Have been a Volvo fan for 20+ years and have had great luck with pre-SPA cars. Currently in a 2019 XC60 that has had highway vibrations since new (T6 21"). Feels like a wheel is off balance with a strong feeling of vibration at speeds above 60mph (vibration gets worse the faster I go) mainly in the steering wheel but can be felt in the floor and seat as well. It's extremely tiring on long trips; I bought the XC60 for a weekly 300mi+ drive round trip. Has been back to the dealer 5 times and they have tried changing tires, balancing, etc.

I've had 2 XC90 loaners - no vibrations and great on highway.

A V60 - slight vibration, not as bad as mine but still annoying

An XC60 - wheel obviously off balance. Thumping between 65-72MPH 20"

Another XC60 on 19". This one vibrates worse than mine.

Is this just a characteristic of the car? At this point I'm ready to just trade it in for an X3 or X5. Volvo corporate has been no help. Can't believe this car was north of $60k and drives worse than my 2009 VW on the highway.

 

Have you considered swapping our rims or taking them to a rim shop to be measured? 21" rims don't have a lot of sidewall to absorb road hazards so the rim can bear the brunt.

 

Thanks - dealer has done this and has swapped rims

 

so if the rims are known to be good, the next possibilities I'd look at are 1) an issue with an axle or the driveshaft bearing 2) a problem with the brakes (warped rotor or pad dragging?) 3) a wheel bearing. I suppose its possible that there's an issue with a bearing in the transmission on an output shaft but to me that would be very rare, particularly if there's no signs of a weeping seal. Any other driveability symptoms - wandering on the highway/loose steering/noises over bumps?

 

No other issues. I did have the front brakes replaced as there was some shaking upon braking but that didn’t resolve the highway vibration. I have had some issues with the air suspension (pump), but again this appears to be independent of the vibration. We’ll see what they come back with this time, just glad to know it’s not an issue with the platform/all XC60s.

After this many attempts, I’m hoping they step up and do offer a fair trade in assist. This car is great - love the styling, comfort, safety. Just frustrating when there is an issue and nothing they have done works.

 

I just went through this with my new R series XC60. The dealer did a “load test” on all four wheels/tires. All four failed to meet acceptable specs. Do a web search for “load test” to see what this entails. I ended up get a new set of wheels/ tires, and the problem was solved.