2005 Volvo Xc90 problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Power Train:automatic Transmission (36) · Exterior Lighting (21) · Fuel/Propulsion System (19)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Volvo Xc90 model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
194 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (1)
Equipment:electrical:navigational System(Global Positioning System) 2010-11-08 · campaign 10V566000 · 416 vehicles
Defect: VOLVO IS RECALLING CERTAIN VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH GARMIN 760 PORTABLE GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM (GPS) UNITS BECAUSE THE BATTERIES ON THOSE UNITS MAY OVERHEAT.
Risk: AN OVERHEATED BATTERY COULD LEAD TO A FIRE.
Fix: VOLVO ADVISES OWNERS TO PLEASE STOP USING THE GARMIN PORTABLE GPS DEVICE IMMEDIATELY, AND VISIT THE GARMIN WEBSITE TO DETERMINE IF THEIR UNIT IS AFFECTED. THE UNIT'S BATTERY WILL BE REPLACED WITH A NEW BATTERY AND A SPACER WILL BE INSERTED ON TOP OF THE BATTERY NEXT TO THE PCB. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON NOVEMBER 18, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT GARMIN AT 866-957-1981 OR VISIT GARMIN'S WEBSITE AT WWW.GARMIN.COM/NUVIBATTERYPCBRECALL.
Service bulletins (219)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Engine 2026-04-23 · 35526.1.8 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this is a technical journal: text plus 2 pdfs and 1 .png oil consumption test. perform the test. follow service procedure description and service sections updated to clarify that vehicle reports are not required.
Unknown Or Other 2026-04-07 · 37809.1.1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this is a tj text only - the purpose of this tj is to be a master reference list to easily identify any components that are on prior approval. this tj will be regularily updated as items are added or removed from prior approval. current items under prior approval are listed in the "service" sec
Unknown Or Other 2025-12-06 · 19245 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this is a technical journal. vehicle type and platform identification.
Exterior Lighting 2025-04-10 · 8501 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this is a technical journal: remote connection, bomgar application. before joining a remote session: •connect a suitable battery maintainer/charger and verify that the battery voltage indicated in vida is between 12.5v and 14.9v. •connect to the vehicle over a wired connection using a voe
Unknown Or Other 2025-02-21 · S10303 · Service Campaign
volvo cars usa llc and volvo car canada ltd on behalf of the volvo car corporation has decided to launch service action s10303 on certain model year 2025 ex90 vehicles. volvo car investigations have identified that there is a pairing issue with the key fob. as a result, there is a possibil
Unknown Or Other 2025-02-13 · S10303 · Service Campaign
volvo cars usa llc and volvo car canada ltd on behalf of the volvo car corporation has decided to launch service action s10303 on certain model year 2025 ex90 vehicles. volvo car investigations have identified that there is a pairing issue with the key fob. as a result, there is a possibil
Showing the 6 most recent of 219 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2025-03-05 · Exterior Lighting“i was getting off the highway and made a left turn. as i was accelerating the motor gentle cut off.. (you wouldnt even notice if you wasnt driving) full traffic was behind me, so luckily i was able to get out of the way and pull to shoulder. it was the day before christmas and car hasn't ran since. upon investigation i found the cem was effected. …”
2023-07-15 · Unknown Or Other“i’ve had to change my fuel injection pump and catalytic convert twice on one year. …”
2023-06-02 · Fuel/Propulsion System“adas, air bar warning lights/urgent and high gas fumes coming out from the rear seats when fully filled gas. we had called 800-458-1552 and guided us to plug in our vin [xxx] on www.volvocars.com and nothing showed as far as recall and told us that these recalls expired and our 2005 volvo are not eligible. 2005 volvo xc90 that relates to nhtsa cam…”
2023-01-17 · Visibility/Wiper“water is leaking from the windshield into the driver and passenger side inside on the window obstructing my view while driving. cannot drive the vehicle while it’s raining. serious safety problem! please recall and fix all volvos with this problem.…”
2020-07-21 · Electrical System · 138 mi“i had filled an earlier complaint and this to be added to the earlier form that i had filled needs to go to the engineering department. see photo the electrical complaint from the magnetic electrical beings in me and in this picture i believe is about design of the fuses in vehicle and what they are tryin to communicate here i believe would be the …”
2020-07-18 · Fuel/Propulsion System · 2,187,660 mi · 🔥 fire“when cranking it stalls and cuts off and after doing it around 10 times it finally cranks then i have to hurry to put in drive to get the motor going in order to keep her crunk and couple weeks ago because this problem she stalled out and i hit a hole in the road and busted the oil pan so she has been parked every since cause i had my daughter in…”
2020-03-27 · Fuel/Propulsion System · 216,000 mi“bought car and been having problems every since i have had problems i keep fuel injection in it so i can move the car to point a and b…”
2019-07-01 · Engine“the known volvo balance shaft failure in the 05 xc90 v8 b8444s engines sn up to 6833.volvo has known the v8 engine on the 2005 xc90 is faulty since 2005.specifically, the counterbalance shaft bearing failing due to water intrusion & humidity.mine has not failed yet.i will be lucky if it fails while at idle.bergeron volvo in metairie, la, sold me a …”
2019-02-01 · Power Train · 14,042 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2005 volvo xc90. ever since the vehicle was purchased in november of 2018, there had been several electrical failures. the headlights, power door locks, and power rearview mirror failed to operate. also, the transmission caused the vehicle to jerk and stall while driving. the contact took the vehicle to an unknown volvo deale…”
2018-10-28 · Fuel/Propulsion System“gastank was leaking when i was filling up in full tank not very much but i smell whenever i was parking…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.