2023 VOLVO XC60 Recalls, Complaints & Safety

Occasionally, when I put the car in reverse, the brakes do not activate. The pedal feels stiff and hard to push. But then if I let off the brake pedal, and reapply the brakes, the problem goes away. This puts me and my passengers at risk of an accident. I have not shown the problem to a dealer yet as the problem is intermittent. I have not seen any warning signs about this problem. I have owned the car for about 6 months, since September of 2025 and have seen the problem about 8 or 10 times.

The contact owns a Nuna Car Seat, Model Type: Pipa Aire RX, Manufactured Date: March 06, 2024. The car seat was installed in a 2023 Volvo XC60. The contact stated while unbuckling the child out of the car seat, the straps used to latch the harness were loose. After the initial failure, the contact inspected the car seat harnesses several times while strapping the child into the car seat; however, the failure persisted. The contact reached out to the manufacturer several times before the contact was able to reach a representative. Once the contact was able to reach a representative, the contact was advised to take a video of the failure while driving and submitting the information and the contact declined the suggestion because the vehicle was unsafe. The contact also reached out to the manufacturer through email and was given a ticket number. The contact reached out to the company where the car seat was purchased and was informed that the one-year car seat warranty had expired. The contact disputed the claim because the failure had occurred less than one year after the purchase. The car seat was not repaired or replaced. The VIN was not available.

System/Component Malfunction: Systemic failure of the onboard computer (Infotainment/Connectivity Module) and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), specifically the Collision Avoidance/Auto-Braking system, Rear-view Camera (FMVSS 111 non-compliance), and the 12V Battery management system. All components remain in the vehicle and are available for inspection. Safety Risk: The vehicle exhibits frequent "phantom braking" where the emergency collision avoidance system abruptly activates without obstacles present, creating an immediate risk of collisions. Additionally, the "hands-on steering wheel" sensor malfunctions, triggering emergency stopping procedures while driving. The backup camera intermittently fails (black screen), causing a total loss of rear visibility. These issues lead to unpredictable vehicle behavior in high-speed traffic. Confirmation & Inspection: These issues began to be reported to an authorized Volvo dealer within the first year of ownership (2022-2023). Most recently, a total vehicle failure occurred due to a drained 12V battery, which the dealer service department confirmed was caused by a known software module defect. Despite multiple "software updates" by the manufacturer, the safety-critical ADAS malfunctions (phantom braking) have recurred three times in the last week following the most recent dealer service.

Received recall notice, the dealer did software upgrade to 3.7. but still having issues. Error message "Camera is temporarily unavailable". Reported to Volvo dealer who stated they are aware of the problem but cannot fix because they are waiting for new software, expected Q4 2025. Recall was not fixed

On Wednesday December 3, 2025 the front windshield wipers stopped working on my wife's 2023 Volvo XC60. The stalk to control the wipers was operating as normal. It was able to spray the windshield wiper fluid and operate the rear window wiper as expected. This happened that day that we received unexpected lake effect snow in our area. We immediately scheduled an appointment at dealership we purchased the vehicle from and dropped it off on Friday December 5, 2025. A few moments ago we received a call from the service department that there is an internal service bulletin regarding this issue. They explained that there is a process where they have to go back and forth with Volvo to diagnose the issue. They could not estimate when the issue would be resolved or what was the cause. The dealership was out of loaners, so they gave us an option to either wait or drive the vehicle and hope we don't get caught in bad weather until they can identify what is wrong with the wipers. This puts us in a very unsafe vehicle with no recourse. The safety of my wife, myself, and our child are put at risk because of this issue. There was a message that stated that the wipers failed initially on 12-3-2025, but that message never appeared again. This in itself is a safety issue. What if someone was renting the same vehicle when this occurred. The rental car company wouldn't know and they could rent the vehicle to a drive who wouldn't know.

