[Mr.O]

It took them more than 2 weeks to find out that it's air filter was soaking wet? How long will it take for Volvo to check it's air filter. If they had found out about a soaking wet air filter earlier (which they should have) they would have replied something instead of saying they have "no clue". Even after 2 weeks if they produced a "soaking" wet air filter, those guys are lying and making up stories. I suggest you escalate this case.

[trailblazin]

The story cooked up by the service center does not seem very genuine. You might get better assistance if you contact Volvo India. I know a few friends who have gotten fantastic service and results from Volvo India when approached.

I doubt if the insurance company will cover it unless your car is covered by an "engine protection" policy. This is usually an add on over and above a 0 depreciation policy.

[Jaggu]

Originally Posted by sanojrawap

I'd also like to mention that in the past 3 Years, we've had problems like this before, in which the car had died, but the past few times it was due to the battery being dead, reason being the belt that charges the battery snapped. 2 Times.

The first time it happened, we got it fixed, thinking it must've been normal wear and tear, but, the replacement belt we got snapped within 1 Week. They gave us a new one, and that seems to be working fine now.

Belt snapping for a 57k kms engine?! Something is wrong here, do you have records of this?

Coming back to the engine seizure, does anyone have any comments? What should I do? How can we confirm water actually got into the engine, if we did nothing that could have let it get in?

Only way is to open and check.

What about 11 Lac for a new engine, is that the correct price? Can I get one any cheaper? Is there any other place to get it fixed?

Price seems to be ok for imported engine.

Shouldn't it be covered by insurance?

If they say water damage, does your insurance have flood cover? If so it should.

Originally Posted by ajmat

If the car had water in the engine, it would damage the pistons/ piston rods. If the engine is running still, it might be something else

If its minor and say a slightly bent connecting rod, maybe not. I have gone through this and the sound is something we also faced. Bent con rod was touching the cylinder, audible only at idle.

Originally Posted by GTO

But first, what you need is the right diagnosis.

Exactly, assuming the worst case. Even if it is water damage and knowing the fact that the engine runs, you might just need to replace the engine block and some other parts which would be much less costly an exercise. Like GTO mentioned, try to get it diagnosed at a different dealership while getting Volvo India into the loop.

[shyampsunder]

Volvo India is known to be very proactive wrt their customer service. You can pin the dealership down with this approach.
1. Tell them that you have insurance coverage for your car and the insurance company needs it in writing from them that water logging is the reason that the engine is ruined.
2. Take it up with Volvo India and ask them if in case of water logging is it part of their SOP to run the engine in front of the customer?

Escalate it as much as possible and always be very courteous.

I am pretty sure that these high end cars have sensors to detect water ingress. It wouldn't have taken the service center more than a day to detect this. They seem to be trying to pull a fast one on you

[psispace]

Originally Posted by sanojrawap

No news for a few days, and after repeated attempts to contact them, they finally responded, saying they still have no clue.

A couple of weeks later, they ask us to come visit They told us that water got into the engine

All this is very unlike the experiences most Volvo owners here had. There have been delays in delivery of certain parts of course. Even some inordinate delays for major accident repairs. But customers were always kept in the loop.

They turned on the engine, and kept revving it, to show us the knocking sound.

Next, they said, they don't know what exactly the rattling is, and that they'd have to open the engine to find out.

Nothing for a month, and finally we get an update. They say we need to buy a new engine, and quote us 11 Lac. The car was put on a flatbed and sent to our house.

The past few times it was due to the battery being dead, reason being the belt that charges the battery snapped. 2 Times.

The first time it happened, we got it fixed, thinking it must've been normal wear and tear, but, the replacement belt we got snapped within 1 Week. They gave us a new one, and that seems to be working fine now.

All this reeks of unprofessionalism on their part. You don't seem to have done that much mileage for such frequent timing-belt wear. Collect service records of these ( or e-mail interactions if any) and mention them in your interaction with Volvo.

What about 11 Lac for a new engine, is that the correct price? Can I get one any cheaper? Is there any other place to get it fixed?

In international Volvo forums, refurbished D5 engines were bought for around 5 lakhs rupees worth. So I guess, this cost for a new one is expected. I am sure there will be competent mechanics outside in Pune or Mumbai. You can check it out with them and also get a second opinion in the process.
But even if you were to outsource and get the engine, fixing it outside would be quite risky considering there is also software involved in these machines. It might also void your insurance.

Shouldn't it be covered by insurance?

Check your insurance papers for natural calamities coverage. If present, you could request for coverage under that category. If they accept, it could end your woes.

Please keep Volvo informed. They have been quite responsive to e-mails and queries and should be able to help.

Wish you luck and hope this turns out well.

[sanojrawap]

Thanks

I've written a mail to Volvo India telling them about the situation and what happened, etc.
I am still waiting for a reply from their side, although it has just been 2 Days.

