Engine And Engine Cooling Problems of Volvo XC60 - part 1

The vehicle shakes and engine abruptly shuts off even after a new tune up.

See all problems of the 2015 Volvo XC60 🔎.

My engine always continues to break down even after changing engine twice.

In April 2025, the engine on our 2024 Volvo Xc60 b5 plus awd failed suddenly with only 7,000 miles on the vehicle. The vehicle is leased and under full factory warranty. Volvo’s dealership confirmed the engine requires a full oem replacement. However, our insurer, state farm, is refusing to authorize a new oem engine and is instead forcing the installation of a salvaged engine from a wrecked vehicle. This creates significant safety risks: • the salvaged engine’s crash history and internal integrity are unknown and cannot be verified. • it bypasses Volvo’s safety testing and voids the factory warranty, removing manufacturer oversight for future issues. • the use of non-oem parts violates the lease and risks improper compatibility or undetected damage, affecting vehicle safety and reliability. The original dealership admitted they never performed a full internal inspection of the failed engine, relying only on spark plug checks and a borescope scan. State farm denied coverage for a $1,299 tear-down at another Volvo dealer that would have confirmed the root cause. Instead, state farm arranged a “second opinion” at the same original dealership without notifying us and presented this repeat review as independent confirmation. We have now been without a safe, functioning vehicle for over 80 days. State farm’s insistence on using salvaged parts instead of oem components not only violates our lease terms but undermines manufacturer safety standards and exposes us, and potentially other consumers, to heightened safety risks if this practice is systemic. No warning lamps appeared prior to the engine failure. This refusal to restore the vehicle to oem condition represents a serious safety concern that should be reviewed.

See all problems of the 2024 Volvo XC60 🔎.

Vechile is consuming oil rapidly, warning light comes on says that the vehicle is unsafe to drive. We had an oil consumption test at the franklin TN Volvo dealership and it failed. There is also a quality bulletin issued by Volvo and extended warranty to 100k miles or 8 years, we fall outside the years. The warning lights started coming on around 78k miles. This is a know vechile manufacturing defect and feels unsafe to drive and expensive maintain and repair (10k) estimate from dealer.

See all problems of the 2016 Volvo XC60 🔎.

Purchased a used 2016 Volvo Xc60 from a BMW dealership. A month after purchase, oil light came on - so we added oil. Not long after, it came on again. Finally took the car to a Volvo dealership and they confirmed we have the "oil consumption" issue. There was a class action lawsuit against Volvo and they extended the warranty for this issue for 8 years or 100k miles. Unfortunately, we purchased the car at 8 years, 6 months. We had no idea this issue existed. Volvo says they will do nothing about it. This is a known defect and they should fix it! if you google this you will find people reporting it all over. Some people have reported that their engines have caught fire while driving. This is very dangerous! Volvo should be made to fix this problem.

Engin shut off while driving and would not start again. Fortunately, this happened in a parking lot. If this happened on a highway, there could have been a bad outcome. When the car shut off the steering became very heavy. Dealer says it was a result of skipped timing. Timing belt did not break and has about 10,000 miles on it. Dealer provided no reason as to why this happened. No warning signs and no warning lights before this happened.

Car burns a quart of oil every thousand miles.

The contact owns a 2015 Volvo Xc60. The contact stated that every three weeks an oil change was performed on the vehicle. The contact stated that low oil level or oil empty messages were displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who confirmed that the vehicle was consuming 15-quarts of engine oil every 6,000 miles driven. The dealer determined that oil was leaking into the pistons. The dealer stated that the pistons and piston rings needed to be replaced. The contact learned of an extended warranty coverage under NHTSA id number: 10234800 (equipment). The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The manufacturer confirmed that the vehicle was not covered under NHTSA id number: 10234800 (equipment) extended warranty coverage due to the vehicle exceeding the mileage limitations. The approximate failure mileage was 111,000.