Manufacturer: Volvo Car USA LLC | Initial Failure Mileage: 15,000 DEFECT DESCRIPTION: The Google built-in Infotainment Control Unit (ICU) and Audio Control Module (ACM) are repeatedly crashing/malfunctioning while driving. This system failure is a safety hazard because it simultaneously disables critical features: * SAFETY SYSTEM FAILURE: The Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA) is disabled, creating a high risk of collision when reversing. * LOSS OF AUDITORY WARNINGS: All essential auditory cues, including the turn signal click and parking sensor sounds, are lost as the speakers go silent. * Distraction: The screen goes black/unresponsive, requiring a dangerous manual reboot while driving. REPAIR HISTORY: The defect has been confirmed and documented by an authorized Volvo dealer (O'Steen Volvo) on two prior warranty attempts (6/18/24 & 12/19/24) but remains uncorrected. The dealer has admitted they have "no way to fix this" permanently. Corporate (Volvo Customer Care) has been notified. This is a recurring, safety-critical manufacturing defect. Most recent issue was 10/25/205

There has been at least 5 incidences where the audio stopped working for the turn signals, navigation stopped, radio stopped and air conditioning stopped. The first 2-3 times the system reset itself. The 4th incident I was driving in torrential rain, the wiper auto sensor stopped and every warning light on the dashboard lit up. As the rain dissipated, the system seemed to clear itself. Today, on my way to the dealership, the turn signal audio stopped, navigation stopped, radio stopped. The service advisor verified the situation. His response, per Volvo instructions, tell the customer to reset the system once a month. There's no written instructions to resolve the problem. The service advisor admitted this is an ongoing problem and corporate is making no attempt to resolve it. Is Volvo waiting for a life threatening situation before addressing the problem. I can't rely upon the computer system to function properly. Volvo has a responsibility to its car owners for supposedly being one of the safest cars on the road. This vehicle is becoming unreliable. Thank you.

Driving the car at under 20 mph making a left turn into my cul-de-sac which has an upward slope. Car system thought it would crash into the tree straight ahead and started emergency braking making loud noise and then the steering wheels locked. Ended up hitting the parked car in front of neighbors house due to brake and steering malfunction. Heard from other Volvo owners that this has been a problem. Even backing out of garage where there is no object behind the car the car emergency braking system engages causing whiplash. No longer feel safe driving this car.

Crash

Driving the car at under 20 mph making a left turn into my cul-de-sac which has an upward slope. Car system thought it would crash into the tree straight ahead and started emergency braking making loud noise and then the steering wheels locked. Ended up hitting the parked car in front of neighbors house due to brake and steering malfunction. Heard from other Volvo owners that this has been a problem. Even backing out of garage where there is no object behind the car the car emergency braking system engages causing whiplash. No longer feel safe driving this car.

Crash

Driving the car at under 20 mph making a left turn into my cul-de-sac which has an upward slope. Car system thought it would crash into the tree straight ahead and started emergency braking making loud noise and then the steering wheels locked. Ended up hitting the parked car in front of neighbors house due to brake and steering malfunction. Heard from other Volvo owners that this has been a problem. Even backing out of garage where there is no object behind the car the car emergency braking system engages causing whiplash. No longer feel safe driving this car.

Crash

The "p" button on the car malfunctions. It does not always engage when pressed. After I pressed the "p" button, the car didn't go into park mode and started to roll forward. This put me in danger as well as pedestrians who may have been walking down the street in front of the car. I notified the dealer and they did nothing. There were NO warning signs. Because of the failure of the "p" button to function properly, my car rolled into a parking meter and caused in excess of $4,000 in damages.

We’ve owned a couple of the XC60s from the new generation. We have had many conversations with Volvo and the dealership but they have yet to rectify the issue. What it all boils down to, is that Volvo put an underperforming center console in its new generation of cars (2016-2025). The console does not have enough memory to process everything it’s doing. As a result it locks up and either freezes or shuts off. The problem is the console operates everything in the car. When it fails everything goes dark including the dash. The safety features turn off and you are essentially driving blind. We have had this issue on so many of our cars: 2018 XC60 which was replaced with a 2019 XC90 to avoid lemon law. The 2019 xc90 had the issues. We have been leasing and are stuck in this cycle because Volvo refuses to address the hardware issue. Instead we are forced to either drive a car with a dead brain or trade in for another Volvo. Volvo keeps thinking it can solve the issue with software updates but that’s not true. They need to do a RAM upgrade for these cars. We know we are not the only ones with these issues and the advice of “just reboot” or “don’t use the apps” or “don’t use the crash mitigation features” does not work. We specifically picked Volvo for safety but enough is enough. Our car is undriveable and from our sample size alone 6 out of 6 new generation cars have had this issue. The console shutting down sometimes takes out the virtual cockpit too. Meaning no speed is displayed, the car may try to mitigate crashes erratically, the heating and cooling will also not function. To put it plainly, the car turns into a flying brick. I feel very fortunate that this has not caused a crash yet.

