S40'S RADIATOR DRAIN PLUG CAME OFF

[Wildswan]

hi S40 owners,

the drain plug of my car came off without any warning while i was driving a few days ago and all the coolant was drained away. the temperature guage did not indicate high temperature but my car stalled and had funny sound coming from the engine bay. i suggest that you get the drain plug checked.

 

by the way, can i write to volvo or sm motor on this subject? the drain plug is a rubber plug that is held in place with a jubilee clip. imho, this arrangement is not consistent with a high quality car (the drain plugs of my previous cars were screwed in types). how can we prevent the plug from slipping off its position?

 

thank you.

[Turbobrick]

The drain plug of my S70 was a plastic cork screwed into the radiator base and a metal cork in the back of the engine block. Not sure about the S40s drain plug but is your S40 under warranty?

 

If U are claiming under warranty demand an extended warranty after the repair unless they give U a new engine block. Overheating can really kill the engine internals like pistons, etc.

[5204s]

Oh my god wildswan,how come the temp gauge did'nt show overheating ?it will hurt ur engine though,feel sorry for u bro,think I must check my drain plug also b4 too late

[Wildswan]

i'm looking for ways to claim damage from volvo, e.g. design flaw, bad material for drain plug etc. i asked the chaps at sm motors to keep the old plug that came off for me to inspect but they threw it away. i smell a rat.... by the way, the engine warning indicator (the one that says that the engine management system or exhaust is faulty came up this morning after the car was driven for a full day on saturday. have to put the car back to sm motors

 

if there is extensive damage to the car, i am thinking of scraping the car or export it. any recommendation? or is there a reliable workshop to recommend?

[Wildswan]

or put in a T6 engine. anyone has lobang?

[5204s]

Hi wildswan,I hv a friend which got lobang for exporting volvo & other makes,pm me if u intend to export,hehe T6 engine can fix in the S40 meh ? later your S40 rear wheels in mid air

[Soya]

Sorry to hear abt your plight. Yes, assuming your S40 is still under warranty think u should make some noise at SM. Even if warranty is over, should still make noise. Afterall, it's "For Life" what.

[Koolaba]

Hi all S40 woners,

 

My Dad's S40 has fogged headlamps in cold weather, after switching on the headlamp. The fog lamps also face the same problem. Highlighted the problems to SM already. Waiting for their replies. IMO, a defective seal or poor design.

Edited November 19, 2002 by Koolaba

[Koolaba]

Hi,

 

Are u driving a Phase II or Phase I S40?

 

According to my mech, u'll need to remove the cam cover to inspect your engine. Usually there will be black hardended engine oil deposits when the engine is overheated. Saw a couple of them at his workshop.

 

My mech's workshop:

MW Brothers

319 Bradell Rd Caltex Station

Tel 62533035

Mech: Ah Wai/Ah Lai

Edited November 19, 2002 by Koolaba

[Turbobrick]

My hunch is poor design on the headlight fogging.....try claiming an entirely new headlight assembly.

[Soya]

Do keep us posted. Hopefully they dun use that "characteristic" excuse on u. They've been dishing out that line on me and frankly getting a bit frustrated at them. Find that the after sales service is not quite up to scratch given the stds they've set during pre-sale.

[Turbobrick]

Have to admit that SM's service is not up to par with their sales standards. That's why I didn't go back after my warranty expired.

 

what's more due to the increased sale after the launch of the S80 back in 1999 their service dept has been overcrowded since......

[Wildswan]

i think those guys at SM do not really care. i am thinking of seeing the in charge to make noise too. i attribute the problem to bad design. have you heard of anyone who made enough noise and got sm to bear the repair charge in full or partially?

 

Sorry to hear abt your plight. Yes, assuming your S40 is still under warranty think u should make some noise at SM. Even if warranty is over, should still make noise. Afterall, it's "For Life" what.

[Koolaba]

Hi Gav,

 

I suspect it's poor design on the seals for the headlamp and fog lamps. Just claimed a pair of fog lamps 2 months ago and the fogging problem surfaced again.

 

My relative's driving a Phase II also, encountered the same problem but could not be bothered to do anything abt it. I suspect there may be more cases out there, unreported.

 

My SR has given me SM's after sales mgr's e-mail. Posted the pics to him and was told that they will get bk to me ASAP.

[Koolaba]

Hopefully not, my SR is quite on the ball. We'll call him whenever any problems on the S40 arise. So far so good.

[Koolaba]

If u need the after sales mgr's e-mail, let me know. U can make noise to him

[Soya]

Could u let me have the after sales mgr's e-mail too? If they use any more lousy excuses, we should write to their CEO directly.

[Turbobrick]

Try to make noise to whichever upstairs managers U can catch, worse case try to get tech bulletins or recall information from US of A. They are damn on the ball about recalls and manufacturer defects.