Hey y'all!

This is my first post here, so if anything is out of place, please let me know and I'll move this to another forum. Also, sorry for the long post. I have a lot of thoughts and needed a place to share them. I'm happy to elaborate on anything so if you have any feedback, please just ask and I'll do my best!

I recently picked up a '23 XC60 B6 after returning my leased '21 XC60 T6 and man, do I have problems with this new user interface. I'm posting here for a few reasons - to find common ground on some issues, to find solutions I may have missed, and to see if there is light on the horizon in future updates.

Disclaimer: These issues are solely based on my opinion and prior experience. I mean absolutely no offense if you have a different experience, and I'm always open to hearing others' thoughts and opinions with an open mind.

Drive Issues:

• Starting with the powertrain - maybe I just need to get used to this "mild hybrid" tech in the B6, but as of yet, I'm not all too thrilled. I miss the comfortable coasting I used to have with my T6 engine when I let up on the gas. Gas consumption was never at the top of my list of concerns, so this is fixing an issue I never really had.
• Similarly to what I mentioned above, I miss my drive profiles. I kept my old car in Dynamic a majority of the time for that extra kick in acceleration. The only drive profile I see in the new car is Off Road which I have used maybe twice in 3 years. And furthermore, it's not all that easy to access if I do need to switch to Off Road.
• There may be a solution for this issue that I just haven't found yet, but I haven't been able to turn off the engine auto-off feature that kills the engine when stopped at red lights for example.
• This too may have a solution that I haven't yet found, but when I put the car in park and step out for a moment, the car shuts off entirely even if the key is still in the vehicle. I often run out to grab food, pick something up, etc. while leaving my passengers in the car with the AC running and even after just 2 days of owning this car has already become an issue for me.

User Interface Issues:

• Why, oh why, did Volvo go with Android Automotive OS? The old OS paired with Android Auto was polished and exceptionally functional. It may have been aged, but it certainly wasn't obsolete. I'm sure in time I'll learn to use this as well as I used the previous OS, but I'm really unhappy with the major shift in this change. I'm a lifelong Android user and tech enthusiast (both professionally and leisurely), and this just feels clunky and unfinished. Hopefully as more automakers adopt AAOS the system will improve. I won't be holding my breath.
• I use Waze as my primary navigation app as I live in NJ and drive between NY, NJ, PA, and CT frequently and it has the best traffic, speed camera, red light camera, and police reporting available here. I installed the native Waze application on the car's system and it's significantly worse in every way. The interface is lacking features offered in Waze via Android Auto and even more so, in Waze via Android on my phone.
  • One major feature that is lacking is the media integration in the Waze application. I believe this is true with the Google Maps application as well, but in all versions of Waze that I've used, I have been able to see what song is playing from Spotify (or other media source) and skip back/forward or pause as well as quick-swapping into the Spotify screen for further control/app navigation. In this version of Waze, there is no integration and I need to switch to the Spotify (or other media) application in order to see the name of the song and perform any functionality.
  • Another major feature that is lacking is displaying the navigation on driver display / instrument cluster. Once navigation starts with Waze, the Google Maps display for the driver disappears into black and gives a tiny sliver in the display header with very limited driving instruction. It also doesn't display on the heads-up display as it does with Google Maps.
• Moving on to the heads-up-display, the text on the new car feels smaller than it did on the '21 XC60. It is still legible and I will likely adjust to it over time, but as of now, it's almost distractingly small.
• The road sign information in the HUD is also frustrating. The placement is oddly off to the right on the opposite side from the current speed, and is constantly flashing. The flashing may be from a speed limit change on the road or due to me going ever so slightly over the limit. Either way, it's distracting and in my opinion, requires a rework.
• Is there a way to change the style of the driver display / instrument cluster? There were a number of options in my old car and I haven't been able to find any in this one.
• Why can't I see the current song / media information in the driver display or the HUD? That feels like a standard feature on all cars I've driven since around 2007.

I'm certain that over time, there will be more items that I find issues with as well as other features that I learn to appreciate. I may update this post, or for more specific items, I will post in a new thread.
If you've made it this far in my post, thank you for hearing me out 🤗 excited to hear some feedback!

- Caleb

 

Welcome to the AAOS fun park – sadly it’s not really that fun…

Volvo’s logic and approach to AAOS in relation to controls missing, controls buried, displays odd and many other things feels like someone is not steering the ship anymore and that one hand is no longer aware of what the other hand is doing, compared to the pre AAOS cars. Not saying Sensus was perfect, but at least the dealers were OK with it.

As my local dealer said: “Since the introduction of AAOS, Volvo’s internal corporate workings just feel more and more disjointed and confusing as they just seem to fumble along, as we are feeling more in more in the dark in being able to help our customers - just reinstall the software Volvo tells us is a feeble approach to the issues our customers are having under AAOS - time to retire!”.

I really can’t predict where things will now go within Volvo – will AAOS get better, will it get worse, who knows, and that’s what worries me is that Volvo themselves don’t really know.

 

Thanks for the warm welcome! After browsing the forums here and on Reddit last night, I see there are more people in the same boat as me. I'm committed to a 3--year lease on this car, so I'll just hold out on the hopes that someone takes charge and listens to our feedback.

This really hit home for me, I feel just as bad for the Volvo techs out there having to deal with this.

 

In response to two of your issues about your '23 XC60.