Yesterday, while driving on highway, I received a tire pressure warning for all four tires. I filled all tires to the recommended 35psi. The warning went away. Today, after I parked my vehicle, I saw a “parking brake service required” message on my dash. The “park” indicator on my dash started flashing. Now, I’m worried about a brake failure. I only mentioned the tire pressure warning bc I’ve never had multiple error messages like this before.

For more than a year, we have experienced issues with the infotainment system. Despite many trips to the dealership it has not been fixed. The infotainment system randomly shuts down and or reboots, which seems to affect other systems like turn signals, climate control, lane departure alerts, etc.

255 / 40 / R 21

Reverse backup camera repeatedly does not work and will display message saying camera unavailable. Sound system will go out with the center screen were no sound comes through (not even blinker sound). With a small child and have concerns driving when these issues occur, especially since they occur unexpectedly. Issues will occur a few days in a row, then work fine for a few days and then issues will occur again. Have been to the shop where they looked at the issue and was advised have to wait for a software update.

I am writing to address a recurring safety issue with my 2023 Volvo XC60 B5 AWD related to the windshield wipers. I believe this issue poses a serious safety risk. Specifically, when snow accumulates in the area where the wiper arms retract—hidden behind the hood for aerodynamic and stylistic reasons—the wipers stop functioning until the snow is cleared. This has happened to me twice during the winter of 2022-2023 and once during the winter of 2023-2024. While driving in heavy snow, the wipers would suddenly cease movement when sufficient snow accumulated in that “well”. There were no warning lights of any kind. This was sometimes triggered by braking, which caused snow to slide off the roof into that area. Once the snow accumulates to a certain level, the wipers become inoperable, resulting in zero visibility. This situation demands immediate action, regardless of my surroundings. Fortunately, on all occasions, I was on quiet roads, allowing me to stop safely. However, during the first incident, I was caught off guard and collided with a snowbank at low speed, causing no damage. Clearing the snow from the wiper well is not straightforward. The wiper arms must be placed in service mode to access that area, but they will not do so once they have stopped functioning. After the initial incidents in 2022-2023, I took my vehicle to the dealer, who evaluated the issue and “reset” the wipers. Unfortunately, this was after the snow season, so I couldn't determine if it made a difference until the following winter. Although the winter of 2023-2024 was relatively mild, the problem resurfaced during a late-season storm. I am particularly concerned about the potential consequences if these incidents were to occur at higher speeds on a busy highway. The risk of a serious crash involving myself and my passengers is significant.

My Volvo XC60 rear windows turns blurry in the heat. For long I didn't bothered, but recently I have noticed that there are more people facing the same issue with 23 & 25 models. Please see the attached picture. Volvo America is aware about the issue but they have not taken any action.

Dear sir, I would like to make a complaint about the SOS system in my Volvo CX 60 on two occasions tire blew out on the [XXX] interstate on both of those occasions I called Volvo roadside and emergency assistance. I waited for approximately two hours. No one came. I then had to change the tire myself. I have a bad back and I hurt my back further, the first time the second time I was stopped on the [XXX] interstate they were doing road repair. I stopped on one side of the road and then the people doing the road repair asked me to move to the other side which I did, I called Volvo and waited at least two hours. It is 105° outside in the area adjacent to Selena Utah. I believe I was dehydrated. The human body is approximately 90% water water went down to approximately 70% a gentleman doing construction, the side of the road who I spoke to kindly gave me two bottles of water and one bottle of power drink , at the same time, he asked me to move my car from the other side of the road since they opened up the road they were doing some type of repair type. I am not sure got their assistance and moved my car into Salina town in Utah, where I am now , my complaint is that the SOS button on the Volvo CX 60 is what you were supposed to press if you are in an emergency and they are supposed to come. They are not supposed to tell you they’re gonna come and not come which is what happened in my case both times someone said they’re gonna be there in an hour and then I waited two hours. No one came and then , I had to in the first case do the repairs myself in the second case have someone help push me in the basis of Volvo is misleading thinking that the SOS button works it does not work. That is the basis of my complaint. These two events occurred on [XXX] and [XXX]. Of 2024. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

