General: Drivers Information Module (DIM) replacement

[Clan]

Originally Posted by BIG AL

what needs to be done is for more people to complain to volvo then they may see that there is a design fault, this may make them stand up and help us as volvos are good but expensive to buy and you don't expect to be forking out after a few years especially at these prices .eh !

Its not really a design fault , electronics and cars have never mixed in the hostile environment of a motor vehicle subject to damp , heat and vibration , the DIM gets heated up to about 30 or 40 C and cooled down again every time the car is used , this continual expansion and contraction over 8 or 10 years and many thousands of cycles eventualy cracks certain connections and joints . Its been happening for years ever since the 240 Fuel pump relay first suffered from this problem which started out in the late 1970's .
This fault doesnt affect many of the 100's of 1000's of volvos in the country, so deemed not to be a problem i guess ..

The answer is a true exchange service , Volvo really need to set up something now selling these vital electronic software driven modules which if not replaced means a scrapped car .. Selling at a reasonable fixed £200 price , that goes for exchange audio too , £600 for an exchange radio is ridiculous a year or so ago they were £150 which was reasonable then suddenly they hiked it up to £600 to match other manufacturers prices apparantly ...

[Chris_Rogers]

"Its not really a design fault , electronics and cars have never mixed in the hostile environment of a motor vehicle subject to damp , heat and vibration"

I think I have to disagree a liitle with this statement.

The same argument could apply to any ECU in the car, the engine management ECU for example is subjected to much worse conditions and these rarely fail.

In addition the failures seem to be associated with particular model years.

This suggests the failures are due to the design, or the method/standard of construction of the affected units.

[Clan]

Originally Posted by Chris_Rogers

"Its not really a design fault , electronics and cars have never mixed in the hostile environment of a motor vehicle subject to damp , heat and vibration"

I think I have to disagree a liitle with this statement.

The same argument could apply to any ECU in the car, the engine management ECU for example is subjected to much worse conditions and these rarely fail.

In addition the failures seem to be associated with particular model years.

This suggests the failures are due to the design, or the method/standard of construction of the affected units.

The Engine ECU on a Volvo has an easy life , the components and PCB are mounted on a piece of rigid Alluminium, sealed with a rubbery resin , and cooled by an airstream , True that Volvo ECU's very rarely fail , unlike some other manufacturers who mount them in places which are detremental to their health! for example on the inlet manifiold ( Vauxhall) and 10 inches off the ground ( Ford & Volvo ) and under the wing edge so that water runs over them and they fail , ( Citroen )

We used to think the S/V40 wiring problem under the radiator was specific to a particular 1999 model year , Volvo said it was a fault with a wire binding machine perforating the insulation , however it still happens to increasingly newer S/V40 models even 2003 model years .
The Infrequent DIM problem will continue, and in say 5 years it will be happening to high mileage 2005 models too .

[Chris_Rogers]

I understood the '05 DIM was a different design from the eariler ones, does not mean it's better though.

I guess we will have to wait and see!

[Propofol]

It still seems ridiculous to me that they can sell a car with a component that will probably fail in five years. It's not in my mind a 'consumable', so it should very rarely fail.

They should also offer a reduced exchange price, and a £200 price is not extortionate seeing that it's hardly the height of computer technology. I fail to see why it costs more than a top-end laptop.

[Darren]

Bought an S60 ('02) last November and the fuel gauge did not work, empty is 3/4, so car dealer is sourcing replacements clocks. Don't get me started on how long that's taking them!! Anyway a few days after I got it the displays started playing up as well. I get random garbage across the mileage, trip and message displays, sometimes they work for 5 minutes then scramble up. I've discussed this with the dealer and he reckons it's only the clocks as it was inspected by an auto electrician, but I'm wondering if it might be the DIM after reading this thread?

(ps. If anybody knows a volvo parts breaker that has clocks for '02 S60 I'd love to hear about it!!)

[dentman750]

Originally Posted by Darren

Bought an S60 ('02) last November and the fuel gauge did not work, empty is 3/4, so car dealer is sourcing replacements clocks. Don't get me started on how long that's taking them!! Anyway a few days after I got it the displays started playing up as well. I get random garbage across the mileage, trip and message displays, sometimes they work for 5 minutes then scramble up. I've discussed this with the dealer and he reckons it's only the clocks as it was inspected by an auto electrician, but I'm wondering if it might be the DIM after reading this thread?

(ps. If anybody knows a volvo parts breaker that has clocks for '02 S60 I'd love to hear about it!!)

new city volvo spares in preston is the company you need to be speaking to,he sorted mine with a new clock and the software matched.£170 all in he charged me with 6 months warrenty.had it done 2 months and all is fine.. you will probably get the no it alls saying you cant fit second hand ones but trust me you can i have,as long as the software matches which pete will do at new city volvo spares.try him and let me know.

[Clan]

New DIM's down to £550 now ...

[hwoods]

Originally Posted by Clan

New DIM's down to £550 now ...

Hi Clan,

How much were they before? as different prices ranging from £950 - £1200 have been quoted and would you know what the dealer hours would be to change one over?

Thanks

H

[Clan]

down from about £850 to £550 , Labour wouldnt be a lot , say 20 mins max and 20 mins max for software ... perhaps volvo read this after all :-)