August 23rd, 2024, the car started hesitating when gas was applied. The transmission light came on, then the parking brake light came on saying it was turned off, the check engine light came on, the Volvo on call light came on, and the car wouldnt turn off. I moved the shift into different gears, and was able to turn the car off. I waited a while and started the car again. This time the on call, and check engine light stayed on. I called the dealership, was told it was probably a low battery. Had me come in Monday the 26th to have it checked. But Saturday the car wouldn't start right away, and all the warning lights came back on and wouldn't shift gears. Had to call aaa to have it towed. Got a call from the dealership Monday August 26th. Was told they were testing the battery to see if it fails so they could replace it under warranty. They ended up replacing the battery, and told me there was a lot of water in the trunk under the spare tire, where the battery for the on call is located. Said there was a gap in the sunroof weather stripping where tree debris probably clogged the drain pipes. They cleaned that out, and replaced the sunroof weather stripping which was under warrenty. But I was told the water and clogged pipe was not under warrenty, and had to pay for that? September 6th, 30k service and check the on call light that never went off. They found 1. 5 inches of water under my front carpet and will be checking for electrical damage and corrosion. They told me this is not covered under the warranty and advised to call my insurance. My safety concern is future electrical issues/ failures while driving. At any time something could malfunction. Thats a huge safety concern and not feeling safe to drive the car. There is nothing about this huge problem in the warranty or maintenance to check the drains !!! September 9th I will call the claims department and notify the adjuster. Also call back the dealership. Prior to this I've had no problems with the car.

See all problems of the 2021 Volvo XC60 🔎.

The contact owns a 2016 Volvo Xc60. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where the vehicle was diagnosed with engine failure. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was contacted but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made not aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 84,690.

The contact owns a 2021 Volvo Xc60. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact pulled over to the shoulder, and the vehicle continuously turned on and off independently. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who determined that the auxiliary battery power was low, and that the vehicle needed a software update. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 18,000.

Volvo mechanics claim the engine seized due to alternator pulley failure, however, at the time of the event, the engine showed no oil on the dipstick despite having added multiple quarts of oil over the last three months. Volvo has issued an extended warranty letter to customers due to excessive oil consumption, but Volvo failed to provide this letter for this vehicle. I’ve checked Volvo databases for engines matching this extended warranty and confirmed the engine is in fact covered under this extended warranty. Due to Volvo’s failure to communicate this problem, my daughter continued to drive this vehicle until it completely lost power in high speed traffic on I-95 nearly causing an accident and stranding her on the side of the interstate for several hours. Upon arriving at the cite of this incident, I notice there was no low oil warning light illuminated on the dash, so I double checked oil dipstick and added at least two quarts of oil. Unfortunately the engine had already seized at this point and the vehicle was inoperable.

The moon roof leaks and drains into the area of the electronic gateway. This causes the car to become inoperable, slowing it to a crawl, once in park it will not get out of park, and sometimes results in not being able to turn off the engine. Many error codes become displayed ranging from no parking brake available, esb not responding, check engine light, and others. According to user forums, this issue has been around since 2017 for many of the models and Volvo will do nothing to repair it or acknowledge it. I have paid $2250 so far and the vehicle is still unusable.

See all problems of the 2019 Volvo XC60 🔎.

Severe oil leak coming from the engine. I had it in the Volvo dealership, they claimed it was due to a loose oil filter. When I drove the vehicle home and parked in my driveway, it started to stain the driveway with a fresh oil leak.

See all problems of the 2020 Volvo XC60 🔎.

The contact owns a 2018 Volvo Xc60. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 50,000.

See all problems of the 2018 Volvo XC60 🔎.

I was backing into my garage in reverse gear when there was a sudden power surge and the car accelerated rapidly backwards (without me pushing the gas pedal), which led to a crash that caused substantial damage to the car. The car was out of my control, with it accelerating without reason, so something failed on the car. I do not know what component failed, only that there was a sudden and rapid acceleration in reverse. There are no warning lights and the car was taken for an estimate and damages exceed $10,000.

Feb. 1, 2024: a short drive on electric during below zero weather, a car wash & a couple 100ft drive into a parking lot. Pulling into a parking space, foot on the brake pedal, ice roared on accelerating the car over a curb, down an embankment & into a 3ft snow drift before I could stop it by pressing the brake pedal with both feet. We stopped 6in from a power pole. If forward crash avoidance system worked, didn't register in the eeprom per the service tech! Feb. 17, 2024, during below zero weather, no electric charge, operating on ice over about 2mi, pulled into a parking space, foot on the brake pedal, ice surged accelerating the car up over a 6" high curb onto sidewalk. Stopped car by depressing the brake pedal with both feet. Car stopped 2in before hitting a brick building. It didn't seem the forward crash avoidance system functioned to stop us. As a 35-year electronic design and repair professional, I have attempted to merge the two situations to try to find similarities. Two things: unexpected ice engine acceleration surge & forward collision sensor not kicking on brakes. Per Volvo tech, Feb. 1, no register in eeprom of forward crash avoidance or ice issues. Second visit Feb. 22 to service will probably yield same. Obviously, this is not normal operation. We have been in two near collisions caused by the car doing things not designed to do.

See all problems of the 2022 Volvo XC60 🔎.

Purchased the vehicle sometime in 2021. Been dealing with oil consumption issues since then. Always maintained the vehicle per manufacturer recommendations. At first I had to top off the oil here and there and didn’t think much of it. Forward to sept 2023 I have to add a quart every 500 miles. I began to research about the oil consumption problem and learned the following: there was a letter that was sent out to Volvo owners in Feb 2023 about a service bulletin regarding an oil consumption test and if the vehicle fails the oil consumption test then Volvo will replace piston rings or engine. They would also extend the warranty. The free oil test applies to vehicles within 8yrs or 100k. I never received the letter because I was the second owner. I called Volvo north America and they confirmed that the previous owner was listed on their end and that previous owner must’ve received the letter. If I had received the letter in Feb 2023 then I would be within that 8yr time frame and that would qualify me for repairs. I asked Volvo for grace to be included in the free oil consumption test. They said no because I was outside the time frame which was 3 months. Only 3 months! I never received the letter and I had to research on my own. I never received that letter and if I had received the letter then I would’ve taken it immediately to Volvo for the free oil test consumption. I believe this is a serious safety problem because at one point the engine will seize and could stall on the interstate due to the excessive oil consumption. Please look into this safety issue. A sudden seizure of engine leads to a sudden stall at interstate speeds which can cause a major collision and I know NHTSA is all about safety for operators of vehicles. Thank you!!.

My vehicle sustained catastrophic, permanent engine failure while I was driving, in two-way city traffic. Cars backed up behind me, I had difficulty opening my door because of oncoming traffic, and eventually was able to push it (and get help pushing) to the intersection gas station. No warning lights appeared on my dashboard before, during or afterward. Independent service center reports no battery or alternator issue - engine is locked up. No idea why. The vehicle is out of warranty. I will have to pay to replace the engine myself, ~$7-8,000 in order to sell it at near kbb value. So disappointed in Volvo.

The contact owns a 2020 Volvo Xc60. The contact stated that the service required warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the mechanic stated that the upper engine torque mount had separated from the motor mount bracket and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 52,000. The VIN was not available.

Volvo Xc60 is burning oil and putting off a smell. Approximately every 500 miles I am prompted to put in another quart of oil. No signs of leaking. Took the car into a mechanic to inspect and was notified this is a known Volvo problem and I'd need to take it to a dealership since there are several tsbs on it with this known issue. Issue has been progressively been getting worse since I purchased the car a few years ago.

While driving, lost power very suddenly. A turtle comes across the dash. My vehicle wouldn’t start for roughly 20 minutes. After the 20 minutes, it starts up, but the check engine light is on. Nervous that my car isn’t safe to drive, I contact corporate Volvo, since there is no information in the manual for what this means- they told me to contact my local. So I call them and they state it’s safe to drive and they could get me into the schedule 3 weeks out…. Then, I get to my appointment and they then tell me my brakes and rotators are completely shot at 42,000 miles.

02/15/2025 I received a letter for oil consumption recall that was dated on 02/03/2023. Appointment was made same day I received the letter on 02/15/2023 and appointment couldnt be set sooner then 02/23/2023 which is the date the oil consumption was done at Volvo of bellevue. They changed the oil and sealed it and had me drive it 1000 miles, they said I didn't have an oil consumption problem and I disagreed because I told them I have to put in oil all the time. They said it has exceeded the 8yr or 100k miles of the extended warranty of the vehicle which ever comes first. I argued it had less then 100k miles when I got the letter on 02/15/2023 and the appointment couldnt be set til 02/23/2025 and Volvo of bellevue said not to worry about it and they would take care of the recall. But after they had me pay for the oil change they said it exceeded the 100k miles and 8 yrs age of the vehicle. I argued the letter was sent to me after the vehicle was 8 years old and the avg miles of 12k was over 100k miles and I argued this was a known problem with Volvo but they kept on selling these vehicles knowing these vehicles have oil consumption problems. They refused to fix the car unless I paid them thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars. I trusted what they told me that there was no oil consumption and in less then 7k miles later my engine smoked from their oil change and there was no oil in the vehicle as the engine had consumed all the oil and my car sat in my driveway for 22 months and I replaced many parts and still car wouldn't run. I took it back to bellevue Volvo on 07/23/2025 to see what was wrong with the vehicle and they said the pistons were bent.

