Hello everyone,

My wife and I have been dealing with a problematic 2016 XC90 T8 since the day we purchased the vehicle. All told it's been in the shop for more than a total of 2 months over the time we've had it with nonstop constantly changing problems. Both our dealership and Volvo says this is "very unusual" but they seem unwilling to do much to "rectify" the problem. It's gotten to the point where we're consistently worried about "driving" it on any long trips because /something/ might go wrong. We've experienced turtle mode (where it slows you down to 5mph and forces you to stop), air bag issues, break switch issues, loss of power from the hybrid engine and most recently on a long drive a check engine light which killed our ability to use the AC (boy was that a hot drive) but thankfully didn't do anything else though we were worried about it turning into something else the whole time.

On top of all of that we've had a ton of other issues related to rear seats not being able to be opened easily, AC in seats not working, the dash "warping" camera issues not to mention the on again off again software problems that, thankfully have gotten less frequent over time. We really want Volvo to stand behind this car and "make it right" but we're not yet seeing that happen. Are we really alone in this or can other 2016 owners speak up and let us know if they too have run into these constant problems?

Thank you everyone,
Iskondi

 

This is my first post. We are about to place an order to get a 2020 XC90 T8 Inscription with just about every option so we are about to pull the trigger on a $90,000 Volvo. Your post is definitely giving me a moment of pause as to if we should consider this more carefully. What other issues have you been dealing with? What has your real world mpg been? What do you like about the vehicle? I appreciate your response in advance.

 

When the car runs we love it, but our problem is we keep having different problems and having to bring it back to the dealer. Luckily the dealer we bought from always gives us a Loaner car or we'd be beside ourselves. :-P Also Volvo has fixed everything for no charge, which is great but involves us dealing w/bringing it in, picking it up, stressing out about whether it'll drive or not etc.

We've had turtle mode, where the car forces you to drive 5mph, park it and have it towed. We've had airbags stop working, break sensors go out, the hybrid engine stop working but the software didn't know so you'd try and accelerate and it wouldn't respond at all for 5-10 seconds (had to turn off the electric engine to drive it safely), the sun roof stopped opening, the rear sears couldn't be opened, the air in the seat stopped working, our AC stopped working, windshield wiper issues, sensor to open the back gate, software issues with everything, backup sensors, collision sensors going off randomly, our dash warped and they had to replace it, wood trim split... It's pretty insane.

I posted here in the hopes that other folks with the 2016 could chime in if they too have had these issues but as you see I haven't gotten anything back yet.

We opened a case with Volvo and have been pushing on them to do something about it. At the moment they are working on putting together a buy back but we have no idea if it will be worth it or not.

As much as I love the car when it runs its extremely hard for me to recommend it. All that being said the 2016 was the first time on the Hybrid platform and I'd hope, by now, that they've worked out all the kinks but I truly don't know.

 

WOW! That is insane!

My assumption is that your experience is a one off because the reviews from all of my research have turned up none of these issues at all. I have extensive experience with hybrids as I have two of them now, the first of which is 6 years old. While your experience should stop me in my tracks, I have to consider that the 2016 model year was the first year for the hybrid system in the XC90 (I think that is correct). Since then I would have to assume they have figured out all of the reliability issues and technical gremlins otherwise I would be seeing it in many places on the net. One of my clients has a 2018 model year and he has said that it has been flawless. In fact based on his driving patterns, he is doing mostly local sub 15 mile runs and plugs in to charge up where ever he can outside of the house, thus his mpg is bonkers. He has told me that he has gone weeks of driving where the gas engine has hardly even turned over at all in usage. Basically he has said that he last got gas in August and he still has 1/2 a tank now, and it is the end of October! If his experience is true I am beyond words. He has the Bowers audio system and the air suspension too. I am looking to option up mine with just about everything but the mud flaps and bike rack, thus it is pricey. I'm finding none of them are available in the US so it will be an order and wait situation. However, your bad experience with the vehicle is making me wonder if this is a good decision.

When you have been driving it, what has your real world mpg been?

 

My wife drives the car most of the time and our real world MPG is ~30mpg. She commutes juuuuust under the range and charges at night so often so unless she's driving outside of that it's all electric :-) We do LOVE that. Given the lack of response here it's entirely possible ours is a 1 off, all the more reason I hope Volvo does the right thing and takes it off our hands. We'd be happy in a new one that had no issues, would be amazing to get there without the incredible loss (financially that is) of turning this in without an assist from Volvo. Long as they stand behind their car (assuming this is just a lemon) I'll be back to recommending the car :-D

 

I’m having constant issues with mine, which only started juuuuust after the mileage topped 50k warranty limit. Most recently the hybrid drive is out thanks to a faulty Electric Rear Axle Drive (ERAD). Volvo covered parts for a rebuild on the EEAD despite being out of warranty, but I still paid $1900 in labor. And it didn’t fix the issue. $6,000 to replace the unit. Other piddly stuff...door handle, random check engine lights, etc. love the car but becoming a lemon.

