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Volvo · NHTSA safety record

2018 Volvo S90

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

Owners have filed 16 safety complaints about the 2018 Volvo S90 with the US government. Of those, no death is recorded. 2 recall campaigns are open against it, covering the seats and the electrical system.

The most complained-about system is the electrical system, named in 4 complaints, 25% of the total.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers April 2018 to July 2026 · How this is counted

What is on file

16 complaints on file

16

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
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 4 · 25%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 4 · 25%
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES 2 · 13%
WHEELS 2 · 13%
AIR BAGS 1 · 6%
BACK OVER PREVENTION 1 · 6%
ENGINE 1 · 6%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 · 6%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 · 6%
SEATS 1 · 6%
SERVICE BRAKES 1 · 6%
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 1 · 6%
0 4 8

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 16.

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 2022 at 3.

4 3 2 1
18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

This is the year the complaint was filed, not the year the failure happened. The range runs from 2018 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 2018 Volvo S90. 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

2 on file

SEATS

19V220000 · March 20, 2019

The defect
Volvo Car USA LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain 2018-2019 XC60 and S90 vehicles. The driver and passenger front seat rail rear flange nuts may not have been installed during assembly.
The risk
If the nuts are missing, in the event of a crash, the front seat structure and position may be affected, increasing the risk of injury.
The remedy
Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the front seat rails for missing flange nuts, installing them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began May 7, 2019. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R19931.

Volvo Car USA LLC · up to 2,297 vehicles across all model years covered

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:SOFTWARE

18V800000 · November 13, 2018

The defect
Volvo Car USA LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Volvo XC90, S90, V60, V60 Cross Country, V90, XC40, XC60, and V90 Cross Country vehicles. The software installed in the Vehicle Connectivity Module (VCM) may have an error causing the Telematics and Driver Support Systems to function improperly. As a result, the GPS will not provide location information to emergency personnel in the event of an emergency.
The risk
If the GPS location is not provided to emergency personnel it can inhibit emergency response in the event of a crash or injury.
The remedy
Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will correct the software, free of charge. The recall began December 26, 2018. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R39917.

Volvo Car USA LLC · up to 17,548 vehicles across all model years covered

Defect investigations

1 on file

An investigation means NHTSA has decided a pattern is worth examining. A preliminary evaluation is often closed with no action; an engineering analysis is the stage that usually precedes a recall.

Pedestrian alert sounds

DP22005

Closed defect petition · opened January 27, 2023 · closed August 7, 2023 · led to recall 22V063000

the electrical system

NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.

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.

AIR BAGS
Volvo is aware of a major safety issue that has to do with the drain hose of AC. They have issued a recall on models 2016 and 2017 and produced replacement parts.My car was purchased in 2017, but is a 2018. I have had the AC hose leak into my passenger compartment and cause my filter behind my glove box to be soaking wet. This has also damaged my speaker in my passenger door. I have paid over two thousand dollars.Trying to get this a c fixed with no results before finding out about the recalls. I have since found out.This leakage can prevent the passenger airbag from deploying in an accident. I have reached out to volvo directly they are denying any responsibility. I not only can not afford

NHTSA complaint 11754063, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS
ISSUE 1 – VOLVO ON CALL / VCM "SERVICE REQUIRED" MESSAGE: My vehicle has displayed a persistent "Volvo On Call Service Required" error message in the Driver Information Module (DIM) for over one year. This is directly covered by: • Volvo Technical Journal TJ 36916.1.0 (NHTSA ID: MC-10253788), issued April 2024 • Fault code: VCM-U105000 (Vehicle Communication Module) • TSB explicitly covers 2018 S90 vehicles • The TSB states the required software packages are free of charge I contacted Volvo Cars USA at [XXX] , who acknowledged the issue and arranged a complimentary diagnostic and fix with the Manasquan dealer. But, the dealer would not perform the diagnostic at no charge, leaving me unable

NHTSA complaint 11735364, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

WHEELS
There is a great deal of vibration at highway speeds. It has been like this since I purchased the car.

NHTSA complaint 11717421. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The AC system releases refrigerant into the cabin due to Volvo improperly engineering the climate control and allowing the evaporator core to freeze and crack. They acknowledge the issue and have released a resister cable to prevent the evaporator core from cracking. I have tested the air in the cabin, and the VOC level is at a dangerous level due to the refrigerant leak. I have the car currently at a dealer, where they have quoted over $3,800 to repair the issue. A quick search shows a large and quickly growing number of people complaining about this. The leaks in some cases are so bad that you can smell the refrigerant when you open the car door, as was the case with ours. This is a huge

NHTSA complaint 11692511, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH
Rear right door lock failed, stuck closed. Extremely unsafe if someone was sitting in the back and unable to leave vehicle. It has been confirmed by others. It has been inspected by an independent mechanic. There has been zero warning lights to indicate the issue

NHTSA complaint 11647854. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
At 5pm while driving home, which was 2 hours away, I needed to stop and refuel. At the pump I pushed the fuel door and it would not release to open. After many tries it would not open. I called Volvo On Call and informed them of the problem. The agent relayed that I should go to the back of the car near the fuel door, and with the remote lock and unlock the door which should release the door. It did not work. I tried it again with no success. The agent then informed me that there is no other way to open the door and to go to a Volvo dealership to get repaired. I asked the agent is there a way to open the door from the trunk, for instance like a rope to pull to manually open the door. He

NHTSA complaint 11643791, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Volvo S90

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2017 8 4 —

Other 2018 Volvo models

XC90 50 XC60 36 VNL 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