[meinstei]

I own a 2016 XC90 T6 Inscription and just called the Parts Department at my local Volvo dealer.
I was quoted $1,255 for the "kit" PLUS $230, Labor, for a total of almost $1,500.
They said that just the Modem and Wire harness are $799, and then there is a SIM card and Software that brings the price up to $1,255.
They quoted me $230 for "labor", so total would be almost $1,500.
Even the parts guy said this was pretty insanely expensive. He said they have done kits for other cars (60s, 90s), etc., but that the kits are about half the cost, so the totals for those install is around $800, whereas for the XC90 it's almost twice that.

I want remote start and remote (main reason we want it), but not for $1,500..
I'm in the Berkshires of Mass, and there is only one dealer close by.. Rest are over 50 miles away.
This price seems pretty insane.
What are other's getting quoted?

And is there ANY other option to somehow get "remote start" working again without the modem upgrade and app? Would be great if there was just some way for a "key fob" that could trigger it - that would solve the issue for me for 90% of the time, since the car is usually parked just in front of our house. Grrrrr....

Regards,

Michael

 

[erple2]

The 3G shutdown was known way before 2019, don't let volvo blow smoke up your ass they didn't know until then. Why else would they put 4g modems in 2017s?

I'm sure it was speculated before 2019, but I don't know if AT&T corporate had said anything official about discontinuing it. And making long term product maintenance updates based on speculation is pretty bad business practices. Note that the 2016/2017 models had been in the design pipeline for at least 2 years prior to their first release - probably longer given the complete redesign of SPA vs. the previous generations. So I'm willing to give Volvo some slack.

I can also reasonably see that initial design of a drop-in replacement module takes time to design, and then implement a plan for replacing. And then we "lost" about 2 years due to a chip shortage and Pandemic that occurred just as initial implementation/testing was planned to start. So yea, sounds to me like Volvo got caught with their pants down, but I'm not sure they could have done all that much better. Volvo is NOT a mega large car manufacturer that can fast track things when things don't quite go according to plan (or when a Pandemic stops things for more than a year)

 

[Delmarva]

That 3G would be closed to allow spectrum to be used for other services was well known and talked about in the press for years. Nothing speculative about it.

 

[erple2]

That 3G would be closed to allow spectrum to be used for other services was well known and talked about in the press for years. Nothing speculative about it.

Sure. But the first actual 4G LTE modems didn't really exist outside of research devices until 2009, and wide scale adoption of that particular brand of 4G (vs. mwave) didn't really start until about 2010/2011, which is when work on SPA started. I dunno. I think the adoption and destruction of the 3G network was pretty stinkin' fast all things considered in the car industry. Probably as quickly as 4G LTE will be? But 3G's rise to prominence didn't really start until early/mid 2000, before "everyone had a mobile device" (at least, not in certain markets). Adopting a technology that changes this rapidly in an industry that changes much more slowly is pretty hard to do for any car maker, let alone one that isn't a technology company first (ie Tesla).

I can easily see that the testing and validation lead times would have targeted about a year+ ahead of the original "shutdown" date of 3G, but then the Pandemic kind of threw a wrench into the high tech supply lines. I'm just saying that I think it's a bit unreasonable to expect Volvo to move more quickly on this than they did.

 

[Delmarva]

We as car buyers had ample warning that 3G was going to disappear because our new cell phones had been 4G long before. However 3G worked in cars until this year so the loss was really not all that big a deal considering conditions. And the new modems are now available.

 

[nh_ets]

I called 2 dealers. My local one in MN quote the 1500 I am seeing on this thread.
A dealer in southern CA where family are located said "maybe 1000 but we can't do it yet because the software doesn't work even if we install."

SO...has anyone had a SUCCESSFUL install with the software working now? Sounds like there may be an issue even after the hardware is in. This is for a 2016 XC90.

 

[inteller]

i think they are referring to the service campaign for P3 modems. I've heard nothing about the SPA solution software being messed up

 

[Gary-16-Xc90]

@nh_ets
...SO...has anyone had a SUCCESSFUL install with the software working now? Sounds like there may be an issue even after the hardware is in. This is for a 2016 XC90.

Yes, my 4G LTE Upgrade was successfully done on 13 Oct. 22. The Volvo Cars app, VOC button, et al work fine. VOC Customer Care confirmed that they could see my vehicle's location, too.

Although others may not, I use AT&T unlimited data plan with the vehicle modem. AT&T had a glitch in their system where my VIN (being a MY16) was tied to a 3G SIM. Not sure what their backend fix was, but my vehicle modem and vehicle hotspot now work, too (as of 3 Nov 22).

By the way, I just receive a $200 (max) rebate from Volvo for based on the costs of the vehicle modem.

 

[nums]

On 10/28/22, I paid $1,300 for the 4G LTE Upgrade on my 2016 XC90. It works perfectly. It restored both safety and convenience:

1. SOS (automatically notify police/EMT in case occupants are disabled following crash)
2. locate car if stolen or if driver forgot where it was parked
3. remotely sound horn/flash lights when looking for car in large parking facility
4. remotely turn on air conditioning/heating before getting in car on sweltering or freezing day
5. notify owner that parked vehicle has unlocked doors & ability to lock them remotely
6. remotely see tire pressure, brake fluid, burnt out bulbs, average fuel consumption, etc.
7. show on iPhone the date, elapsed time, distance and MPG for each trip

 

[neuerburg]

Does anyone have an Service Manager Bulletin from Volvo for this change? I would like that as a PDF

It should indicate the workload.
Service Manager Bulletin 00-035 for the non-SPA models claims around 1 hour +/- 20 minutes. And it says to provide 2 years free complimentary Volvo on Call

 

[adammerve]

They manufactured and sold vehicles that have features that owners paid for that don’t work any more, why is it just assumed that the consumer has to eat this cost? Tutuapp

 

[Tech]

They manufactured and sold vehicles that have features that owners paid for that don’t work any more, why is it just assumed that the consumer has to eat this cost?

Technically, they work. The system it connects to doesn't.

 

[Delmarva]

They manufactured and sold vehicles that have features that owners paid for that don’t work any more, why is it just assumed that the consumer has to eat this cost?

Do you own a cell phone?

 

[Pioneer4x4]

Technically, they work. The system it connects to doesn't.

Yep, like back in the day, I recall having cell phones that were analog. (and some were built into cars) that were made obsolete when that service was turned off. Can't blame the cell phones for not working.

 

[bencrabtree27]

Question that @Tech might know..... There are not a lot of Volvos here in the junk yards, but if an SPA were to show up, could one go in and grab it, and have the dealer program it? Or are they specific to one vehicle? For example a 2018 V60 comes in... would that modem work in a 2016 XC90?

 

[Tech]

I'm not sure if they can be reprogrammed to another vehicle or not

 

[Mike w]

At the end of last month, the 4G Modem upgrade option for the 2016 XC90 was finally made widely available.

I called my dealership to let them know (they hadn’t heard yet), and they gave me a quote for the upgrade after some research.

They quoted me $1,699.54 for parts and labor before tax. Has anyone here gone through with this upgrade yet? Does this cost seem right?

yes I as well have been tracking this modem “issue”. Issue because it was working until something beyond my control caused it to no work. An “upgrade” is an enhancement to something that is already performing to its normal requirements. Which this is not

At the end of last month, the 4G Modem upgrade option for the 2016 XC90 was finally made widely available.

I called my dealership to let them know (they hadn’t heard yet), and they gave me a quote for the upgrade after some research.

They quoted me $1,699.54 for parts and labor before tax. Has anyone here gone through with this upgrade yet? Does this cost seem right?

At the end of last month, the 4G Modem upgrade option for the 2016 XC90 was finally made widely available.

I called my dealership to let them know (they hadn’t heard yet), and they gave me a quote for the upgrade after some research.

They quoted me $1,699.54 for parts and labor before tax. Has anyone here gone through with this upgrade yet? Does this cost seem right?

 

[Mike w]

At the end of last month, the 4G Modem upgrade option for the 2016 XC90 was finally made widely available.

I called my dealership to let them know (they hadn’t heard yet), and they gave me a quote for the upgrade after some research.

They quoted me $1,699.54 for parts and labor before tax. Has anyone here gone through with this upgrade yet? Does this cost seem right?

yes I as well have been tracking this modem “issue”. Issue because it was working until something beyond my control caused it to no work. An “upgrade” is an enhancement to something that is already performing to its normal requirements. Which this is not!! I found out two weeks after the tech release and after the dealership said it had not been fixed yet as 3 of the 6 years having owned my xc90 were without this main part of my vehicles initial driving functions. So my price was going to be $1,350 parts and labor. I was completely shocked by not only the price but also that it was not covered under a technology design issue “FIX”. So I’m still without the fix until they realize that this is not an upgrade and take care of this. Mike Wicht Omaha, Nebraska USA

 

[Mike w]

Just did. Same part cost, but only about $150 labor. Fishy.

I believe they are trying to pay for the research time it took to FIX this issue. Mike W

 

[mitchelldm7]

I own a 2016 XC90 T6 Inscription and just called the Parts Department at my local Volvo dealer.
I was quoted $1,255 for the "kit" PLUS $230, Labor, for a total of almost $1,500.
They said that just the Modem and Wire harness are $799, and then there is a SIM card and Software that brings the price up to $1,255.
They quoted me $230 for "labor", so total would be almost $1,500.
Even the parts guy said this was pretty insanely expensive. He said they have done kits for other cars (60s, 90s), etc., but that the kits are about half the cost, so the totals for those install is around $800, whereas for the XC90 it's almost twice that.

I want remote start and remote (main reason we want it), but not for $1,500..
I'm in the Berkshires of Mass, and there is only one dealer close by.. Rest are over 50 miles away.
This price seems pretty insane.
What are other's getting quoted?

And is there ANY other option to somehow get "remote start" working again without the modem upgrade and app? Would be great if there was just some way for a "key fob" that could trigger it - that would solve the issue for me for 90% of the time, since the car is usually parked just in front of our house. Grrrrr....

Regards,

Michael

I highly recommend the solution from Midcity Engineering and Drone Mobile (Volvo XC60 and XC90 Remote Start – SKSXC | Mid City Engineering Store.) It takes just a few minutes for any car electronics shop to install, and works perfectly -- door locks, remote start, everything as expected. In fact, I've found it to be substantially faster/more responsive than the Volvo On Call app was in starting the vehicle.

It also enables remote start via the fob as an added benefit -- three taps on the lock button, and that's it.

I've had this installed for about 18 months, after becoming impatient with Volvo's lack of communication. Again, highly recommended. About $400 all installed for me. Supposedly you can install it yourself, but I have a good shop nearby that I trusted more than I do myself.