Hello,

Our 2017 XC60 has a bad fuel tank or fuel level sensing unit but the gauge inside the car indicates incorrectly. On two occassions we've run out of gas (icon turtle, limp mode, then stalls). Once we put gas in, it starts up and is fine. I've noticed that when filling up from empty I cannot fill it up to capacity (18.5 gallons) as stated in the manual. I took it to the dealer and they performed a software update which didn't fix the issue. I'm at 54k miles so I'm past warranty, but frankly a gas tank and level sensing unit should not be limited to number of miles. I have a 19 year old BMW with no fuel tank or fuel gauge issues. The dealer quoted me $3,300 to fix it but even at that price they don't know for sure what the problem is. This is insane.

Has anybody experienced this issue? Is there a recall I'm unaware of? Does anybody have a good email address for Volvo Group North America I can contact? If they are unwilling to work with me to fix this, I guarantee this will be the last Volvo I buy ever.
Thanks in advance for any information.

 

Dealer can tell you of any recalls or bulletins specific to your model. Give you are just over the warranty, you may want to talk to the service manager (head guy) noting you already had the car in for this problem during the warranty period but the software update did not correct the issue. The dealer may be able to provide a goodwill repair based on the initial report date.

 

This problem actually reared it's ugly head at 54k miles. Out of warranty. I emailed the service manager and all he could offer me is 10-15% off. My point to him and to Volvo is that this is a 2 year old luxury vehicle. Fuel tanks should not go bad so early and should NOT be limited to number of miles driven. I've never owned a vehicle with a faulty fuel tank and fuel level sensor unit. It's ludicrous to pay $3,300 to replace the fuel tank on a 2 year old car. Volvo needs to make this right. I've also called Volvo Group and had a ticket opened up on me. But quite honestly if they don't take care of this issue for me I won't buy another Volvo ever and just stick to German luxury.

 

Take it to a different Volvo dealer or an independent shop that specializes in Volvos. See what they say as there are reports that one sensor is built into the gas tank on older XC60s, but another may be replaced. In the worst case, ask your dealer if they will repair it if you buy an extended warranty. Should be cheaper.

 

I'm in OKC, there's only one Volvo dealer here. Anyhow, I contacted Corporate and they won't help either because I'm out of warranty. I was 3k miles over....

**** poor customer service for a Luxury brand. This will be my last Volvo.

 

We just found out we have the same exact issue. for a car that's a little over 3 years old is ridiculous!!! Dealer quoted $3k. We're out of warrant too, 10k miles. I would have thought better about Volvos but this is crazy.

 

I too have been having problems with the indicator saying I have fuel and it runs out. it's a 2016 XC 60 with 38, 000 miles. Towed it to an independent garage and they said it was the low pressure fuel sensor. Next it was the fuel pump, had to pull the tank and 1400.00 later it ran out again. Towed it back, they said it may need a new tank, had it towed 60 miles to the dealer and they said it was the ejector pump, that keeps the 2 sides of the tank at an even level, and it's "non serviceable". New tank, 3500.00 , drove away and ran out the next day when the indicator said there was still gas. Had it towed today back to them. My wife refuses to drive it now, and I told her this is it, when they call and say it's ready, we are going down there and trading it in! This is BULL****! We bought a 2004 XC 70 in 2005 with 16,000 miles on it and have never had any trouble with it, going on 160,000 now!

 

I have also been having an issue with my 2017 XC60 T6 AWD "running out of fuel" (reduced engine performance message with a turtle icon) even though the fuel level indicator shows there is still over 100 miles until empty. The dealership diagnosed it as a faulty left fuel sending unit which they stated is integrated into the fuel tank. I was able to purchase a used fuel tank and have it installed by a local mechanic for much less than the $4700 the dealership quoted, but still "ran out of gas". The mechanic then changed the fuel pump controller, and I'm still having the same issue. Has anyone had the issue fixed? I'm wondering what the chances are that I got another faulty fuel tank.

 

Has anyone discovered the root cause of this issue? I’m two fuel pumps deep and now they want to replace the fuel tank. I’m not convinced.

 

What ended up happening with this? Did they actually get to the root cause?

 

Slightly terrified by this thread. I just got the same news from my mechanic that they have to remove the tank to see what is wrong. Any updates on actually fixing the problem?

 

Here was my experience with my 2017 XC60 T5:
Car died on the freeway with the fuel gauge reading 1/8 full. Took it to local mechanic dropped the fuel tank and swapped the fuel pump. Said it was fixed. This cost ~$2k.
Car died again with the fuel gauge reading about 1/8 full. Took it back to same mechanic who claimed that their installation of fuel pump was done incorrectly. Dropped fuel tank again and swapped in another new fuel pump. Did this for free.
Car died again with fuel gauge reading about 1/8 full. Initial mechanic threw his hands up and said "we can't solve this one". Took it to Volvo dealership. That mechanic diagnosed that the fuel level sensor in the tank was malfunctioning. He said the fuel pump was not the problem. He demonstrated that it was the fuel level sensor by adding a small amount (1 liter) of fuel to the tank. Engine started right up. They quoted me $6k to change the fuel tank. I asked what they would take for a trade in and they low-balled me using the faulty fuel tank as leverage.

I could have continued to drive the car and just never let it go below the 1/8 fuel level. That was the level at which the level sensor in the tank was telling the car it was out of gas.

Instead I sold the car and bought a Subaru limited XT.