 

So I waited impatiently for my vehicle to arrive and it did. I took delivery in mid February. First impression was it was fabulous. I drove it home and just to start out my mpg journey I stopped to top off the gas. I had maybe 30 miles on the vehicle. The check engine light came on. I immediately thought of this thread right then and there. I called the dealer, I came back the next morning and they looked into it, found it was an "erroneous code" and cleared. It came back every time I filled the tank, but turned off after I started to burn a little fuel. I brought it back for a more thorough investigation, and they found nothing to be wrong, cleared the code and I went on my way. The service experience was such that I am no longer going to take my vehicle to that service location again and I am using another Volvo service location that is owned by the same management. Since that "event" my experience at the other service location has been stellar, truly to my expectations and beyond. I believe the check engine light has something to do with the gas filler component but the service department will keep an eye out to help me if it surfaces again. It has been an annoyance but not shaken me from my excitement for the vehicle. There has been one other annoyance. The key fob seems to not be recognized by the vehicle when it is running and the passenger front door is opened when dropping off or picking up a family member. It goes away when I turn off the car and then restart it, but the service department has reprogrammed both keys and it has not resolved the problem. It is a random thing.

Other than those items, the drive experience has been amazing. Running the vehicle without extra electrical drain from the various heated items increases EV only drive miles, and hills seem to reduce that overall EV only range, but it is what I would expect it to do. My overall mpg so far is a hair under 40 mpg. There are times in which I am doing mostly local EV driving and others where the ICE engine is operating for 50% of the time. I have not yet taken a trip with it so I can't speak to longer range mpg. I have to say the B&W sound system is simply spectacular and the quality of the craftsmanship is first rate. I do wish I did not need to clean the touch screen to clean the finger prints off of it, but that is just part of our world now. I can't say that there has been one situation where I have wanted more power, and in fact I doubt I have even asked for more than 50% of its potential in any driving situation thus far, including merging onto highways. So I hope my experience is helpful to someone else who reads it. All my best to you all. Be safe and stay healthy.

 

Hi, so, i have the same car. A 2016 T8 Twin Engine, R Design....super car, but, exactly the same issues. My number one problem is the loss of power between electric and IC. Super frustrating and somewhat dangerous. Then, warped dash issues. Tailgate sensors not working properly. And, I'm not getting answers from Volvo. So, have you managed to sort out any of your issues?

 

We are having our third turtle problem with our 2017XC90T8. Two years ago this happened, oh the turtle is when it tells you it is slowing down and then the car stops. It will start up again, but, as you can imagine this is very dangerous. Two years ago when it happened we took the car in and were told that it was a computer problem and they fixed it. It just happened twice in one week, once when my husband got off the freeway and once when I was driving around town. Both times the car started up again. We drove it in to get this problem fixed and they are telling us they don't know why it is happening. We our now off our 4 year warranty FYI. They said we can leave it another day, it has been in for 4 days or we can pick it up not fixed. Very frustrating. I feel like they don't believe this is happening. It would be very unsafe if this happens on a freeway or a street where others are driving fast. Why can't Volvo fix this problem? Except for this we have enjoyed the car, but, now we are considering getting rid of it because it is not safe to drive.

 

Well, not on the XC90 we still have but on the 2004 XC70.

At the final stages of it's life we had all the brake and ABS related warning lights and messages on the dash on including "brake malfunction pull over" or something like this.

It consumed a quart of oil every tank of gas.

It was over 300,000 miles and it's legacy is that my children who were driving it for a while will never look at another Volvo.

We bought it for $1,000 and 233,000 miles on it. Our friend gave us a big pile of receipts from the Volvo dealer totaling up to close to $15,000, and that was just the last few years.

Our last Volvo is a 2005 XC90 it has the ABS warning light that comes on in the winter months. A leak near the window, a climate control system that is confused as to where the air needs to go. And my wife is convinced the AWD does not work, but there are no warning lights. And some other little stuff.

Since 1983 we have owned:
122
145E
1800S
(bought and sold and parted out about 12 1800's), exported from US to places in Europe
sold a 40' container loaded with classic Volvo parts to Europe
1800ES
740GLE
850T5 (overseas delivery)
960
960
==========
V70T5
XC70
XC90

Those last 3 became constant money drains.

Once our last one is gone, it will not be replaced with anything Volvo.

 

I am having this same problem. I have a 2017 XC90 T6 and last week I pulled up to a red light and it just stopped and wouldn't start back up. It took about two minutes of my panicking and then it started. I thought it was a fluke. It happened again in traffic while I was waiting to take a left in a turn lane. It took about a minute of waiting. Last night it happened again at a big intersection and wouldn't turn back on at all. THANK GOD there just happened to be a tow truck pull up to the intersection about 5 minutes later and he towed me home. When we got it home, it started just fine. My research is showing that is an unfortunate problem with the 2017 xc90s. It is scary and dangerous. What I don't get is that my car doesn't always do the 'shut engine off at a stoplight' thing and I don't understand the reasoning behind why it sometimes doesn't. If I could keep it from doing the 'turn off the engine at a stoplight' thing, I probably wouldn't have this issue. Could you share with me where you are with this problem? It is my only car and I am a broke single mom! Thanks so much!!!!

UPDATE: I just figured out that you can turn off the 'turn off engine at a stop' feature so I will see how that works and if it stops the problem. It sure sucks to have a nice 'safe' car that you can't drive because it is too dangerous!!! Good thing I have a big parking lot to drive around in where I won't block traffic if it happens again!