2017 Volvo Xc90 problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Engine (15) · Vehicle Speed Control (5) · Electrical System (4)
🧭 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
31 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (7)
Seat Belts:critical Fasteners 2023-12-07 · campaign 23V827000 · 2,911 vehicles
Defect: Volvo Car USA, LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2015-2024 XC90 vehicles. The second-row seat belt buckle and lower belt anchor bolts may not be tightened properly.
Risk: An improperly tightened seat belt buckle may not restrain an occupant as intended, increasing their risk of injury during a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and tighten the second-row seat belt buckle anchorage bolts, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 19, 2024. Owners may contact Volvo Car customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo Car's number for this recall is R10259.
Electrical System:software 2021-04-21 · campaign 21V273000 · 162 vehicles
Defect: Volvo Car USA, LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2016-2020 XC90 Excellence vehicles. Liquid or condensation on the rear seat control display may cause the front passenger seat to move back as far as possible.
Risk: The rear passenger may become trapped by the front seat without the ability to cancel the seat's movement, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: Volvo Car will notify owners, and dealers will update the rear seat control display software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 14, 2021. Owners may contact Volvo Car customer service at 1-888-458-1552. Volvo Car's number for this recall is R10093.
Electrical System:software 2018-11-13 · campaign 18V800000 · 17,548 vehicles
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.
Risk: If the GPS location is not provided to emergency personnel it can inhibit emergency response in the event of a crash or injury.
Fix: 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.
Seat Belts 2017-06-08 · campaign 17V370000 · 1,305 vehicles
Defect: Volvo Car USA LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain 2017 XC90 vehicles. The Micro Gas Generator (MGG), a subcomponent part used within the right hand side seat belt retractor for the third row seats, may detach after the seatbelt retractor pretensioner is deployed.
Risk: Although, the seat belt will operate as intended in the event of a crash, if the MGG detaches, it may be a projectile within the vehicle cabin, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will replace the third row passenger's side seatbelt retractor, free of charge. The recall began August 4, 2017. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R89716.
Air Bags:side/Window 2017-02-16 · campaign 17V104000 · 10,476 vehicles
Defect: Volvo Car USA LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain 2017 XC90, S90, and V90 Cross Country vehicles. The bolts that secure the Inflatable Curtain (IC) air bags in place may break, possibly resulting in the IC air bag deploying improperly in the event of a crash. As, such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 226, "Ejection Mitigation."
Risk: If the IC air bags do not deploy properly in the event of a crash, the vehicle occupants have an increased risk of injury.
Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the bolts, as necessary, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin April 1, 2017. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R89714.
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.
Equipment:appliance:air Conditioner 2016-09-26 · campaign 16V690000 · 43,766 vehicles
Defect: Volvo Cars of North America, LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Volvo XC90 and S90 vehicles manufactured April 15, 2015 through September 19, 2016. In the affected vehicles, the drain hose for the air conditioning may leak into the passenger compartment due to a drain hose installation error during manufacturing.
Risk: Significant water drainage into the passenger compartment may adversely affect air bag deployment in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of occupant injury.
Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the air conditioning drain hose for proper installation, replacing the hose as necessary, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on November the 14, 2016. Owners may contact Volvo at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this campaign is R89707.
Service bulletins (698)
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.
Unknown Or Other 2026-05-23 · 33031.6.0 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this is a technical journal: text plus 1 .jpg attachment - if remote control key is not detected by the car and shows message in dim "car key not found" or if functions such as lock/unlock are not working, please follow advice for detecting key
Power Train 2026-05-07 · 36496.10.0 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this is a technical journal: intermittent knocking noise during acceleration. if the sound corresponds to attached sound file, change front drive shafts to the below part numbers.
Exterior Lighting 2026-05-07 · 34521.11.1 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this is a technical journal: headlamp condensation inside lens - information/leak test. if the result is not ok (air leak), it is ok to replace the headlamp
Structure:body 2026-05-06 · 35503.4.0 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this is a technical journal: panoramic sunroof, sealing strip has a gap
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
Showing the 6 most recent of 698 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2026-10-23 · Engine · 🔥 fire“on 9/18/2026 at about 3:15 pm, the low coolant warning came on while i was driving in front of my child's school. less than a minute later i pulled into the school pickup line, stopped, and turned the vehicle off. there was no smoke when i turned it off. after the engine was off, smoke began coming from the engine compartment, and within minutes th…”
2026-10-06 · Steering“volvo electric power steering system failure. …”
2026-09-23 · Power Train“vehicle has exhibited lagging and stalling while driving in "pure" (electric-only) mode since approximately april 2026, at approximately 85,000 miles, accompanied by an illuminated check engine light. this has occurred repeatedly at red lights, intersections, stop signs, and in stop-and-go traffic, creating a risk of sudden loss of propulsion in li…”
2026-09-22 · Unknown Or Other“2017 volvo xc90 manufacturing defect where panoramic sunroof drainage network fails under normal rain, pooling water directly in the floorboard channels over safety module networks and wire harnesses.water infiltration caused a catastrophic short-circuit of the floorboard-mounted amplifier while driving. this forced the audio system to emit an un…”
2026-09-20 · Unknown Or Other · 🔥 fire“i was driving my 2017 volvo xc90 t6 inscription when a ‘coolant low’ warning appeared. i immediately pulled over and the car began to smoke. i was unaware what to do so i called my husband and he told me to pop my hood. with 1.5 minutes of pulling over i open my door to find the lack to pop the hood and someone started yelling at me to get out. i l…”
2026-09-01 · Vehicle Speed Control“2017 volvo xc90 t8 plug-in hybrid, approximately 81,000 miles, experienced intermittent hesitation/loss of propulsion when accelerating. when acceleration is requested, the vehicle can hesitate before power is delivered, creating a serious safety concern when entering, merging into, or crossing traffic because expected acceleration is not immediate…”
2026-08-10 · Electrical System · 94,000 mi“the contact owns a 2017 volvo xc90. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the window power switch was enabled; however, the window switch failed to function as intended. the contact stated that the rear-view camera, the door switch, and the air conditioner failed to function as intended. in addition, the contact became awar…”
2026-07-11 · Vehicle Speed Control“spark plugs, fuel injectors, cylinders and cylinder walls, pistons, oxygen sensor. our safety was put at risk because the vehicles "reduced performance" was triggered and it affected the acceleration of the vehicle. the volvo dealership was able to reproduce the issue because of the engine misfires.the only alert we received was the day prior our e…”
2026-06-04 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic · 85,000 mi“the contact's daughter owns a 2017 volvo xc90. the contact stated that while her son-in-law was driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was firmly depressed, but the vehicle failed to stop immediately. no warning light was illuminated. the vehicle was towed to the dealer, who determined that the vacuum hose had detached and needed to be re…”
2026-04-27 · Engine · 🔥 fire“to whom it may concern. our 2017 xc90 unexpectedly, spantaneously, and catastrophically caught fire under the hood and was a total loss 5 minutes after parking it on april 19, 2026. there were no leaks or other signs of mechanical issues. the vehicle had all regular maintenance completed at the byers volvo service department in columbus, oh. it had…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.