I have a 1 month old 2023 Xc60 t8 phev recharge extended range with 1250 miles on it. I was driving without any issues for the past 1 months. I got a turtle icon with the check engine light on constant when I started driving today. The car had pulled back while driving and there was substantial diminished power, and could be dangerous in the wrong circumstances. I called Volvo and they explained not to drive the car and towed the car to the nearby Volvo dealership. Waiting on diagnosis 2 days now. I've now noticed other vehicles of the same type are having the same issues. This does not seem to be normal for a cars operation to have random diminished power. . Read more...

See all problems of the 2023 Volvo XC60 🔎.

The contact owns a 2023 Volvo Xc60. The contact stated that the vehicle would fail to recognize the key fob. Due to this failure, the vehicle would fail to start after multiple attempts as the key fob warning message would appear on the instrument panel as well as a warning chime. The contact also stated that her coolant warning light had appeared on the instrument panel. The contact had taken the vehicle to the dealer where they placed a thermostat inside the vehicle which led to the light disappearing. The contact stated that despite a software update being performed on the vehicle, the key fob failure persisted. The manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 300.

I have recently experienced several episodes of the vehicle suddenly going into "limp home" mode while either accelerating onto or driving along at highway speed, causing a sudden loss of drive-ability and endangering me and my vehicle as well as those other passengers and vehicles traveling near me. I have taken it to the Volvo dealer in norristown , PA where I purchased the vehicle new less-than a year ago, and they said they have never seen the "transmission acceleration performance reduced" dash warning with the "turtle shell" icon or the dtc codes before, however, there is much discussion of this issue on the Volvo forums, and I respectfully request that you urgently look into this dangerous issue!.

Four times in the last five days as I was braking for a red light or braking as I entered a drive thru, the engine surged and revved to between 3000 rpm and 4000 rpm. I had to use all my power to brake the car and I then put it into neutral, or shut off the car. Within a few seconds or upon restarting the rpms were back to normal. I did not push on the accelerator by mistake. The car only has 300 miles so I took it to the dealer. The engine had no codes and they had me drive around with the service manager but all was fine. On my way home the same surging, increased engine revs happened again. Luckily I’d read a lot about “unintended acceleration “ so I knew enough to just brake firmly and place the transmission in neutral.

Between 1000 -1500 miles oil level low refill 1quart/ 1 liter request come on, had no ideal this Volvo Xc60 consume that much oil, I buy castrol edge high mileage sae 5w-30 for engines over 75k at $12. 98 including tax add, buying once to twice amount add up . .

Excessive oil consumption! safety issue with the speed at which the oil is depleted! I just bought this car two weeks ago and I already have had to add a quart of "synthetic" oil twice!, in one weeks time! this is a safety issue. I have driven less than 500 miles each time the car alerted me to needing a quart of oil. This car was serviced by Volvo of greenville, SC for all of it's maintenance and based on the service records, I felt safe buying this vehicle because Volvo had always serviced it! I was robbed! this engine is a lemon and I need it replaced!!!.

"failure charging" warning advisory light came on the dashboard. This problem has been going on for the whole ten years I have owned this vehicle. I am the original owner of this Volvo and had some engine warning on the dashboard since the first month. I took vehicle in to the culver city Volvo for 1000 miles check-up and annual oil change and check-up for 5 years under warranty and requested software update and reported the engine stalling during the first month. The "failure charging" or "engine check" or "dangerous" "immediate" repair needed signs came on sometimes and did not come on other time. When the "failure charging" sign comes on and the engine is turned off and restarted the warning would go away sometimes. I believe this is a Volvo vehicle computer software malfunction. I reported this problem to the dealer for 5 years during annual service appointments. This problem was not solved and I have lived with this, stupidly patient for 10 years. Today, problem light came on during biennial smog check for vehicle license renewal and failed the smog test. So, I informed the mechanic and tried a second test several minutes later and passed the second time because the software problem did not surface this time. So, my question has this Volvo software problem been reported by others as I have heard by word of mouth that this software problem is found on Volvo cars? and, has there been a recall to fix this Volvo software problem? when this "failure charging" sign comes on, it is very worrisome and makes me feel the vehicle may stop on the road.