Regarding the soaked air filter. At the time of visiting the showroom I didn't think it through, but now after some thought, and all of your comments, I can definitely agree that this is a sly way of minting money from an unsuspecting customer. Thankfully I have Team BHP!

They hadn't done anything to the car yet when I visited, but they supposedly remove the air filter. They did manage to start the car though, which, as mentioned, shouldn't have worked if water got into the engine.

Anyway, I'll have to confirm to see if we have anything in writing, even related to the previous issues, and will keep this thread updated!

[Sheel]

Originally Posted by Jaggu

If its minor and say a slightly bent connecting rod, maybe not. I have gone through this and the sound is something we also faced. Bent con rod was touching the cylinder, audible only at idle.

I too faced this and the ASC people cleaned up everything, checked all filters, lubes, cleaned injectors and then cranked up the engine.

The worst fear was bent con-road, but thank God, I was spared of this ordeal.

Yup, flood cover is necessary which is not a part of comprehensive/bumper to bumper insurance.

[landcruiser123]

Originally Posted by sanojrawap

a knocking sound coming from the engine when it is on. They turned on the engine, and kept revving it, to show us the knocking sound. I couldn't hear much due to some background noise, so they go to turn it off, while leaving the engine on. A few minutes later they return, and I can hear the noise, and by now I was thinking that them keeping the engine on and revving it, could have only made it worse.

No mechanic in the right frame of mind would ever do this!! The golden rule is not to run the engine when there are knocking sounds from it.

If the car has gone in 1m deep water, some dirt marks in the engine bay would have been washed and the difference would be evident. Try getting them to remove the front grill and check. Check behind the radiator fan as the water would be continuously splashed behind and around it. And do take pictures.

As many suggested, write to Volvo and maybe transport the truck to the mumbai dealer.

[biju1971]

My suggestion would be to check the oil dipstick,if water had got in some of it would have seeped into the crankcase . If there is a discolouration it means water has got in. If there was water on top of the piston i doubt if the engine would have started.

[MunnabhaiMBBS]

Legal route seems to be more sensible as ASC might have damaged the engine further.

- ASC looks incompetent.
- Request them to pen down the assessment report and hand it over to you.
- Once the Volvo technicians come into the picture, they will surely try to pass the buck on you in the beginning. Do not let them run over you.
- Get your car diagnosed by a trustworthy garage and obtain the assessment report.
- If there is a gap in the findings of two reports, approach a result oriented lawyer, PM me if you require one (Am also from Pune)
- Keep sharpening you axe, One hit is all you need

[jfxavier]

I have seen Volvo technicians (from Sweden) attending vehicles that the ASS technicians were not able to troubleshoot and those issues were much smaller compared to an Engine change.
Looks like Volvo has been kept out of the loop by ASS.
Have heard of another XV60 that the same ASS had replaced the engine complete. A friend of mine purchased that car later. Maybe Engine replacement is one of the specialties of that particular service center.

In any case, please update the thread with your experience.

[Viju]

Originally Posted by sanojrawap

Dear BHPians,...........and get something else!

sanojrawap

Better late than never - get Volvo India involved asap!

Send a strongly worded e-mail with accurate dates and facts to service@volvocarindia.com

Source: http://www.volvocars.com/in/footer/contact-us

[Khushrav]

Tough luck. I know of my colleague who owns an s60 and has encountered many similar but smaller problems. There was a point of time when he wrote and contacted the head of Service in India and the problems were given a faster resolution. Do try that. Ask the service centre for a complete and detailed diagnostic report.

Also, most of the insurance companies do cover engine failure. Please check if that is already included.

[wanderhermit]

Just take the car to a good known Mechanic and have his opinion.

Water can enter engine in many ways. You must see the position of air intake. If it is facing front in the front grill, then it is very easy for water to enter.

My crv has intake in the front grill. Quiet unlike the gypsy.

Even alto has better intake system to handle Indian monsoons and road conditions than cars like crv, BMW etc.

A friend has similar prob with his BMW 5 series. ASS changed the engine block for around 5.5 lacs. In a crv its around 3 lacs.

[lurker]

From my research on this, water ingress is extremely unlikely to be culprit behind the engine knocking. Especially in a dry-to-the-bone place like Pune. Possible reasons behind this could be a variety of manufacturing defect.

1. Seized idler pulley: It is a manufacturing defect. Due to lack of grease in idlers from their initial manufacture. An idler being a rolling bearing will run for a surprisingly long period of time without lubricant until the knocking sound can be heard outside.

2. radiator hose clamp could get loosened or insecure. Causing engine to lose coolant, overheat or seize if not attended to in time.

3. oil pump software malfunction can cause inefficient cooling and resultant engine seize. It is extreme situation but could be possible. But other signs would have been evident before.