2007 Volvo XC90

While driving the vehicle under normal conditions, a sudden electrical fire occurred, requiring immediate evacuation. The vehicle was pulled over safely and the driver exited before the fire escalated. The fire department responded and the vehicle was declared a total loss due to fire damage. The failure is believed to have originated from an electrical short involving the climate control/defroster system. The affected wiring and components were destroyed by the fire and are not available for inspection. The day prior to the fire, the fuse controlling both the climate control system and the instrument cluster blew twice when the defroster was activated. The fuse was replaced, and the defroster was not used again. At the time of the fire, the defroster systems was not operating. There were no warning lights or alerts immediately prior to the fire. The fire occurred while the vehicle was in motion, creating a serious safety risk to the occupant and surrounding traffic. The incident has not been reproduced or inspected by a dealer. The vehicle was inspected by the fire department. No manufacturer inspection has occurred.

THE ISSUE FIRST STARTED ON MA 3RD, 2019. I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE HIGHWAY ON MY WAY TO THE BEACH. THE ROAD WAS A LITTLE BUMPY AND THEN ALL OF THE SUDDEN MY CAR LOST ALL POWER AND SHUT ITSELF OFF. IT THROUGH 3 CODES, 1. IMMOBILIZER, 2. ENGINE CONTROL MODULE AND 3. CLIMATE CONTROL MODULE. I WAS ABLE TO HAVE IT TOWED HOME. MY HUSBAND DECIDED TO RESEARCH WHAT COULD CAUSE THESE ISSUES. HE LOCATED A YOUTUBE VIDEO THAT WAS POSTED 2 YEARS AGO REGARDING THE ECM & CCM FUSES. THE MAN RECORDING THE VIDEO EXPERIENCED THE SAME PROBLEMS, AND FOUND THAT THE FUSE FOR THE TWO ITEMS HAVE BLOWN. MY HUSBAND THOUGHT MAYBE THAT MIGHT BE THE ISSUE. HE LOCATED THE FUSES AND FOUND THAT BOTH OF THEM WERE IN FACT BLOWN. HE REPLACED THEM BOTH WITH BRAND NEW FUZES AND THE CAR STARTED RIGHT NOW.. THE NEXT DAY, I DROVE TO WORK WITH NO ISSUES AND TO AND FROM LUNCH. ON MY WAY HOME, ABOUT 3 MILES FROM WORK, I WENT DOWN A SIDE STREET AS THERE WAS AN ACCIDENT AND TRAFFIC WAS BACKED UP. THE SIDE STREET HAD SPEED BUMPS. THE WENT OVER THE FIRST ONE WITH NO ISSUE, AND THE NEXT ONE IS ABOUT 100 - 200 FEET AFTER, AS SOON AS MY BACK TIRES WERE OVER THE 2ND BUMP, THE CAR SHUT IT SELF OFF AGAIN AND I WAS STUCK (MAY 6TH 2019). MY HUSBAND SHOWN MY WHERE THE FUZES WAS AND LEFT EXTRAS IN THE STORAGE AREA ON THE SAFE SIDE. AGAIN, BOTH WERE BLOWN. ONCE THEY WERE REPLACED FOR A 2ND TIME, CAR STARTED. NOW FAST FORWARD 5 MONTHS, THE ROAD FROM MY DADS HOUSE IS BEING REPAVED, AS YOU CAN IMAGE VERY BUMPY. I MADE IT OVER ALL THE BUMPS JUST FINE, BUT AS SOON AS I CROSSED OVER A MAJOR ROAD, THE CAR SHUT ITSELF OFF AGAIN... THIS TIME I DID NOT HAVE EXTRA FUZES, CALLED A TOW (OCTOBER 11 2019). WE WERE ABLE TO REPLACE THE FUZES AGAIN. NOW THE NEXT DAY EVERYTHING WAS FINE AGAIN, BUT THE SAME THING HAPPENED TWO MORE TIMES (OCTOBER 12, 2019). AND NOW THE CAR SITS IN MY DRIVEWAY, AS I FEEL VERY UNSAFE TO DRIVE IT.

AFTER 30 MINUTES OF HIGHWAY DRIVING EXITED ONTO SECONDARY ROAD TO ADD OIL FOR LOW OIL LIGHT INDICATOR. ENGINE BEGAN SMOKING IN TWO MINUTES AND LIFTING HOOD CAUSED ENGINE TO BURST INTO FLAMES. CHEMICAL FIRE RETARDANT SPRAYED WITHIN THREE MINUTES. RESULT WAS INCINERATED ALTERNATOR AND ALL CODES ALARMED. CAR TURNS OVER. FUSES GOOD.

IT'S A KNOWN FACT THE THE TRANSMISSION FOR MY MODEL YEAR 2007 HAVE A BAD VALVE BODY INSIDE THEM THAT CAN GO OUT AT ANY TIME. VOLVO KNOWS ABOUT THIS AND CHANGED OUT THE TRANSMISSION FOR THERE 2008 MODEL AND DID NOTHING ABOUT THE POIR YEARS. THE COST FOR A NEW TRANSMISSION IS WELL $5000. I JUST BOUGHT MY IN TO THE DEALERSHIP TO HAVE IT CHECKED. THE TRANSMISSION IS A FACTORY SEALED UNIT AND CAN NOT BE CHECKED. UNLESS YOU TAKE APART THE WHOLE LOWER PART OF THE CAR IN OTTO TAKE OUT THE TRANSMISSION.