See all problems of the 2012 Volvo XC60 🔎.

On June 30, 2022 our Volvo Xc60 was driven at high speed on I-80 in western ne at dusk in heavy truck traffic before a holiday weekend. With semi’s on 3 sides, and no warning, the vehicle lost complete power. Driver fought the rapidly slowing car out of the left lane and limped onto right shoulder dodging semi’s. Scary. Only a turtle ?? icon appeared on the dash. Online owner’s manual was not avail. There was no response to pressing on call or sos buttons. Using a phone, the Volvo website said the turtle meant “reduced engine performance” told us nothing new. Stuck in nowhere land without any help, turned the engine off, waited 10 min. Restarted the engine which then appeared in normal op. Turtle had disappeared. Cautiously eased back onto I-80. 20 minutes later, now in wy, the power failed again. This time a yellow engine icon showed on the dash. Using hazard flashers, driver again moved to right shoulder and turned off the car. Again no response from call buttons. A call to dealership in IL said it was closed and the dealer showroom in CO said to drop off the vehicle that night. Restarted and tried again in the dark. Near cheyenne, Volvo lost power 3rd time. An engine outline icon appeared. No help…made it to ft collins. We flew back home leaving a disabled Volvo at ft collins dealer whose service rep said the “car was unsafe“ and not having a definitive cause after they ran diagnostics, asked if we wanted to “file a case with the company”, and ordered a replacement fuel pump in hope it solves the problem. We immediately asked the case be filed and again 3 days later. By soliciting help from an IL Volvo dealership owner, we learn the case was not filed (never happened), and only maybe? the fuel pump is bad. We are now 11 days without a car which will need to be transported somehow back to us. Meanwhile we are 970 miles away, doubting this car’s safe operation, and without confidence in the quality of technical service at fort collins dealer.

I will followup once I have a report from a mechanic. My car stalled while driving in heavy traffic; a pedestrian ran in front of me and I braked. I didn't hit anything or anyone, not even a pothole. My car stalled and all the dashlights went off. I put the car in park and tried to restart, but it would not start. My emergency lights wouldn't work and because I was on a busy thoroughfare in DC, my daughter and I were nearly rear ended by a bus. Even after we got out of the car, we watched other cars nearly hit it because it couldn't be pulled over and the emergency flashers wouldn't turn on. The mechanic said that the battery was fine. I had a regularly serviced oil change 2k miles ago, and everything was fine. The mechanic will replace the starter since the car will no longer start, but said that a bad starter would not cause the car to just die in heavy traffic. I called Volvo to report the issue, but they said they wouldn't take safety reports unless it was towed to a Volvo dealer. Of course, my car stalled out far away from a Volvo dealer, and roadside assistance only tows to the nearest mechanic.

See all problems of the 2017 Volvo XC60 🔎.

4 months old 2022 Volvo Xc60 software bug that drained all batteries on board caused the vehicle to not to start, stuck in park, it was impossible disengage parking brake or put the car in neutral. Without any warning or battery low or battery empty indicator, the vehicle failed to start. We were put at risk by a car that can fail without warning and not start at all as we were stranded at a remote location. When the car failed to start, it could only be moved by a flat-bed tow truck, as it was impossible to put the car into neutral and it would not roll. The Volvo dealer confirmed that the vehicle failed to start because of a software bug. Dealer indicated that they were not able to start or move the car, they had to connect to it wirelessly and applied updates then reset battery and charge it for 4 hours, as the software bug caused the battery to drain without warning or indication, which provides power systems such as, starter, parking brakes and gear selections system. There were no warning indicators, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure.

My vehicle is having an oil consumption issue. I recently purchased a vehicle and the document stated that it was a oil change completed. Called the dealership to verify that a oil change was indeed completed. Oil light came on stating that there was no or low oil. Arrive to oil change location and there was no oil reported in vehicle. Oil change completed, and 1600 miles later I have no oil in my vehicle again. I noticed the engine running a little harder than normal, and the car is extremely difficult catching acceleration. I contacted Volvo cars llc, and they suggested I bring my vehicle to a dealership to have it evaluated at a cost.

The contact owns a 2011 Volvo Xc60. The contact stated that she noticed an oil leak underneath the vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the turbo needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

See all problems of the 2011 Volvo XC60 🔎.