Speed control problem. My 2001 Volvo S60 lost power last night, while I was in the fast lane driving 70 mph on interstate 5! I rapidly lost speed and by some miracle was able to weave through traffic to the roadside. The engine continued to run but it was as if the gas pedal was not connected to the engine. I managed to proceed at fast idle speed to an off ramp and found a parking lot, where I shut off the engine. I contacted the company I bought the car from and they suggested that I try to re-start the engine, which I did and the problem had corrected itself. I have scheduled my Volvo for service. The irony is that my wife has a 2001 Volvo xc station wagon and the same problem occurred with her vehicle last September. The Volvo dealer corrected the problem by replacing an ECM and re-programming it. The problem with her Volvo xc hasn't re-occurred. The real concern is that in both instances, we were traveling on an interstate freeway at high speed when the problem occurred and only by pure luck didn't cause an accident!!

- Camano Island, WA, USA

2001 Volvo S60 2.4T with 88,000 miles and record of regular maintenance began sputter and show a performance reduced message, causing the engine to stop accelerating and slow down to a crawl. This happened once on a major street, and then again on the interstate. Both times I was able to get out of traffic quickly, thankfully preventing any potential incidents. The mechanic, who has it now, indicated the computer recognized a throttle problem, but nothing from there. Various outlets mentioned a problem with the electronic throttle mechanism, that was not being publicly reported by Volvo.

- Winston-Salem, NC, USA

Several episodes of sudden loss of power while driving. Episode 1/28/06 nearly resulted in collision at intersection when attempting to accelerate through turn. Engine warning light came on, indicating: "reduced power" max speed 18 mph, uphill 5 mph. Engine rough, ETM failure.

- Ft Washington, PA, USA

(1) at around 6:30am, Saturday, January 7, 2006, I was driving in san francisco going downhill. Once I hit the bottom of the hill, I began taking a left turn. (2) in the process of conducting my left turn, my car completely stalled and all power steering was lost. Had there been parked cars on the road that morning, I would have directly hit them due to the lack of power steering as I slammed on my brakes to stop from hitting the sidewalk. Immediately, the "reduced performance" light came on and fortunately, after 10 minutes of leaving my car in the middle of the road because it would not start, I was able to start it again and drive it back to my home. (3) I took the car to royal motors, 1525 howard street, san francisco, ca and they informed me that there had been an extended warranty associated with the ETM failure. However, Volvo had instructed them to first attempt to clean the ETM and see if there are any failures after cleaning. I told the representative that if this happens again, I may not be in san francisco as I commute on the freeway to work in palo alto each day. They said this is the only way to have Volvo pay for the ETM failure. So, I simply said okay and received my car back the next day.

- San Francisco, CA, USA

Throttle control module of my 2001 Volvo S60 failed. The vehicle would go from a normal driving condition (road load, approx. 45 mph) to a reduced speed of a max. 20 - 25 mph. After trail and error, I learned that after 5 to 6 engine restarts, I could get the vehicle to drive normal, without the reduced power. But over time the vehicle would go back into the same reduced power mode.

- Canton, MI, USA

:the contact stated while driving, the vehicle intermittently lost power and lurched forward. This happened when the gas pedal was depressed after depressing the brake pedal. Then, the vehicle lurched forward with force. The problem became current and happened several times a day.

- Fayetteville, GA, USA

The contact stated his vehicle hesitated and surged. Right before the vehicle hesitated or surged it lost power. It started as an intermittent problem but is now occurring daily. The rate of speed does not seem to be a factor. However, it does often occur between 40 and 50 mph. But, it has occurred at lower speeds. The vehicle stalled twice. The first time the vehicle would not restart and was towed into the dealership. The dealer cleaned the electric control (ETM), and this solved the problem for one week. The second time the vehicle stalled the contact turned the ignition off and waited twenty minutes. The vehicle immediately restarted, and he was able to drive the vehicle home. The vehicle is currently in the dealership awaiting diagnostic testing and repairs. The dealer has been in contact with the manufacturer. They are discussing replacing the ETM and other procedures to fix the problem.

- Marina Del Ray, CA, USA

The contact stated while driving vehicle stalled intermittently. The vehicle has been to a dealership with the same problems four different times. The throttle body was replaced. The vehicle was experiencing the same problems again. The repairs were being done at contact's expense.

- Kingston , WA, USA

I was on a long trip back home on 11/29/05 when I noticed my 2001 Volvo started surging after about 20 minutes of this it showed me a check engine light and a message appeared saying " performance reduced ". the car was basically shutting down. I was doing 75 mph at the time and had to pull over to the shoulder from the left lane 4 lanes over to the right. This was a little scary doing 75 mph. I sat on the shoulder for about 2 minutes and tried restarting the car. I seemed fine so I continued on. The same thing happened 2 more times on the trip home. The following Monday 11/1/05 I brought the car to a ramsey Volvo to have it looked at. They told me the ETM needed to be replaced. I had them replace it. The problem I have is that it seems as if this is very common among Volvo's with the ETM and it is quite dangerous when they fail. If as many fail as I see on the internet I feel Volvo should recall the ETM and fix it.

