Your vehicle report
2001 Volvo S80
The problems owners report. The recalls to check. The evidence behind each.
Your vehicle at a glance
Complaint patterns and official recall records, kept distinct.
- Owner complaints
- 164
- Received Jan 2001 to Oct 2021
Owner reports
Most reported problems
- 1Electronic throttle body fails and cuts power33 complaints · 20% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 2Engine suddenly shuts off while driving15 complaints · 9.2% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 3Unintended acceleration despite braking8 complaints · 4.9% of this vehicle’s complaints
Official NHTSA records
Recalls to check
- Recall #21V766000Volvo Car USA, LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2001-2006 S80 and 2001-2009 S60 vehicles. The driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment, due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
- Recall #20V681000Volvo Car USA LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2001-2003 S80 and S60 vehicles sold or ever registered in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The driver side frontal air bag inflator may rupture, sending metal fragments into the passage compartment, when the driver side air bag is deployed.
BrakeNews signals
Flagged complaint patterns
Unusual complaint patterns with no matched recall yet. A flag does not mean a recall will happen.
No problems currently meet BrakeNews’s flagging criteria. This is not a safety rating.
How flags are identifiedComplaint counts reflect reports submitted to NHTSA, not failure rates or a reliability ranking. Reported in these complaints: 7 crashes, 2 fires, 3 people injured, 0 deaths.
Explore by system
Where do owners report problems?
Choose an area on the car or a system below to explore the reported problems.
Illustrative only; not this vehicle’s exact design. Areas represent complaint categories, not confirmed defective parts.
Showing all 8 listed problems by system.
Engine & powertrain
Brakes
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Electrical & lights
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Airbags, belts & seats
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Steering, suspension & tires
Body, doors & glass
Driver assistance
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Other
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Complaint history
When NHTSA received these reports. Changes in reporting alone do not establish a change in failure rates.
Show as a table
| Year | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 2001 | 5 |
| 2002 | 9 |
| 2003 | 7 |
| 2004 | 8 |
| 2005 | 83 |
| 2006 | 14 |
| 2007 | 10 |
| 2008 | 2 |
| 2009 | 6 |
| 2010 | 7 |
| 2011 | 4 |
| 2012 | 3 |
| 2013 | 1 |
| 2014 | 0 |
| 2015 | 0 |
| 2016 | 0 |
| 2017 | 3 |
| 2018 | 0 |
| 2019 | 0 |
| 2020 | 1 |
| 2021 | 1 |
| 2022 | 0 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 0 |
| 2025 | 0 |
| 2026 (to Oct 2026) | 0 |
| Total | 164 |
Problems owners report
Listed groups have at least 3 complaints. The page includes the 20 largest groups plus any additional flagged groups; some complaints are not assigned to a group.
| Problem | Complaints | Share | Share ratio | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electronic throttle body fails and cuts power | 33 | 20% | – | NHTSA recall #06V441000 |
| Engine suddenly shuts off while driving | 15 | 9.2% | – | |
| Unintended acceleration despite braking | 8 | 4.9% | – | |
| Transmission fails or loses power while driving | 5 | 3.0% | – | |
| Vehicle suddenly loses engine power at speed | 4 | 2.4% | – | |
| Glass shatters or cracks without impact | 3 | 1.8% | – | |
| Fuel tank or line leaks gasoline | 3 | 1.8% | – | |
| Power steering cuts out while driving | 3 | 1.8% | – |
AI groups complaints by meaning; the groups are approximate. Share ratio compares the problem’s share of this vehicle’s complaints with its share on other vehicles over the last 24 months (shown from 3 recent complaints). A 2× ratio means twice the complaint share, not twice the failure risk. Flags mark unusual shares or recent surges after an AI review of the complaint content. “First signal” does not mean the pattern has persisted continuously.How recall estimates are calculated.
Recalls
NHTSA recall #21V766000September 30, 2021259,383 vehicles affected
air bags: frontal: driver side: inflator module
Volvo Car USA, LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2001-2006 S80 and 2001-2009 S60 vehicles. The driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment, due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the driver's air bag, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 29, 2021. Owners may contact Volvo Car customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R10125.