On November 11, 2023 @ between 10:30 and noon, the vehicle infotainment system completely failed. The screen went blank and functions for heat, radio, navigation, cameras, indicator lights in the mirror and the ability to call Volvo emergency services were all lost. A message on the screen said, "Stop the vehicle. This vehicle's infotainment system has encountered a problem. You can reboot or reset factory settings. If this doesn't help, please contact a workshop." This is the second such failure. The first occurred on September 22, 2023. I filed a report with Volvo (REF#[XXX]), and repairs were effected at a local dealer in Maryland. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

PIRELLI SCORPION ZER ALL SEASON 255/40R21 The tread is falling off in chuncks. Both the front and back tires.

I've experienced many problems with the Google built in system in this Volvo. But the one that keeps happening is the speed sensors. The car is supposed to read traffic signs, including speed signs and alarm when exceeding the posted speed limit. It does not work. For example on I66 East bound in Virginia, the speed limit is not 80mph, it is either 60, 65 or 70 if using the express lanes. The Volvo keeps showing the speed limit on this interstate as 80, see attached images showing speed limit sign at 80. Complained to Volvo, they blamed Google. Complained to Google, they blamed Volvo. Other roads have the same sign recognition. The car infotainment & safety features randomly shut down, or fail, while driving and the vehicle has to be reset often. Back up cameras quit working while backing up sometimes it will not go into reverse without shutting off the car or doing a reset.

The contact owns a 2023 Volvo XC60. The contact stated upon shifting into park (P), the gear shift indicator light displayed that the transmission was in park (P); however, the vehicle continued to roll. The contact stated that he continuously pressed the park (P) button until the vehicle responded. There was no warning light illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated while driving at various speeds with adaptive cruise control (ACC) mode engaged, the steering wheel independently pulled to the right aggressively. The contact stated that he used physical strength to pull the steering wheel back to the left; however, the steering wheel failed to return to the center position and continuously turned to the left, then to the right. The contact also stated that while driving with auto centering feature activated, the vehicle was driving from side to side. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where an unknown software upgrade was performed. Additionally, the contact received an unknown notice for mandatory software update. The contact stated that the software update was performed; however, the failure worsened. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 400.

The automatic breaking system was deployed while backing up in a parking lot. There were no obstacles, either stationary or moving, that should have triggered the braking. We have had several other times when the brake "felt odd" during reverse. It becomes very stiff and hard to depress but still works.

Twice within two weeks the car was shifted into reverse and the brake became unresponsive. The car started moving backward, but the brake was not depressible. On one occasion, the car was shifted into drive, which then allowed the brake to be fully depressed. On the other occasion, the brake was pushed repeatedly until the car finally allowed it to be fully depressed after a few seconds of rolling backward.

I've lost the ability to brake on several occasions. The brake pedal simply could not be pressed in. After taking it to the dealer for repair, the advisor could not articulate what the issue or fix was, but indicated that this is a known issue. These vehicles should not be on the road if that is the case.

After not driving for several months, both batteries in my 2023 XC 60 failed to function. Volvo replaced both batteries. Two weeks later, the car did not recognize the key. The dealer replaced the smaller battery for a second time and updated the software. At the moment, it still works.

I've had my Volvo for 6 months and two weeks ago I started getting warning alerts that the braking system, lane departure system and other electrical systems were having issues (the doors wouldn't lock and car wouldn't start). I've taken the car to the Volvo dealership 3 times and they have been unsuccessful in determining what the issue is. There is something wrong with the software and a software update that was installed on my car at the first service visit (when this began happening 2 weeks ago).

