Your vehicle report
2002 Volvo V70
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
- 76
- Received Apr 2002 to May 2023
Owner reports
Most reported problems
- 1Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips8 complaints · 11% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 2Fuel tank or line leaks gasoline7 complaints · 9.2% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 3Unintended acceleration despite braking5 complaints · 6.6% of this vehicle’s complaints
Official NHTSA records
Recalls to check
- Recall #21V800000Volvo Cars USA, LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2001-2007 V70 and XC70 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 #10V566000Volvo is recalling certain vehicles equipped with garmin 760 portable global positioning system (gps) units because the batteries on those units may overheat.
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: 5 crashes, 3 fires, 4 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
Airbags, belts & seats
Steering, suspension & tires
Body, doors & glass
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
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 |
|---|---|
| 2002 | 2 |
| 2003 | 8 |
| 2004 | 8 |
| 2005 | 4 |
| 2006 | 1 |
| 2007 | 2 |
| 2008 | 1 |
| 2009 | 5 |
| 2010 | 5 |
| 2011 | 8 |
| 2012 | 6 |
| 2013 | 3 |
| 2014 | 7 |
| 2015 | 0 |
| 2016 | 3 |
| 2017 | 4 |
| 2018 | 2 |
| 2019 | 2 |
| 2020 | 1 |
| 2021 | 2 |
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 1 |
| 2024 | 0 |
| 2025 | 0 |
| 2026 (to Oct 2026) | 0 |
| Total | 76 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips | 8 | 11% | – | |
| Fuel tank or line leaks gasoline | 7 | 9.2% | – | |
| Unintended acceleration despite braking | 5 | 6.6% | – | |
| Seat belt fails to latch or retract | 4 | 5.3% | – | |
| Tires blow out or tread separates | 4 | 5.3% | – | |
| Headlights dim or fail at night | 4 | 5.3% | – | |
| Engine stalls and loses power while driving | 4 | 5.3% | – | |
| Transmission fails or loses power while driving | 4 | 5.3% | – |
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 #21V800000October 14, 2021194,546 vehicles affected
air bags: frontal; air bags: frontal: driver side: inflator module
Volvo Cars USA, LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2001-2007 V70 and XC70 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 December 14, 2021. Owners may contact Volvo Car customer service at 1-888-458-1552. Volvo Car's number for this recall is R10136.
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 #04V051000February 2, 20043,242 vehicles affected
exterior lighting: brake lights
On certain sport utility vehicles, the rear left and right brake light relays may not function when the brake pedal is depressed or may stay on continuously. The high positioned brake light and all other tail lights will not be affected.
If the brake lights fail to come on, there will be no lower brake lights to indicate to following vehicles that the vehicle is decelerating, which could result in a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the brake light relay with two relays of a modified design. Owner notification began on february 23, 2004. Owners should contact Volvo at 1-800-458-1552.
NHTSA recall #03V284000August 1, 2003220,407 vehicles affected
equipment: other: labels
Certain passenger cars fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 225, "child restraint anchorage systems." the second isofix guide was not installed in these vehicles and, in certain cases, the owner's manual isofix information is incorrect.
This does not meet the requirements of the standard.
Remedy
Owners will receive a letter/package consisting of the second isofix guide with installation instructions, and in certain cases, the corrected owner's manual may be provided. If the owner wants to take their vehicle to a Volvo dealer for installation of the guide, it will be performed at no charge to the owner. Owner notification began on december 19, 2003. Owners 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 2002 Volvo V70.
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