 

Share some information about my 2017 XC60 T6:

Around 60k mileage, Sep. 2023, Car died in front of a traffic light. With 2 bar gas, remain gas mileage 80. Never happened before and local mechanic mentioned the fuel gauge is not accurate. Either thousands to repair, or just fill a little early before running out. Ever since then, I fill the gas when 4 bar dropped to 3 bar. Worked fine.

Aug. 2024, went a little greedy on the highway, 3 bar gas with remaining gas mileage 145, the car showed the power limited and turtle. Had to poll over on the highway. Road assist brought 2 gallons of gas and drove to the gas station at 1 mile away. Filled in another 11.9 gallons of gas and it was working fine.

Feels like the fuel pump float suddenly stuck on Sep. 2023, causing the first problem. But the problem on Aug. 2024 showed that the fuel pump cannot use all the gas in the tank. With 18.5 gal capacity, it can only use 13.9 gal.

Have a S60 with 17.8 gal and always can fill up with more than 15 gal.

Made an appiontment at dealer, wait and see how they can figure out.

 

Very interested to hear some resolution to this thread. My 2017 XC60 has just experience this.

I purchased the car this weekend. Spent all summer looking for the right car and of the five XC60s tested, this one drove the best and had the right service history. Felt like a great buy. Left the dealer with the gauge displaying a full tank with full bars. 180 miles later, I'm at 3 bars on the gauge and 150 miles range displaying.

On the way to the gas station the next day, the car stalls going up a hill. Limp mode activates and I pull to the side of the road. Car cranks fine, but won't start. Feels like it doesn't have fuel. Then I remember seeing that the Carfax showed several "fuel system cleaned" services in the past two years as well as a fuel pump replacement service, all at different occasions.

Then I come across this thread. I've got the car sitting at my mechanic. Tomorrow I will ask them to simply add gas and see what happens. Has anyone here found a solution to this problem? I'm not in a position to get rid of this car and can live with the crap range if need be until a solution is found.

 

Hi,

Is your XC60 AWD? I have a guess but hasn't proved yet. I checked this with dealer's mechanic but they are not sure either.

My theory is this: The AWD one has gas tank in saddle type. Somehow the non-pump side cannot transfer any gas to the pump side. That's why it's always about 2 or 3 bars of gas and the car shuts off. At this time, pump side tank has no gas at all, and non-pump side still has gas. I recored the gas usage every time I refill, and found that the car can use 13.6 gallons of gas and it's fine. But when reached 13.9 gallons, the engine shuts off.

The dealer's mechanic said if that's true then he can only replace the tank. Because the two side tank "transfer tube" is not serviceable.

 

Yup, I have an AWD. Your theory makes sense. Thanks for that.

Besides keeping an eye on gas usage, what do you think the solution is here? One is led to believe there's many thousands of these AWD XC60s being used as daily drivers out there. This can't be affecting everyone. What is keeping the unaffected cars on the road? A software update, an updated sensor, installing a different fuel pump, a different gas tank etc?

 

If my thoery is correct, the only solution is replacing the tank. That's what the dealer told me. Mechanically I believe replacing the transfer tube can fix this issue, but I am not sure how it's designed inside.

I don't know what caused this issue. If I guess, I would say "tranfer tube" is completely blocked, or some mechanical failure inside of the tube, or the tube end is relocated to a higher position instead of staying at the bottom.

It looks like there is only a small amount of AWD cars have this issue(Based on the dealer's reaction when they heard about my theory. If the issue is more common, they should be more certain about it).

I am wondering if I can read the two side gas level sensor via OBD2 port. If they give different remain gas volume reading, that could prove my theory.

I will keep recording my gas refills and wait for recall. Recall must has its own procedure or requirement for Volvo to do so. If you have some kinds of warrenty, I think it's a good time to use it. Replacing the tank at the dealer is about $3700.

 

Good advice. I'll keep this thread going with new details -

Mechanic put a gallon of gas in the car and we're good. Car runs as normal. I immediately head to the gas station and fill up, but the XC can only take 13.6 gallons. This is after showing two bars on the gauge and 90 miles of range. I left the gas station with full bars on the gauge and a range displaying 310 miles (obviously short of the actual range of this car). Fast forward a day or two, I'm 50 miles into this fill-up and the range is going up. It's now showing 425 miles at full bars on the gauge.

You're correct, something about the transferring of fuel between each side seems to be messing around with these numbers. I will record some more info from this fill-up and report back. I need to use the odometer to see what the actual range of this thing is. I can live with it as long as it's a predictable number every time.

 

I have some solid numbers now. I used a OBD reader to record the gas level. And it has “DIM fuel level 1 of 2” and “DIM fuel level 2 of 2”. Looks like they are from the two side fuel level sensors. When my XC60 fuel gauge change from 4 bar to 3 bar, one side shows 2.59 gallon and the other side is 4.39 gallon.
I attached the numbers I got from different dates and hopefully it is helpful.



For my car, every time the 4 bar gas gauge dropped to 3 bar, I have 2.5 gallons available. That would give me around 40 miles to go. To be safe, this is the moment I fill up the car.

That’s what I have for now and hopefully it helps.

 

Hi, I have the same problem. I had it fixed by Volvo. But it returned a few months later. Now we are attempting "discussions".
I was told this is a known problem with the 2017 xc60s.
You'd think they'd have a decent solution worked out by now....