The 1st generation Volvo S80 was one of the most innovative vehicles to hit the automotive market during its release in 1998. Featuring a specially designed gearbox and prophetically designed features to minimize the car’s impact on the environment, the S80 was a worthy flagship for the Volvo company’s facelift. Some owners report that their S80 makes strange clunking sounds during turns.
Hearing a clunking or thudding sound while turning is definitely not a good sign. It feels like the car might be falling apart beneath your feet, and there’s really no way to tell from the drivers seat what is going on. The check engine light usually doesn’t accompany a problem like this, but the sound itself is a warning that something unusual is occurring, and that this needs to be addressed.
But what exactly is happening? Unfortunately, there is no one most likely option. You might just be dealing with the tire rubbing against the wheel well, but clunking usually indicates something more serious. On the increasingly bad end of things, it might be related to your sway bar. The sway bar (or anti-roll bar) connects your right and left wheels via a series of short arms and prevents the vehicle from rolling during tight turns. If the bolts connecting the various arms come lose or undone you can expect to hear just the sort of thudding/clunking sounds discussed above. Another possibility lies with the struts. The struts are like glorified shock absorbers, and they are only on the front end of the car. Damaged struts will exhibit themselves in the same audible way as damaged sway bars.
Now, you can keep driving around, hoping that the sound will go away on its own (it won’t), or you can quickly take it to a local Volvo repair center where a professional can hoist your 1st generation Volvo S80 up, look at the undercarriage, and tell you exactly what you’re dealing with and how much it will cost to repair.
Search for a local, independent Volvo repair shop with Volvo mechanics that have dealer-level expertise at a fraction of the expense.