- New City, NY, USA

Car would suddenly lose power, causing unsafe situations in traffic. Warning light would come on along with check engine light and message saying "reduced performance". failure was intermittent at first and instrument lights would go back to normal.

- Madison, WI, USA

I own a 2001 Volvo S60 with a little over 18,000 miles on the vehicle. On 10-19-2005, I was stopped at an intersection waiting for the left lane turn signal. When the signal turned green, I proceeded into the intersection and noticed that my car started to lose power even though my foot was on the accelerator throttle. I applied more pressure to the accelerator throttle, but the vehicle continued to lose speed, then all of a sudden the vehicle lurched forward as if to kick in and the acceleration resumed. It was alarming, because if I had been on a freeway or had been in a situation whereby I had to pass a slow driver on a two lane highway, I could have been in some serious trouble. Again, my car has very low mileage for a 2001 vehicle. I would appreciate being included in any investigation that may uncover a possible defect in the vehicle regarding this matter. Thank you for your time and consideration. Sincerely, terry w. morris.

- Torrance, CA, USA

Volvo S60 2001 the vehicle exhibits a sudden loss of speed and engine power. This happens while driving in highway traffic without warning. I have had the vehicle to the Volvo dealer twice an they can't find anything wrong. I suspect that the electronic throttle control is the problem.

- Tinley Park, IL, USA

Electronic throttle module failure, lost steering and power on interstate at 80 miles per hour. Replaced control, replaced alternator, finally replaced emt. Part out of warranty I put myself at risk of death because of this part failure. Part not covered by warranty 80,000 miles on car.

- Mooresville, NC, USA

2001 Volvo S60 stalled at highway speeds. After the vehicle stall the consumer was able to restart it immediately. The vehicle was taken tot he dealer but they were unable O determine the cause of the problem.

- Unknown, DC, USA

I was driving on a busy highway, and making a left turn across traffic. When I depressed the gas pedal, the car could not accelerate above about five miles per hour. The computer on the car read" reduced performance" and I narrowly missed being in an accident as limped across the highway. The car required a new throttle, and the download of activation software. The cost for this repair was $736.56. When I had this problem, the mechanic told me of numerous past problems with the throttle on this model and a pending class action law suit against Volvo. I wrote to the Volvo corporation to tell them of this problem, and then learned that NHTSA was investigating this very problem. They apparently won't do anything to remedy this unless forced to. I thought it important to go on record with numerous other owners that have experienced this same defect. It sounds like a number of other people have narrowly avoided serious accidents. Please take care of this so someone is not injured or killed. This problem came out of nowhere, and certainly put me in a dangerous situation.

- Ithaca, NY, USA

While driving on highway the owner noticed a message came up which read performance reduced. The owner was traveling about 55-60 mph when the car lost power and wouldn't go over 30 mph. He then exit off the and the vehicle experienced a significant loss of power at a stop light. The idle was rough, and as the owner attempted to go through the light, the car wouldn't go over 10 mph. Then the owner put the flashers on and exited onto to the shoulder. The owner shut the car off because he couldn't continue on the road at that low speed. The owner sat there for about a minute, and was able to make it to work only about 1/2 mile away the message was still showing. Then as owner was driving the message changed to engine failure. The owner read the article about NHTSA investigation PE05041. The owner called the dealership and reported the loss of power. The owner has not had it repaired because the dealership was not aware of what could be causing the problem. An employee of a local dealership advised owner of the electronic throttle body problem. The owner has not contacted the manufacturer yet.

- Cranston, RI, USA

2001 Volvo S60. Vehicle stalled/lost power, and operated at reduced speeds due to throttle body failure..

- Sheffield, MA, USA

2001 Volvo S60 2.4T. Vehicle stalled/dies/ost power while driving at 40 mph due to throttle body failure.

- Sheffield , MA, USA

(1) car ran rough in any gear when trying to maintain speed (2) I took it to the dealer immediately because I could not stand it (3) $1409 repair to replace the electronic throttle module. I was told if I did not replace it the car would stall and be undriveable.

- West Hartford, CT, USA

2001 Volvo S60. The caller stated the air flow meter was replaced at the cost $290. This started about a year ago, ands happened 5-6 times. The car will lose power and stall. The check engine light came on. Took vehicle to the dealer, and they ran a diagnostic test, replaced air mass meter. The work was performed on April 5 2005, by wc motor comp Inc. The caller heard about the investigation, and I knew that this was what was wrong with vehicle. Did not contact the manufacturer, but just called NHTSA.

- Chesterfield , MO, USA