Volvo XC90 Complaints

1,540 consumer complaints on file.

#11694587October 20, 2025
ENGINE, POWER TRAIN, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
On September 30, 2025, a 2016 Volvo XC90 T6 experienced sudden engine failure while driving westbound on I-75 (Alligator Alley) at highway speed. The vehicle abruptly went into reduced power mode (“turtle mode”) without warning. This forced the driver to stop on the roadside, creating a serious safety hazard in fast-moving traffic. Component/system that failed: Engine / Power Train. An independent repair facility performed diagnostics on October 6, 2025, including a compression test. Results confirmed that one cylinder had lost compression due to a failed cylinder head. The mechanic attributed this to excessive oil consumption from defective piston rings, a condition documented in Volvo technical bulletins. Inspection: The vehicle was inspected by an independent service center. Photos and test results are available for inspection upon request. The manufacturer was contacted and denied assistance, citing mileage, despite known oil consumption defects in this engine family. Safety risk: The sudden loss of power at highway speed put the driver and other motorists at risk of collision. With no advance warning, the driver was left stranded on a dangerous stretch of interstate. Reproduction: The failure has been confirmed through diagnostic testing and inspection by the independent service center. Manufacturer/police/insurance inspection: The manufacturer has been notified, but no inspection by Volvo has occurred to date. No police or insurance inspection was performed. Warning messages or lamps: Prior to the breakdown, no warning lamps or messages indicated impending failure. The first and only symptom was the sudden loss of power on the highway. Incident cause assessment: Based on mechanic’s findings, the underlying cause is piston ring/oil consumption defect leading to cylinder head failure. This defect is widely reported in Volvo vehicles with this engine and represents a safety-related condition.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11691939October 7, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
My 2023 Volvo xc90 was recalled for issues with the backup camera. Software update was installed twice without success. Finally camera was replaced. No success either.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11691437October 5, 2025
POWER TRAIN
My car completely locked up on the road and came to a screeching stop. This car is known for having the ERAD completely fail and it could have caused it to have a serious accident. It has also caused my car to plummet in value losing over 30k in just 3 years. Now my repairs cost nearly what it’s worth and aren’t guaranteed to actually fix it. It’s terrible. I’m so upside down n my loan due to this issue that they dealerships refuse to help on. The dealership acknowledges it is a design flaw but yet they won’t help. I have an email stating that it is a design flaw
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11691492October 5, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, AIR BAGS
Safety Complaint – Volvo XC90 Electrical and Airbag Malfunction Issues I am reporting ongoing safety concerns with my Volvo XC90 related to electrical malfunctions and unexpected engine shutdowns while driving. The vehicle has suddenly turned off multiple times, including: •Once before merging onto a highway, •Once while entering a roundabout, and •Once while driving in traffic. Each incident occurred without warning and created a hazardous situation with the potential for a collision. Additionally, the vehicle displayed an airbag malfunction warning once, raising concern about the reliability of the vehicle’s safety systems. The vehicle has been serviced multiple times, but the issues persist. I am requesting a formal investigation into these failures, as they pose a significant safety risk to the driver, passengers, and others on the road.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11690759October 1, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
There was always an issue with the car software. On several occasions while driving the entire screen will black out. I would need to pull over immediately so that the screen can be reset manually. Other times the screen is on, but there is no sound, such as my signal lights when switched to left or right will not have any sound, just blinking. Other times, when I back up the car, the cameras will blackout making it impossible to know if there are cars approaching or any pedestrians behind the car. This has happened on multiple occasions since I took the car on Oct 15 2023. These issues were brought to the attention of the Volvo dealership where the car is leased, but the problem was never fixed.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11690299September 29, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Rear evaporator coil (Failure) The rear evaporator coil failed on my Volvo XC90 purchased new at the dealership in 2019. This car only had 27,000 miles on it when the evaporator coil went bad. Refrigerant smells entered the cabin when AC was on while my 2 year old daughter was in the back. Having refrigerant leaking into the cabin is not great for health, especially that of a toddler. Additionally this could have caused an inability to defrost windows creating a safety hazard. All refrigerant leaked out leading to a condition where I had to drive in 90 - 100 degree temperatures with my daughter.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11689054September 22, 2025
SERVICE BRAKES
While driving, the brakes completely failed without any warning. There were no signs, alerts, or symptoms prior to the failure. The braking ability was suddenly and entirely lost, creating an extremely dangerous situation. Upon inspection, it was determined that the brake booster had failed. This component failure directly caused the complete loss of braking power. Because this occurred without warning or prior indication and such an unexpected failure not only poses a significant safety risk to the driver and passengers but endangers everyone on the road, and it represents a severe safety hazard. A sudden brake booster failure can easily lead to loss of vehicle control, accidents, injury, or even fatalities. Immediate action is required to address this serious issue that threatens public safety.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11688979September 22, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
My car is a 2022 Volvo hybrid T8, 6-passenger XC90. I purchased the SUV in August of 2023 as a "certified pre-owned" vehicle with only 17,923 miles on it at the time of purchase. This SUV has been fine until within the last two to three months (July-Sept. 2025). Now, in Sept. of 2025, my SUV only has 30,795 miles and we have had it serviced regularly, as required, and taken care of it as responsible vehicle owners. Beginning around June or July of 2025, I began seeing the "check engine" light, so I called the dealership where I purchased the vehicle and took it in for servicing. After a day, they said it was fixed and that it was a blown fuse or two, and it was good to go. Not even 3 weeks to a month later, the "check engine" light came on again. I called and took it back to the dealership. Same story, after less than a day they called me back after fixing something else (don't remember off the top of my head what they said it was, but it was allegedly minor). Now, about 3 days ago, Sept. of 2025, I began seeing the "check engine" light again, so for the 3rd time in less than 3 months I arranged for it to be serviced by the dealership again on 9/30. A day later, another "Propulsion System/maintenance required!!!" light came on as well, so I called to get servicing sooner because obviously the message is scary. I was told to bring it in, they would "work me in" but had no loaners I could use to get to and from work. So, at that point, I got my husband involved and now no one from the dealership is returning either of our calls, AND I'm being told there is no recall on my car, even though a simple google search reveals there is a recall on my same make/model/year SUV. I'm getting the same messages people got about the recall, so no clue why my vehicle isn't considered as part of the recall when I am having the SAME issues as the recalled vehicles are having. I am beyond frustrated and ready to dump this SUV if they are unable to properly repair it!!!!!
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11688622September 20, 2025
SERVICE BRAKES
The button to initiate the parking brake frequently does not work. With my foot firmly on the brake, I have had to push the Park button many times to put the vehicle in park. I have video of this incident. Other times, when not expecting it or recording video I have pressed the park button and not realized the vehicle didn’t go into park. When I released my foot on the brake the vehicle rolled forward. Thankfully no one or other vehicle was directly in front of the car.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11688273September 19, 2025
POWER TRAIN
On 8/20/2025, my 2018 Volvo XC90 T8 suffered catastrophic failure of the Electric Rear Axle Drive (ERAD). The vehicle suddenly developed a loud whining noise from the rear and became undriveable. This ERAD had previously been replaced under warranty at Boston Volvo Cars. On 10/28/2025, Queens Volvo inspected the vehicle and confirmed the failure was caused by improper prior service. Their technician documented that the ERAD housing was likely not properly torqued, which led to transmission fluid leaking over time, sludge buildup, and internal damage to gears and motor. The failure was sudden, confirmed by an authorized Volvo dealer, and the ERAD is no longer serviceable. This created a safety risk by causing immediate loss of propulsion and stability. If it had occurred at highway speeds, the risk of crash would have been significant. The failed component remains available for inspection.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11687839September 17, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS, BACK OVER PREVENTION: REARVIEW SYSTEM BRAKING
Interior car speakers stopped working which made collision audio cues not operational. During driving no blind spot audio, turn signal, and other audio was playing
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11687349September 15, 2025
POWER TRAIN, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Some critical functions on the center display console instrument panel are freezing up while driving - we are unable to change the drive mode while the car is in motion. This has not happened before, and it is glitching a lot lately. The display has been extremely slow and unresponsive, and the problem is multiplied as all critical functions of the car are controlled through the display panel. There were no warnings issued when we tried to change the drive mode. We had to pull over to the roadside, turn off the car for 30 seconds, then restart the car to fix the issue. We have [XXX] and [XXX] ) in the car, so this is becoming increasingly risky to drive this "safe" car by Volvo. We have reported such issues with the display to our Volvo service unit multiple times, and the car has been returned to us with such issues still lingering (despite the service reloading/updating the software multiple times) for the last 6 months since March of this year. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11687093September 13, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The A/C evaporator core in my 2017 Volvo XC90 failed prematurely, cracking and leaking refrigerant. This is a well-known problem among XC90 owners from model years 2016–2020. Repair costs are USD$5k+ because the entire dashboard must be removed to replace the evaporator. This is not normal wear and tear. Volvo has issued multiple Technical Journals (e.g. TJ 35912.1.0 -- attached -- and later revisions) instructing dealers to install an additional resistor in the evaporator temperature sensor harness when replacing the evaporator. This proves Volvo knows there is a design defect causing evaporator cracking and failure. However, Volvo corporate has declined to assist with repairs for my vehicle. Driving without A/C in high summer heat presents a serious risk of heat exhaustion or heat stroke, particularly during long commutes (I drive over an hour each way daily). The HVAC system is also critical for defogging and defrosting the windshield. Loss of refrigerant and evaporator performance can impair defroster operation, creating visibility hazards. The combination of extreme cabin heat and impaired defrosting creates an unreasonable risk to safety, not merely an inconvenience. In addition, right now it costs me just a few hundred dollars to refill my AC system every summer. This is what I've been doing for several summers now. But the Volvo quote to fix this factory defect was over $6k. So that means myself and thousands of others are all incentivized to just fill up R134A and have it leak out, harming the environment in the process. Volvo's refusal to recall and fix this issue is causing this economic incentive. It should be on them to fix their failure, not us. I asked Volvo corporate to goodwill this repair but they declined to do this (see attached).
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11686482September 10, 2025
BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA
Backup camera stopped working during reverse event. Recall did not fix the issue.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11685940September 9, 2025
POWER TRAIN
Known supercharger leak on 2016 Volvo XC90 at 60,000 miles. Numerous reports of the same failure. Dealer and Volvo declined goodwill repair. Potential safety/fire issue if oil leakage worsens
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11686070September 9, 2025
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
Two major incidents occurred: 1)My fiance and I were driving on the highway with our four children at a speed of >50 MPH. There were no cars around us (front or sides) and no debris in the road, and the automatic emergency braking system engaged and brought the car to an abrupt stop in the middle of the highway. It happened a second time shortly thereafter at a speed around 30 MPH, again without any obstructions. I'm happy to provide the car for inspection upon request unless the manufacturer takes responsibility for this very serious malfunction and grants us a manufacturer buy-back. Stopping abruptly for no reason on the highway could have caused someone to rear-end us at a high speed and could have caused a very serious or fatal crash. I have spoken to the dealer multiple times (and I filed a complaint with Volvo Customer Care several weeks ago) and they say they'll try to "fix" it, but it's not a problem that we can ever risk having happen again. It is being inspected at the dealership now. There was no warning that this would occur. 2) There is a feature called "auto hold" whereby the driver can take their foot off the brake while sitting at a stop light and the car doesn't move again until the driver puts their foot on the accelerator. I was sitting at a stop light, using the auto hold feature, and even though I didn't put my foot on the accelerator, auto hold disengaged and the car started moving and hit the person in front of me. The malfunction of both the "auto hold" feature and the crash avoidance feature caused me to get in an auto accident. The dealer has the car and they're waiting for Volvo Customer Care to give them instructions about what to do. There were no warnings (like what normally would happen if the car is approaching something it thinks it might hit).
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11684873September 3, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The rear two car doors will not open. It started months ago with the left side and now is both doors. This is dangerous if anyone in the rear of the vehicle should need to exit in a timely manner. The dealership knows this is an issue, but says they are not obligated to fix it for free because there isn’t a recall yet.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11683113August 26, 2025
AIR BAGS, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
SRS warning light and was told that is is due to a faulty misassembled wiring in the seat harness. Possibility of the airbags not deploying correctly in case of a crash. The dealer has confirmed that it is the seat harness that needs to be replaced. Due to the Month/Year of the vehicle it does not fall under the original recall which was only for vehicles that were manufactured between Jan/May 2015.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11682539August 23, 2025
BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA
Backup camera not activating when in reverse sporadically. My recorded video of this happening: [XXX] Issue has been brought to the Volvo dealership service department. Remedy from the Volvo service has been to update software but it has not corrected the issue. Multiple of owners have encountered the same issue which is widely documented online. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11682382August 22, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS, BACK OVER PREVENTION: WARNINGS
The vehicle is subject to NHTSA Recall 25V-282 for a rearview camera failure that increases the risk of a crash. First Repair Attempt (August 15, 2025): A Volvo dealership performed the prescribed software update but failed to fix the safety defect. The vehicle was returned to me in the same unsafe condition. Second Repair Attempt (August 20, 2025): The dealership identified the root cause as a failed front parking sensor. They refused to cover the repair, classifying it as "physical damage" despite providing no evidence of an external impact. Manufacturer Refusal (August 22, 2025): Volvo Car USA formally denied my request to have the safety recall completed, improperly claiming the issue was due to "outside influence." They have refused to honor the recall and their new vehicle warranty. The manufacturer and its dealer have failed to remedy this acknowledged safety defect, leaving me with an unsafe vehicle. The dealership returned the vehicle to my home against my wishes while I was at work.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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