2016 Volvo S60 problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Engine (7) · Visibility/Wiper (3) · Structure:body (3)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Volvo S60 model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (4)
Seat Belts:front 2020-06-30 · campaign 20V378000 · 308,260 vehicles
Defect: Volvo Cars of N.A., LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain 2008-2016 V70 and XC70, 2007-2016 S80, 2011-2018 S60 and V60, 2016-2018 S60 Cross Country, 2014-2020 S60L, 2009-2015 S80L, 2009-2016 XC60 and 2015-2018 V60 Cross Country vehicles. The flexible steel cable that connects the seat belt to the front outboard seating positions may fatigue over time, causing the seat belt to not secure the occupant in the event of a crash.
Risk: An unsecured occupant has an increased risk of injury in the event of a crash.
Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will replace the seat belt anchor cable for both front seats. The recall began December 10, 2020. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R10029.
Latches/Locks/Linkages:doors:latch 2019-11-26 · campaign 19V849000 · 144,937 vehicles
Defect: Volvo Car of USA LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain 2011-2017 S60, S60I, V60, S60CC and V60CC vehicles. A component within the door latches may break, making the doors difficult to latch and/or leading the driver or a passenger to believe a door is securely closed when, in fact, it is not.
Risk: A door that is not securely latched could open while the vehicle is in motion, increasing the risk of injury to a vehicle occupant.
Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will replace all four door latches, free of charge. The recall began April 9, 2020. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R89978.
Seat Belts:front:buckle Assembly 2016-11-02 · campaign 16V798000 · 74,027 vehicles
Defect: Volvo Car USA LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 XC90, S90, XC60, V60 Cross Country, V60, S60 Cross Country, S60, and S60 Inscription vehicles manufactured February 16, 2015, to August 22, 2016. On the affected vehicles, the front passenger seat belt buckle attaching stud may loosen, allowing the buckle to separate from the seat belt bracket. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 210, "Seat Belt A
Risk: If the seat belt buckle separates from the bracket, the front seat passenger may not be adequately restrained in the event of a crash, increasing their risk of injury in the event of a crash.
Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the front passenger seat belt buckle stud, replacing the seat belt buckle as needed, free of charge. The recall began January 2017. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R89708.
Electrical System:wiring:fuses And Circuit Breakers 2015-09-02 · campaign 15V555000 · 7,855 vehicles
Defect: Volvo Cars of North America, LLC. (Volvo) is recalling certain model year 2016 Volvo S60, V60, V60CC, XC60, XC70, and S80 vehicles manufactured April 8, 2015 to August 19, 2015. In certain driving conditions when using the automatic engine stop/start function, the starter motor fuse may blow, preventing the car from restarting when necessary.
Risk: If the vehicle is unexpectedly unable to be started in the middle of traffic, such as when stopped at an intersection, there is an increased risk of a crash.
Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will replace the existing starter motor fuse with a higher amperage fuse, free of charge. The recall began on October 26, 2015. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552 or by visiting http://volvo.custhelp.com. Volvo's number for this recall is R39574.
Service bulletins (350)
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 2025-12-11 · 37536 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this is a tj text, only no attachments - if the real time traffic information (rtti) does not work in sensus connect vehicle, follow advice under "service". this technical journal is only valid for vehicles with vdn: vi07 traffic information rtti + tmc p
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
Showing the 6 most recent of 350 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-10-22 · Engine“i was sold a car with is not safe for me to drive and didn’t know it. it at one time had a safety recall and whoever at the the time never had it repaired but it has outdated piston rings that leads to progressive oil consumption, it’s misfiring and leads to catastrophic engine failure. it’s just don’t feel safe to drive in i’m disabled & can’t aff…”
2026-10-18 · Fuel/Propulsion System“as soon as i bought the car heading home . they put oil in car and by time i got home the car had consumed at least a qrt , it misfired and seemed to lose power and didn’t think i would make it home before breaking down but luckily i did . i did research and called volvo of cool springs, they checked the data base and told me that previous owner ha…”
2024-10-03 · Engine“in november of 2021, i purchased my dream car, a 2016 volvo s60 cross country, proud to own a vehicle from a company known for their safe and reliable vehicles. in april of 2022, a class action case ([xxx], et al., v. volvo car usa, llc, volvo cars of north america, llc, and volvo personvagnar ab) was issued against volvo due to a known-to-volvo de…”
2023-06-01 · Seat Belts · 27,859 mi“the contact owns a 2016 volvo s60. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the srs warning light illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the local dealer who repaired the vehicle under nhtsa campaign number: 20v378000 (seat belts) and 16v798000 (seat belts). the dealer also repaired an unstated electrical failure. the contact s…”
2023-04-29 · Engine“the alternator seized on the highway snapping the serpentine belt which got sucked into the timing and stopped the car in the left lane at highway speed. the timing guard failed allowing the belt to damage the timing. volvo says it needs a head job i have possession of the vehicle and all maintenance records. cars behind me dodged onto the should…”
2022-09-03 · Unknown Or Other“driver door latch not engaging. door opened at low speed. …”
2022-08-29 · Engine“at 86k miles can smell oil burning and add 1 quart light comes on. it's said volvo is aware of a defect with the piston rings causing oil to consume and burn away. they aren't willing to address the issue outside warranty expiration. they did recently indicate how volvo changed the requirement for using 5w30 oil to claim now volvo changed there min…”
2021-11-19 · Visibility/Wiper“windscreen wiper motors failed during inclement weather making visibility impossible. the vehicle was only approximately 2 years old at the time of failure. this created a serious safety issue and may have led to a crash and injury. the dealer diagnosed the issue as failed wiper motors and replaced the motors under manufacturer's warranty.…”
2021-05-04 · Seat Belts“2016 volvo s60. consumer writes in regard to nhtsa safety recall 20v-378. *ld the consumer stated the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time completing the recall repair. *js…”
2021-01-01 · Visibility/Wiper · 60,500 mi“the sunroof spontaneously exploded outward on the highway, no possibility of road debris hitting it as no other cars were nearby, and i was not close to an overpass. i believe temperature fluctuation causes it, as i was recently in below-freezing weather (15*f). on the day of the explosion i drove south starting at 40*f driving to 86*f.…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.