Volvo bulletin 36814
What it saysThis is a Technical Journal: Transmission Shifts From D or R to P Immediately After Starting. NHTSA’s full summary ↓
Volvo filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated Jun 13, 2025, received Nov 5, 2024, about the power train — 4 documents under this number. It names 43 model years (2016–2026). A service bulletin is not a safety recall: it is the manufacturer telling its dealers how to diagnose or repair a condition, and whether the work is paid for depends on the warranty in force. Quoting the number at a service desk can save a diagnosis.
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What the bulletin says
Source: NHTSA's summary of the manufacturer's communicationThis is a Technical Journal: Transmission Shifts From D or R to P Immediately After Starting. This symptom can occur if the driver changes the position of the gear shifter from P to D or R very quickly after starting the engine and the starting process is not completed. Inform the driver to pause briefly after starting the vehicle before shifting into D or R.
Documents filed under this number
| Document | Kind | Dated | NHTSA id | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36814 | Service bulletin | Jun 13, 2025 | 11020543 | |
| 36814 | Service bulletin | May 2, 2025 | 11020524 | |
| 36814 | Service bulletin | Jan 27, 2025 | 11014118 | |
| 36814 | Service bulletin | Oct 22, 2024 | 11009813 |
The summary is NHTSA’s abstract of the document, as filed under 49 CFR 579.5. One communication is usually filed as several documents — the bulletin, a dealer notice, an owner letter — and the number on any of them finds this page. A PDF link is shown only once NHTSA’s own server has been seen to serve that document; the rest are checked over the following nights. Quote the number at a service desk; it is what the dealer’s system is keyed on.
Model years it names
Source: as the manufacturer filed themand 3 more on this site: 2018 Volvo XC90, 2017 Volvo XC90, 2016 Volvo XC90.
A vehicle page’s bulletin list shows the newest few communications filed against that model year; the count there is every one.
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What owners reported
Source: NHTSA complaint databaseOwners of the 43 model years this bulletin names have filed 1,090 complaints with NHTSA since 2015. 7 of them name Power Train — the same broad component group this bulletin is filed under. NHTSA groups complaints coarsely, so that means the same area of the vehicle, not necessarily the same fault.
Upon driving a symbol with a turtle and engine cation sign flashed upon the dash displaying and reading reduced power train mode as this is being shown on dash the passenger next to me smelt smoke as we next seen smoke coming from the air conditioning system we immediately pulled over to the safest spot out of the ongoing traffic as…
2019 Volvo XC90 · Power Train · filed with NHTSA Dec 10, 2025 · ODI 11704235
The contact owns a 2021 Volvo XC90. The contact stated that upon shifting to Drive(D) while the vehicle was on an incline, the vehicle rolled back before moving forward as intended. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring, causing the vehicle to hit a garage door and a brick mailbox on two different occasions.
2021 Volvo XC90 · Power Train · filed with NHTSA Mar 13, 2026 · ODI 11724066
On July 27, 2026, I was driving my 2026 Volvo XC90 T8 plug-in hybrid at approximately 70 mph on the highway with 2,160 miles on the odometer. Without warning, a turtle-mode indicator illuminated and the vehicle's speed was electronically limited, dropping from 70 mph to approximately 50 mph while in moving traffic.
2026 Volvo XC90 · Power Train · filed with NHTSA Sep 18, 2026 · ODI 11765435
A complaint is one owner’s account, not a defect finding, and a bulletin is not a recall. Nothing here says this bulletin was issued because of these complaints, or that the repair it describes fixed them. Complaint files on this site begin in 2015.
More bulletins about the power train
Source: same model, same component group24 other manufacturer communications filed against these Volvo models under the same component group (power train), newest first. The eight newest are listed; the rest are on the Volvo list.
| Number | Kind | Dated | NHTSA’s summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 36774.4.0 | Service bulletin | Sep 17, 2026 | This is a Technical Journal: Text plus 1 PDF -- DTC TCM P277C07 set. If the TCM DTC listed below is set, A new transmission hardware solutio… |
| 36894.5.2 | Service bulletin | Sep 9, 2026 | This is a Technical Journal: Long Range PHEV ERAD Knocking Noise Repair Kit. Install a repair kit. |
| 37871.1.0 | Service bulletin | Jul 11, 2026 | This is a TJ - Text only no attachments - During the first year in production of the new engines, with the updated transmission calibration… |
| 36774.3.0 | Service bulletin | Jun 10, 2026 | This is a Technical Journal: DTC TCM P277C07 set. If the TCM DTC listed below is set, A new transmission hardware solution has been introduc… |
| 36496.10.0 | Service bulletin | May 7, 2026 | This is a Technical Journal: Intermittent knocking noise during acceleration. If the sound corresponds to attached sound file, change front… |
| 37228 | Service bulletin | Dec 20, 2025 | This is a Technical Journal: Vehicle jerks in low speed when Start/Stop is active. Improved software is introduced from version 3.5.14. |
| 37624 | Service bulletin | Dec 19, 2025 | This is a TJ - Text only no attachments If a decision is taken to replace a cell module and the vehicle has VDN code CK04, please follow inf… |
| 35732 | Service bulletin | Mar 14, 2025 | This is a Technical Journal: Clicking sound from transmission area. This is considered a normal operating characteristic/function of the ve… |
Quote the number at the service desk. It is what the dealer’s system is keyed on.
Every manufacturer communication NHTSA holds for Volvo, by the number printed on the letter.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR 579.5Is Volvo 36814 a recall?
No. A service bulletin is a manufacturer communication filed with NHTSA under 49 CFR 579.5; a safety recall carries an NHTSA campaign number (two digits, a letter, six digits) and a federal duty to repair for free. Check the vehicle’s recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls, or on its page here.
Is the 36814 repair free?
Not automatically. A service bulletin describes how to diagnose or repair a condition; who pays depends on the warranty in force, any extension, and the dealer. Quoting the number can save a diagnosis either way.
Which vehicles does 36814 cover?
The manufacturer filed it against 43 model years: 2025 Volvo S60, 2024 Volvo S60, 2023 Volvo S60, 2022 Volvo S60, 2021 Volvo S60, 2020 Volvo S60 and more. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone.