M
MSV
I live in Italy.
In January my 13month old Volvo v40 (1.9D) took fire while it was
regularly parked in a normal clean and asphalted street, at 10 in the
morning, after a trip of only a few kms. The fire started form the
engine area and, before it was estinguished by the firemen, had the
time to destroy the whole front part of the car. There is virtually no
chance that the fire was caused by external factors: there was no
source of heat in the car's proximity and the time of the day and all
the circumstances exclude that someone might have intentionally
started the fire (this was also ruled out by the firemen themselves).
No one ever put his hands into the car's engine from the day of
purchase, except technicians form the authorized car dealership where
I had bought it 13 months earlier and where the car was taken two
months before the fire tooke place for the regular scheduled check-in.
The car was still covered by a guarantee, as confirmed by Volvo
itself, but the company is telling me that they do not consider this
fire to be caused by a defect of the car, even if they can't tell me
what was the cause of it. Pictures of the burned car were sent by the
dealership, where it was taken after the fire, to the italian branch
"Volvo Italia". In any case they are offering me an extra 10%
discount on the purchase of a new Volvo. I'll get some other money
from the insurance.
I read on the internet, and this piece of news was later confirmed by
Volvo itself, that there is going to be a worldwide recall of Volvo
cars for a defect concerning the electric cables connecting the fan
cooler of some models which "might cause a fire". I have a strong
suspicion that this is what happended to my car. However, the model
Volvo V40 (not sold in the US, someone told me) is not among those
which are going to be recalled, and thus "Volvo Italia" keeps telling
me that this means my problem was due to some other causes.
Is there anyone reading this newsgroup which was in a similar
situation? I heard that the Swedish TV a couple of years ago had a
program about "Volvo fires" in Sweden. On Volvo's website there is a a
statement by Volvo about this, claiming that, as a percentage, Volvo
cars (which are obviously very numerous in Sweden) are no more likely
to take fires than other brands (actually less, according to them).
Whta is the normal attitude of Volvo worldwide about such a problem? I
am talking about a a car still under guarantee. Is the position of the
Italian branch "Volvo Italia" the standard position of Volvo?
They told me that the pictures of my car where seen also at some
technical HQ in Sweden and "if there was the slightest suspicion of a
technical malfunctioning they would have acted immediately".
What should I believe? Of course Volvo is counting on the fact the a
legal action would be costly and lengthy, but in any case I would like
to understand better what one should do in such a situation.
Thanks to all.
Maurizio
In January my 13month old Volvo v40 (1.9D) took fire while it was
regularly parked in a normal clean and asphalted street, at 10 in the
morning, after a trip of only a few kms. The fire started form the
engine area and, before it was estinguished by the firemen, had the
time to destroy the whole front part of the car. There is virtually no
chance that the fire was caused by external factors: there was no
source of heat in the car's proximity and the time of the day and all
the circumstances exclude that someone might have intentionally
started the fire (this was also ruled out by the firemen themselves).
No one ever put his hands into the car's engine from the day of
purchase, except technicians form the authorized car dealership where
I had bought it 13 months earlier and where the car was taken two
months before the fire tooke place for the regular scheduled check-in.
The car was still covered by a guarantee, as confirmed by Volvo
itself, but the company is telling me that they do not consider this
fire to be caused by a defect of the car, even if they can't tell me
what was the cause of it. Pictures of the burned car were sent by the
dealership, where it was taken after the fire, to the italian branch
"Volvo Italia". In any case they are offering me an extra 10%
discount on the purchase of a new Volvo. I'll get some other money
from the insurance.
I read on the internet, and this piece of news was later confirmed by
Volvo itself, that there is going to be a worldwide recall of Volvo
cars for a defect concerning the electric cables connecting the fan
cooler of some models which "might cause a fire". I have a strong
suspicion that this is what happended to my car. However, the model
Volvo V40 (not sold in the US, someone told me) is not among those
which are going to be recalled, and thus "Volvo Italia" keeps telling
me that this means my problem was due to some other causes.
Is there anyone reading this newsgroup which was in a similar
situation? I heard that the Swedish TV a couple of years ago had a
program about "Volvo fires" in Sweden. On Volvo's website there is a a
statement by Volvo about this, claiming that, as a percentage, Volvo
cars (which are obviously very numerous in Sweden) are no more likely
to take fires than other brands (actually less, according to them).
Whta is the normal attitude of Volvo worldwide about such a problem? I
am talking about a a car still under guarantee. Is the position of the
Italian branch "Volvo Italia" the standard position of Volvo?
They told me that the pictures of my car where seen also at some
technical HQ in Sweden and "if there was the slightest suspicion of a
technical malfunctioning they would have acted immediately".
What should I believe? Of course Volvo is counting on the fact the a
legal action would be costly and lengthy, but in any case I would like
to understand better what one should do in such a situation.
Thanks to all.
Maurizio