Cleaning the ETM

[T5_TAXI_DRIVER]

I have an ex plod 2003 t5. Now reading a pdf posted here http://forums.t5d5.org/index.php?showtopic=1234 it seems to be describing the possible solution to my problem as suggested by my local volvo dealer garage.

The forman took my car for a short run down a dual carrage way and suggested theat the engine surging would probably be solved by cleaning the throttle motor which is about £200 labour and parts.

the problem i get is between 2500 and 4000 rpm holding it flat open the power comes in surges at 4000 it smoothes out and of you go while it is surging you can also hear the boost going up and down. This however is at any speed not just above 110 mph as noted on the last page of the pdf.

Also im dissapointed with the performance and im hoping this will solve that as well. My old 95' 850 T5 had 225bhp as apposed to 250 on this one and im sure it was quicker although the speedo has been calibrated by plod it struggles to pass 140 mph and doesn't pull like the old one did and that one used to hit the limiter @155!. However now and then it will pull like hell suprising me coming off roundabouts or sliproads but ive only experienced this 4-5 times in the last 6 mths.

The dealer also had a look at it while it was in the workshop for something else. The forman then told me it had some fault codes stored it the ecu which may be related. I dont have the codes but he did say they were comunication error codes which he has only seen on cars with second hand ecu's fitted. He also then went on to suggest to first change the service items plugs,fuel filter, airfilter,oil, etc to make sure everything else is healthy but i cant help thinking only the plugs could be responsible for such a condition.

Knowing what you know which seems to be a lot more than i. Do you think it would be a good idea to clean this eta myself and do you think it is more likely to be the contacts ?

the car is 2003 t5 @118k

ill be very thankful for any advice you can give as im trying to resolve the problem without huge costs !

happy new year

[Clan]

I would say the surging of power is caused by a partialy restricted turbo control valve and perhaps fuel pressure due to a faulty fuel pump causing lack of full power delivery ... You would need to monitor fuel pressure at maximum output . But if the turbo contol valve was restrictive this could be the problem to both symptoms ..

[service_uk]

Hi volvo2

when the etm is cleaned we use a power clean spray by innotec. pretty basic stuff. just cleans away all gunk and crap. old rag to cleanb out and then there is software which has to be downloaded into the car vida the VIDA.

Service_uk

[peter207]

Cleaned my ETM and the idle problem I have has gone. Took half an hour to do! Thanks lads

[fil]

Apologies for resurrecting this old thread, but a friend of mine has a Y-reg S60 2.0T, which has developed the "surging when idling" problem.
I had a quick look under the bonnet last night and the ETM appears to be hidden under the inlet manifold, and to be fairly inaccessible.
How big a job is it to get to and clean out ???

[Clan]

It takes a professional over an hour as the radiator fan has to come out for access . Also the plastic inlet pipe to the throttle can be difficult to get back on especialy if it is cold .

[rachelbelmont2005]

Our car has been misbehaving. The revs would drop and the car would stall when coming to a halt. No ETS light or anything. Took it to the Volvo dealer who declared the car "undriveable!" after a test drive as it stalled when slowing down or even turning a corner slowly. The technician was sure that the diagnosis would show ETM codes but nothing! No codes at all! He roughly cleaned the ETM and the car is much better, doesn't stall at all now but they want it back to strip and clean the ETM and do a software update.

My question is to all you people who have had ETM failures or problems is does the light always come on? or is there always codes?

[Clan]

replacing it is the last resort after cleaning it and having the software update done . If an internal throttle code comes back then or uidle speed plays up then go for the new throttle .
The clean and software is expensive if on a turbo , so if it was me and the car had done over 80000 miles i would cut my losses and go straight to the new throttle stage .. Before the price goes up again ! ...

[Chris_Rogers]

Cheapest option, if you are able, is to clean the throttle body yourself, a can of throttle body cleaner is around a fiver.

[willv70]

I have just had a new "yellow lable" ETM fitted to replace the old yellow lable one that finally gave up last week(so that means my 2.4t with 121,000mls has had 3 etms or more !!!)

The car became totally undriveable overnight !!!,i thought it was going to blow up !!!!!!!!
I thought the yellow ETM had a 90,000m or 10 yr warranty but my local vovlo dealer played dumb when i mentioned it ( i think its for usa only anyway but was worth a try)..

The new ETM only cost £50 more than they quoted for a clean (total stripdown)

The difference is unblevieable....All of the previous problems i had before it became totally undrivable have gone. Hesitiation in the first 1/2inch of pressing the throttle, kangarooing down the road when the engine was cold and i have my cruise control back......It even changes gear better and dont clunk in to D and R anymore..Also gone engine/emission system messages.......(So i suggest you consider ETM before you start investigating brake sensors,temp sensors and failing autoboxes ETC......)

Money well spent but now im worried how long the honeymoon will last...................................