer.

There's a buyer guide pinned at the top of the page I believe. Have a read through it. Very informative.

[GrahamBrown1]

Those early models had dim failure issues which is in the instrument cluster. These can be repaired but worst case is 800 pound replacement. It is true that the battery Flattened could cause a few issues but these rectify quickly. The oil pressure warning is a worry tho

[philbo]

Thank you..

Originally Posted by S24SDJ

A flat battery won't throw an oil pressure warning. ****ty service history, blocked strainer/failed o-rings on the pick up pipe will do that for you. Did it say to pull over when safe or to stop immediately on the DIM?

Stop immediately, IIRC. There was also an "oil not circulating" message, I think it was.

Originally Posted by S24SDJ

Airbag light will need Vida to remove it, not a generic code reader.Think Volvo will charge you £50 + VAT to turn it off.

Originally Posted by S24SDJ

Never come across headlight condensation myself. Are they cracked?

Not that I could see.

[philbo]

Originally Posted by S24SDJ

Check its had a cambelt as its ready to snap at that mileage. Thats a £400+ job at the dealer.

That was done a few thousand miles back, vendor says.

Originally Posted by S24SDJ

There's a buyer guide pinned at the top of the page I believe. Have a read through it. Very informative.

Will do.

Originally Posted by GrahamBrown1

Those early models had dim failure issues which is in the instrument cluster. These can be repaired but worst case is 800 pound replacement. It is true that the battery Flattened could cause a few issues but these rectify quickly. The oil pressure warning is a worry tho

Hmm.. at this point my paranoia kicks in: if the oil pressure warning light was staying on, & that's a big red flag to any potential buyer, disconnect the battery in the hope that the resulting "oh, it always does that when the battery goes flat" will distract from a real problem. Or am I being way too cynical, here?

[ASt85]

Condensation in the headlights is fairly common - cheap fix is to remove the rear covers and allow to dry out for a few days then restore the covers.
As for the oil not circulating warning, GIVE THE MOTOR A VERY WIDE BERTH, I rather suspect there are a few more issues here than "letting the battery go flat" i.e. if that was the case then the once the battery had been re-charged the issues if they were solely battery related would have been rectified by the enforced cold re-set....i.e. power back on or after a battery re-charge. The fact that the SIPS/ Airbag warning is showing means that either the battery was re-charged on the car without removing the earth OR the faults are actually present and not just DIM/ECM/ECU associated. As S24SDJ says, the worrying bit is the oil issue, as far as I’m aware this is unlikely to be related to a flat battery. There are many good V70’s around, many advertised on this web site. Please don’t commit to this particular vehicle, it may well have issues that are not going to be resolved by a VIDA/DICE reset, but may actually need serious money to be thrown at....personal advice, for what it is worth....avoid this motor like the bubonic plague. The boo-boos could sink it!

[Georgeandkira]

Hello, SImply walk away from this car-and the dealer-and forget about them.
1) Used Volvos are cheap enough over there from what I've read here.
2) You don't want to buy any used car without driving at least 10 of them. Volvos are no exception
3) The DIM failures seem to involve lamps and gauges going out NOT LIGHTING UP.
4) COMMON SENSE DEPARTMENT: Doesn't the answer about the flattened battery causing all the warning lights sound a little too pat; at least a little insulting?
I think the vendor was spitting in your face. You'd be very wrong to patronize him.
5) People are inexplicably foolish when it comes to automotive maintenance.
Engine oil frequently goes unchanged. When a vehicle is turbocharged the problems arrive sooner as turbos run much hotter than normally aspirated engines.
6) NOTE: Lecture almost over-take heart! Shopping for a car takes work and time. Bring a friend. Take notes. Compare the feel of the ride and steering.

I could go on and on. A less than stellar vintage Volvo (I own a 2002) with an assortment of warning lights and likely a destroyed engine due to oil neglect is NOT WHAT YOU WANT. kira

[philbo]

Message received and understood :-)

Thank you everybody for your answers, and I'll get back to the vendor to say "no, thank you"

4) COMMON SENSE DEPARTMENT: Doesn't the answer about the flattened battery causing all the warning lights sound a little too pat; at least a little insulting?
I think the vendor was spitting in your face. You'd be very wrong to patronize him.

The range of errors coming up did make it seem plausible that something had made the reporting mechanism get its knickers in a twist, but not quite plausible enough to be swallowed without checking first. Unfortunately, my usual port of call in these matters had just started driving off to his sister's wedding & wasn't answering his phone..

Will keep looking. Thanks again

[brokenbritain]

Look elsewhere ,preferably go for a diesel if you can pay the extra, look for low ownership and decent up to date service history also check the tyres to see what brand they are, if they are top brand, michelins etc then that is a good sign, budget tyres very often signifies budget in every other department.
On the subject of cambelts, never believe anyone who says it was done a few thousand ago etc, always ask for the receipt to ensure cambelt kit, water pump and auxiliary belts all replaced at the same time, hope this helps, best of luck...