NHTSA recall #20V681000November 4, 202054,124 vehicles affected
air bags: frontal: driver side: inflator module
Volvo Car USA LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2001-2003 S80 and S60 vehicles sold or ever registered in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The driver side frontal air bag inflator may rupture, sending metal fragments into the passage compartment, when the driver side air bag is deployed.
Metal fragments can strike vehicle occupants increasing the risk of serious injury or death.
Remedy
Volvo Car will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver side air bag module, free of charge. The recall began April 20, 2021. Owners may contact Volvo Car customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo Car's number for this recall is R10058.
NHTSA recall #10V566000November 8, 2010416 vehicles affected
equipment: electrical: navigational system(global positioning system)
Volvo is recalling certain vehicles equipped with garmin 760 portable global positioning system (gps) units because the batteries on those units may overheat.
An overheated battery could lead to a fire.
Remedy
Volvo advises owners to please stop using the garmin portable gps device immediately, and visit the garmin website to determine if their unit is affected. The unit's battery will be replaced with a new battery and a spacer will be inserted on top of the battery next to the pcb. This service will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on november 18, 2010. Owners may contact garmin at 866-957-1981 or visit garmin's website at www.garmin.com/nuvibatterypcbrecall.
NHTSA recall #09V483000December 18, 2009158,733 vehicles affected
fuel system, gasoline: delivery: fuel pump
Volvo is recalling certain model year 2001-2005 S80, model year 2001-2004 V70, S60, XC70 and model year 2003-2005 XC90 vehicles sold in or registered in the states of alabama, arizona, arkansas, california, florida, georgia, hawaii, kentucky, louisiana, mississippi, nevada, new mexico, north carolina, oklahoma, south carolina, tennessee, texas, utah, virginia and the U.S. Territories. When exposed to certain environmental conditions (hot climate and temperature cycling) over time and in combination with varying fuel quality, the fuel pump Can develop cracks in the fuel pump flange.
If the condition occurs vehicle owners may notice fuel smell and/or fuel leak which, in the presence of an ignition source, could result in a fire.
Remedy
Dealers will inspect the fuel pump installed in the vehicle, and if necessary replace the fuel pump with a part of a modified design. This service will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on january 15, 2010. Owners may contact Volvo at 1-800-458-1552.
NHTSA recall #06V441000November 15, 2006170,099 vehicles affected
vehicle speed control
On certain passenger vehicles, a combination of throttle positioning sensor irregularities, a dirty throttle housing, and/or inefficient software calibration may cause a warning lamp to light and the subsequent onset of limp home modes.
This resulted in a high number of vehicles going into the limp home mode without need.
Remedy
Dealers will install the current software upgrade onto the involved vehicles. The recall began on december 29, 2006. Owners may contact Volvo at 1-800-458-1552.
NHTSA recall #04V451000September 13, 2004149,799 vehicles affected
engine and engine cooling: cooling system: fan
On certain passenger and sport utility vehicles, under certain operating conditions, some electric cooling fans may overheat potentially causing heat damage and, in rare instances, a fire in the engine compartment.
A fire in the engine compartment could occur.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the cooling fan. The recall began on november 29, 2004. Customers should contact Volvo cars at 1-800-458-1552.
NHTSA recall #01V100000March 26, 20013,276 vehicles affected
seat belts: front: anchorage
Vehicle description: sedans and wagons. The rear outboard seat belt anchorage bolts may have been incorrectly tightened.
In the event of a crash, the seat occupant may not be properly restrained, increasing the risk of injury.
Remedy
Dealers will inspect the anchorage bolts and tighten to the correct torque level. Owner notification began may 7, 2001. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact Volvo at 1-800-458-1552.
Other model years
About this data
NHTSA complaints and recalls through October 2026. Complaints are counted once each, however many components they name. Original complaints are on NHTSA's page for the 2001 Volvo S80.
Problem groups are formed by AI and may be approximate. BrakeNews flags unusual complaint patterns; they are not official defect findings. Investigation reports are written and checked by AI, with no human review. Owner reports do not establish that a defect exists.
Read the methodology and track record · Check current recalls by VIN