Component: Side-view memory mirrors. Available for inspection. After locking car and then unlocking to re-enter the car, side view mirrors do not return to the proper memory position. Need to press the memory button again to set the mirror's proper position. If mirror not in proper position, car on either side of vehicle may not appear in mirror and when changing lanes, could lead to an accident. Car has been brought to dealer once to correct situation but condition still exists. Other than dealer, no other inspections. No warnings or messages. Problem has existed since we got the car in late February of 2023.

Now on TWO occasions found car completely without power after sitting unused for 2 or 3 days. On both occasions car plugged into Level 2 charger overnight (this is a plug in hybrid model). Required jump start after having to use emergency key to get inside. After jumpstart, received numerous propulsion system errors as well as on first incident, errors saying SOS communication system disabled. Dealer replaced TCAM battery with fresh one stating that computer tries to do updates and drains battery, and dealer lot has occasional dead cars with similar issue. On second incident, car moved into “turtle” limp home mode with critical 12V charging messages. In both instances, car was in a conditioned garage around 48 degrees. Hybrid battery was 100% charged in both cases. Concerned there is a batter drain due to TCAM or main software systems. This is more than inconvenience - this could be a real danger to have a car that may not start reliably after sitting for 48 hours, such as an airport or other setting where getting help is difficult. Limp home mode is driving hazard. There are multiple instances of this on Volvo websites that seems to impact multiple T8 models with a plug in hybrid power train and Google AAOS infotainment/car system architecture. Please help!

When I go to start the car the car does not start....a warning comes on saying "vehicle key not being detected" see owners manual The key is sitting on the console when I start it. It took me 3 times before it started . I left a gym in the morning hours and it wouldn't start when I came out ...same warning came on.. This has happened 4 times in a 3 month period. Has been in service 4 times. This is a big safety issue I don't want to keep driving this car it cannot be trusted. it's not reliable. When it's in service they cannot replicate it and they told me the first time it was the battery .The next time they said it may need an update . They just don't know. Brought it in 4 th time , now they're saying the Farb goes into sleep mode and thats why it doesn't start the car!!! that so untrue. They looking for things because they can't find a fix. It"s inconsistent . I'm afraid I am going to be stranded somewhere . I have a baby in the car and on the road alot going long distances . this is outrageous NOT SAFE ! INSPECTED BY SERVICE AND THEY CONFER WITH VOLVO. THE COOLANT LIGHT CAME ON IN THE FIRST WEEK AND THEY HAD TO CHANGE OUT THE THERMOSAT. THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT CAME ON RECENTLY . THESE PROBLEMS DON'T REPLICATE FOR SERVICE BUT I HAVE VIDEOS AND PICS . I AM LOOKING FOR A BUY BACK AND MY DOWNPAYMENT BACK THIS IS SO STRESSFUL AND SO MANY INCONVENIENCES FOR A BRAND NEW CaR CANNOT BE TRUSTED.

Car was started and A/C system including all defrosting capabilities were non functional. Car was turned off and on with no change. Safety was at risk due to lack being able to have a functioning defrost and possible compromise of visibility out both front and back windshields. Called local dealership to troubleshoot. Service department said likely just a computer malfunction and would be difficult to find remedy if not a continual problem. After car was allowed to sit off for some time and then turned off, normal A/C functions resumed.

Car was turned on and shifted in to reverse. Car was driven backwards and when attempted to stop the car the brake became non depressible and car was difficult to stop.

2 of the vehicle’s original tries developed aneurysms at 3000 miles and 3 months of ownership. Pirelli Scorpion Zero All Season 235/55 R19 105V M+S DOT XB 08 031B 2722

While backing out of garage, the car abruptly and violently braked. The driver was tossed forward. The rear camera showed nothing in the car's path and no alarms had been set off. Visual review confirmed the absence of anything in the path of the automobile. The automobile was purchased new about 7-10 days before this occurrence. The driver has experienced shoulder, neck, and upper body pains somewhat responsive to acetaminophen tablets. The driver was instructed to turn off the automatic rear brake each time backing up but has not been offered a permanent fix. I do not know if Volvo has been informed or if the dealership has inspected the car.

1 injured