2023 VOLVO XC40 Complaints

Vehicle has 26k miles on it and is under mfr warranty. Dealer-covered warranty has included five (5) visits to address electrical issues with the most recently being 8/13/26. Dealer "system reflash" is not solving the problems. Electrical / safety issues persists, which include: Loss of ALL audio: blinker sounds, all audible safety alerts (seatbelt warning, park assist, blind spot, forward collision alert, and lane keeping). This has also occassionally coincided with a full dark-out of the driver dashboard while the vehicle is running (speedometer, entire instrument panel). This vehicle is for our teenage daughter and dealer efforts combined with my trouble-shooting (car on/off, hard system reset) is not solving the issue. The backup camera also regularly failed to work and on 12/10/24, the dealer addressed as part of earlier recall notice and the camera seems to be working fine. Other than above, the car has operated normally.

The car speeds up from 30mph around a curve when the adaptive speed control loses sight of the vehicle ahead of me. A speed of 55mph on the curve posted at 30mph is dangerous. The dealer says “oh just turn off the crisis control by tapping the brake.” This is true but could be too late, since the car has already increased its speed on the curve. Volvo is unresponsive.

The contact owns a 2023 Volvo XC40. The contact stated that the rearview camera image was directed downward towards the bumper and the ground. The rearview camera image was not displaying within a normal viewing range, making it difficult to park. No warning lights illuminated. A local dealer was contacted, but was unable to determine a related fault code. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was unknown.

I was driving northbound on XXX, driving from [XXX] to [XXX]. I was driving in the left most lane and was approaching an area of the highway where there was construction currently in progress to my left (this was where Chuckanut Creek intersects the interstate, I was told they were constructing a salmon run there). As my vehicle was approaching the beginning of the construction area, my car's Lane Assist feature activated and the steering wheel turns to follow the yellow dashed lines that were painted on top of the current highway lane I was driving in, and I could not turn the steering wheel to the right as it was locking and completely turning to the left following the yellow dashed construction lane markings. I could not control the car, and I ended up hitting a concrete construction barrier. After impact, I regained control of the wheel and swerved a bit until fully slowing down to pull over onto the right hand shoulder. The front driver side wheel was completely busted and the car was not drivable following the collision. No person was physically hurt, nor other nearby vehicles. We towed the car to the nearest Volvo dealership where it currently remains, and have received an quote of current damages (the problem of what caused the accident is not included in the report nor confirmed by Volvo. When I spoke to their service department manager, he ultimately said Volvo doesn't claim responsibility and says it's the drivers responsibility to respond to Driver Assistance features). I have opened a claim with my auto insurance, and am still waiting on their inspection/response. The car is available for additional inspection if needed. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA Vehicle Safety Complaint – 2023 Volvo XC40 Recharge Plus Vehicle: 2023 Volvo XC40 Recharge Plus BEV VIN: [[XXX]] Date of Incident: [XXX Approximate Mileage: [26,9333] Location: [[XXX]] – occurred while going downhill Component: Service Brakes, Electric; Parking Brake; Vehicle Speed Control Summary: I experienced complete loss of braking while driving my 2023 Volvo XC40 Recharge on a highway. One Pedal Drive was active. After coasting downhill for approximately 1.5-2 minutes with no accelerator or brake pedal input, I applied the brake pedal to slow for traffic and discovered the vehicle had no braking capability. The pedal was firm but the car did not decelerate. There were no warning lights, messages, or alerts before or during the failure. This resulted in a collision with other vehicle Damage to my vehicle to the front left etc.]. Police responded and generated report #[XXX]. Additional Details: 1. Drive mode: One Pedal Drive was ON at the time of incident. This matches the failure mode described in NHTSA Recall 25V-392 for 2020-2026 Volvo BEV/PHEV models, which warns of total brake loss after 1 minute 40 seconds of coasting in One Pedal Drive/B mode. 2. No warnings: No dashboard alerts, sounds, or messages occurred before brake failure, inconsistent with a safe design. 3. After incident: Braking function returned intermittently after the vehicle came to a complete stop, also consistent with 25V-392. 4. Recall status: My VIN currently shows no open recalls on NHTSA’s lookup tool. However, 2023 XC40 BEV is explicitly listed in NHTSA Recall 25V-392. I was never notified to disable One Pedal Drive or that my vehicle was unsafe to operate. Vehicle Status: I still have possession of the vehicle and it has not been repaired. It is available for inspection. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

While I was driving, the infotainment system turned itself off twice during the same trip. First time was on a highway and was extremely scary. I wasn’t in a place I could easily pull over to assess. Both the main screen in the middle console and the screen behind the steering wheel went dark. Volvo NEEDS to figure it out re infotainment. It shouldn’t be turning itself off mid drive and then ultimately rebooting itself while the car is moving. I have already installed all the updates, but clearly it wasn’t enough/effective.

I pulled into a parking spot with a concrete barrier pole at a pharmacy to pick up my sister. I had my foot on the brake while she was getting into the vehicle when the vehicle suddenly accelerated forward crashing into the pole. I have also had an incident where I tried to start the vehicle and could not get the vehicle to go from park to reverse. This is concerning that there could be some faults in the electrical system, sensors or brakes.

I am submitting this complaint to report a persistent safety-related defect in my 2023 Volvo XC40. Since the vehicle was purchased, the infotainment system has repeatedly crashed while the vehicle is in operation, at times as often as every 5 minutes. The condition has existed both before and after completion of the recall/software update, and it was not corrected after presentation to an authorized dealer for inspection and repair. These repeated system failures materially affect the safe operation of the vehicle. When the infotainment system crashes, the rearview camera becomes unavailable. In addition, the windows and windshield may fog up, and I may lose access to the controls needed to restore visibility. The loss of forward visibility, combined with the loss of rear camera functionality, creates a substantial and unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety. Although I suspect the problem may involve inadequate hardware or processing capacity, I am not asserting a definitive technical diagnosis. The critical fact is that the vehicle repeatedly loses important operational and safety-related functions while being driven. Because the defect persists despite the recall update and dealer intervention, I request that NHTSA investigate this condition as a potential safety defect in the 2023 Volvo XC40.

Driver assist failed and brakes failed when vehicle veered to left on its own..Brakes and steering failed when trying to correct failure.. Overcorrection caused vehicle to veer off road and over a sign and continue for approximately 50 feet. Vehicle is currently at State Farm towing lot. My safety and others were put at risk with "reckless" driving. The problem has not been reproduced. A State Farm claims adjuster will inspect the vehicle today 2/18/26 or tomorrow. No warning lamps or messages appeared.

The contact owns a 2023 Volvo XC40 BEV. The contact stated that after the brake module OTA firmware update, the brakes became inoperable. The OTA update removed the AUTO-HOLD function. While depressing the accelerator pedal, the pedal failed to respond as needed. The "AUTO-HOLD" message was displayed while at a stop sign. While driving up a steep hill and making a turn, the vehicle failed to stop while depressing the brake pedal. The AUTO-HOLD warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed, and determined that the AUTO-HOLD function was no longer available. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000. The VIN was not available.