No, the auto stop / start cannot be disabled. However, there are two workarounds. If you have the Polestar Optimization package installed, you can select the Polestar drive mode and this will disable the auto stop / start feature. The other way is to put your transmission in manual mode just before you come to a stop light or stop sign. When your ready to proceed, just put it back in Drive. Manual mode disables the auto stop / start.

To keep the engine running when you exit the car, unbuckle your sear belt before putting the transmission in park. I know it sounds bizarre, but it works. Doing it in the reverse order, will shut the engine off.

 

Very good post concerning the newer Volvos. I agree with everything. I have had my 2023 XC60 B5 since April and I am asking the same questions. I agree and understand your frustration with the Radio tuning. The ONLY place you can see a radio station change is on the home page. If you change the radio station with the steering wheel buttons, while say on Google Maps, there is absolutely no where in the car to see what station you changed to. To be able to see what station you changed to is so common in other cars; why not in this car??? Don't get me started when you try to voice command a station change on Sirus XM. It just doesn't work. But if you look at update 2.5, in the description of what is being updated there is a "fix" for this problem, but it still doesn't work. The electronics on this car are extremely lacking as compared to other vehicles. The drivers instrument panel could be a "gold mine" of information only if Volvo would make use of it. Now all you get is a map or a blank screen. Also the home page should totally be redesigned. These 4 "tabs" just doesn't set well with me. Why not have a home page that you could have some say as a driver of what you want on the home page? Like maybe square for maps, Radio, favorite phone numbers, Air Con...etc. The list is endless and only limited by imagination. Any why can't I adjust the Air Con temp to an odd number??? WTH? So many more and too much to list. Don't get me wrong, I know it must seem like I don't like my new Volvo, but I do. I love the comfort and luxury, the napa leather seats, and more. But to be honest my 2018 Toyota Camry did so much better with the user interface and content than Volvo has done.

 

The overwhelming response that I'm getting here and on Reddit is exactly as you stated.
Despite all of the issues, and there are a LOT, we still love our car. What a shame that Volvo can get away with this 😅

 

Just got my xc60 a few weeks ago and I agree with everything said, my main issues:

• XM Radio, extremely buggy. The bottom bar is always disappearing and there is no way to pause or replay the current or previous song. The software in my '17 Pilot was much better.
• HUD/Driver Display - would love to have radio/song info displayed. The main screen is so large, it would also be nice to have the ability to customize the setup, like having more than two apps appear at a time.
• Pano roof screen - it would be nice to also have the option to auto open when the car is started.
• Wireless charging - there's this weird cubby where the wireless charger should be. I know there are aftermarket wireless chargers on Amazon, but once installed they kind of block the front cup holder. It would be great if Volvo made on available to purchase even though it should have been included in the car anyway. I know wireless chargers aren't the best anyway but it would be nice to have a place for the phone to sit. It seems that car manufacturers purposely do not create an easy access for cell phones.
• Wireless Apple Carplay...ugh, just why is it not available at this point in time??

I hope Volvo reads these forums and takes the feedback

 

One of the worst features for me is the Adaptive Cruise Control, which CANNOT be switch to a standard cruise control - unlike our 2023 Toyota. Too many times driving in the center or left lane a slow moving vehicle pulls in front of us and the brakes are forcefully and automatically applied giving us whiplash. We are thankful we have not been rear ended in such a situation, but this is very dangerous and we are now prone to leaving the Cruise Control OFF as it is just plain DANGEROUS.

The Volvo engineers appear to be just plain morons and not practical people. Between the absolute abomination of the Google based computer system and some of the not so safe "safety features" I would never recommend a Volvo built for the 2022 and beyond years. Just horrible vehicles!

 

[QUOTE=Big O;525741]One of the worst features for me is the Adaptive Cruise Control, which CANNOT be switch to a standard cruise control - unlike our 2023 Toyota. Too many times driving in the center or left lane a slow moving vehicle pulls in front of us and the brakes are forcefully and automatically applied giving us whiplash. We are thankful we have not been rear ended in such a situation, but this is very dangerous and we are now prone to leaving the Cruise Control OFF as it is just plain DANGEROUS.

I haven't really noticed the Cruise Control problem you are facing yet. But I do know my 2018 Camry would do the same thing you are speaking of. I just learned to compensate for it. I do agree with you about the Adaptive Cruise Control not being able to switch to regular cruise control. But the difference is that Adaptive uses the lane keeping mode...right? So you can turn that off in settings if I am correct. I also agree with you about the Google System. I do love the Google Map system as it is very accurate, but everything else is ****. The User Interface is so illogical and confusing. If the Volvo engineers would get off their *** and do some work, there is so much potential with the new system. But it has been two years now and no really decent and useful changes. The home page is crap and it could be changed so the user has more options. The driver's console instrument panel only gives you a map or a blank screen. Why not use it for more info? This is the first car I had were there are no fuel statistics anywhere; even on my Volvo App. We need a fuel page on the main screen. Also, when you use the steering wheel buttons to change a media station, (FM,BT, or Siris), there is no indication of what station you tuned to unless you are on the home page....WTF? That is a normal indication for all cars. Why not put it into the HUD and driver's instrument panel? I have so much more that really makes me wonder what the hell did Volva think when they switched to the Google Based system; especially when they already had a great template in the '21 models and older....the Sensus system. From what I hear that was a great system. But for some reason Volva decided to completely trash it and not use it......