CSR

Volvo · NHTSA safety record

2012 Volvo C70

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

Owners have filed 23 safety complaints about the 2012 Volvo C70 with the US government. Of those, no death is recorded. One recall campaign is open against it, covering equipment.

The most complained-about system is the body structure, named in 8 complaints, 35% of the total. The typical failure was reported at 60,950 miles, the median across the 10 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers November 2014 to May 2026 · How this is counted

What is on file

23 complaints on file

23

Complaints

0

Describe a crash

0

Mention fire

0

People injured

0

Deaths

A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.

A recall is the manufacturer conceding a defect, and the repair is free. Whether one covers your particular car is a question only its VIN can answer, because a campaign covers a production range rather than a model year.

Which system owners named

Complaints naming each system
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 11 · 48%
STRUCTURE 8 · 35%
POWER TRAIN 2 · 9%
SUSPENSION 2 · 9%
WHEELS 2 · 9%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 · 4%
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES 1 · 4%
SEAT BELTS 1 · 4%
SERVICE BRAKES 1 · 4%
0 8 15

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 23.

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2020 at 6.

8 6 4 2
14 15 18 19 20 21 22 24 25 26

This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2014 to 2026, the last of them a part year, which is why its column is drawn faint.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program

NHTSA has not crash tested the 2012 Volvo C70. Its New Car Assessment Program tests a selection of each year's vehicles and does not reach motorcycles, heavy trucks, motorhomes or most low-volume models, so an absence here says nothing about how the vehicle would perform. It is not a low score.

What owners have reported about this vehicle is below, and it is a different question: a crash test measures what happens to the people inside in a controlled impact, while a complaint records what broke during ordinary use.

Recall campaigns

1 on file

EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS

11V508000 · October 18, 2011

The defect
VOLVO IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2006-2012 C70 VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM NOVEMBER 15, 2005, THROUGH JULY 31, 2011, AND MODEL YEAR 2011-2012 S60 VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM JULY 14, 2010, THROUGH APRIL 16, 2011, THAT WERE EQUIPPED WITH OPTIONAL ACCESSORY SPARE TIRE KIT. THESE VEHICLES FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NUMBER. 110, "TIRE SELECTION AND RIMS." THESE VEHICLES DO NOT CONTAIN THE CORRECT INFORMATION FOR VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE OPTIONAL ACCESSORY SPARE TIRE AND WHEEL KIT.
The risk
A MISPRINTED LABEL COULD LEAD TO IMPROPER TIRE INFLATION WHICH COULD RESULT IN A TIRE FAILURE, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
The remedy
VOLVO WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE VEHICLE AND INSTALL THE LABEL AS NECESSARY, FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON FEBRUARY 23, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VOLVO AT 1-201-768-7300.

VOLVO CARS OF N.A. LLC. · up to 20,611 vehicles across all model years covered

In owners’ own words

Quoted from the complaint file

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Door unlocking while driving

NHTSA complaint 11740323. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY
The drivers side door keeps opening while driving. I see recalls for other volvo models but not mine. This is very concerning when driving on the highway

NHTSA complaint 11681243. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH PLATE
While in transit, the passenger door periodically unlatches on its own. There is a safeguard that prevents the door from completely swinging open when this happens. This problem has not been inspected by a professional. The warning light appears after the door unlatches while in motion. Because I never have a passenger, I am not able to immediately close the door. The last time this happened was at 65 mph on [XXX]. This problem has existed for years. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. The cause is unknown, and timing is unpredictable. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA complaint 11671696. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The car developed an electronic communication issue that would cause random failure messages for the ABS, anti-skid system, transmission control and a "brake failure" message that would put the car into limp mode even at highway speeds. If you come to a complete stop, it would not allow you to pull away at any speed which makes you a traffic hazard and at risk for a rear end collision. I took the car to the dealer and they said it was the steering module so I had them replace it which ended up not resolving the problem. More alarming, the mechanic said that the factory original windshield had become unbonded and needed resealed. He showed me by flexing the windshield out at the top. I paid

NHTSA complaint 11652791, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SUSPENSION
There is a know defect with the chassis used for several Volvo car models. My car is a Volvo C70, year 2012. My car is affected by this defect. The defect wasn't disclosed to me at time of sale. I only learned about it literally 10 years later when Volvo of Gilbert (dealership) advised me to install a costly part on the rear suspension of my car because of "excessive negative camber". According to the Volvo repair department, they've known for years of an internal repair "recommendation" memo issued by Volvo that Volvo actually pays for on other models, but won't pay for on mine, to correct this "negative camber" on the rear of the car. ***** The negative camber causes tire walls to fail

NHTSA complaint 11563203, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SEAT BELTS
The driver side seat belt gets stuck and is very hard almost impossible to unlatch once it is locked over driver

NHTSA complaint 11488716. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Volvo C70

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2011 12 1 1

Other 2012 Volvo models

S60 121 XC60 46 XC70 14 S80 8

Complaints on file, same model year.

Every Volvo on this site — 71 vehicles.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst