2016 Volvo S80
The 2016 Volvo S80 is sold in the U.S. as a gas midsize sedan. The most efficient version, the S80 FWD, is EPA-rated at 29 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 2 recall campaigns for this model year, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of B. Owners have filed 6 complaints, most often about the engine.
Specs & fuel economy
Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov| Configuration | Powertrain | Drive | Engine / motor | City | Hwy | Comb | Annual fuel* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S80 FWD | Gas | FWD | 2.0L 4-cyl turbo | 25 | 37 | 29 | $2,300 |
*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 36289.
Emissions & certification
Source: EPA emission certificates| Configuration | Smog rating | Emission standard | Where it can be sold new | SmartWay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S80 FWD | 5–6 / 10 | Bin 5 / LEV-III ULEV125 | All 50 states (federal, all altitudes); California and states following California standards | SmartWay |
Certified for all fifty states, so it can be registered new anywhere in the U.S.
The smog rating scores tailpipe pollutants other than greenhouse gases, 1 (worst) to 10 (best), and is comparable only within a model year. The standard is the federal bin or California tier the configuration was certified to. Both come from the EPA certificate behind the window sticker.
Specifications filed with NHTSA
Source: NHTSA vPICDimensions Exterior
| Body style | Sedan/Saloon |
| Doors | 4 |
| GVWR class | Class 1: 6,000 lb or less (2,722 kg or less) |
Engine Basics
| Cylinders | 4 |
| Displacement | 2 L |
Engine Output
| Horsepower | 240 hp |
Fuel Economy
| Fuel | Gasoline |
Transmission
| Drivetrain | FWD/Front-Wheel Drive |
| Transmission | Automatic |
| Transmission speeds | 8 |
Filed by the manufacturer with NHTSA under the federal vehicle-identification rule and decoded from the VIN pattern — not a manufacturer press kit, so it describes the configurations we could identify rather than every trim (seen: SV33 Premier, SV35 Platinum). Figures for the trim you are looking at may differ.
Dimensions & weight
Source: Transport Canada| Length | 190.9 in |
| Width (body, without mirrors) | 73.2 in |
| Height | 58.7 in |
| Wheelbase | 111.8 in |
| Track, front | 62.6 in |
| Track, rear | 62.6 in |
| Curb weight | 3,730 lb |
| Weight distribution, front/rear | 61/39 |
Measured by Transport Canada for its Canadian Vehicle Specifications database, which covers the North American versions of each model — here one configuration: 4-door Sedan T5 Drive-E FWD. Where a range is shown, those versions differ. Width is the body without mirrors, which is why it can read narrower than a brochure figure. Before we used it we checked it against the US manufacturer press kits we hold (27 Sep 2026): wheelbase agreed within 1% on every vehicle we could compare, length on 98%, and the curb weight fell inside the manufacturer's range on 96%. Source dataset. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. Licence.
Factory warranty running out?
The 2016 Volvo S80 is in the years where transmission, electronics and drivetrain repairs land on the owner. What an extended plan does and does not cover is worth reading before a dealer quotes you one.
What to check before you buy →Affiliate disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you request a quote or buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Nothing on this page changes because of it.
Recalls (2)
Source: NHTSA recall databaseElectrical System
R39574These are vehicle campaigns — the ones the automaker filed against this model. NHTSA also records equipment recalls, filed by a parts maker against a component (a tyre, a child seat, an aftermarket part), and those are not listed here or counted above. nhtsa.gov/recalls shows both for a VIN.
Whether any of this applies to one specific S80
A campaign covers a build range, not a model year, so two identical-looking cars from 2016 can differ. Both of these check a VIN against the manufacturer’s own list, free, in about ten seconds. Volvo publishes its own lookup because federal rule 49 CFR 573.15 requires it to, and to keep it current to within seven days.
Hear about a recall before the letter does
The manufacturer’s letter is the last step of a recall: it has up to 60 days after filing to mail owners, at the address on the registration. We email you the day NHTSA posts a recall on the 2016 Volvo S80, with what to do next. Nothing else, ever — no newsletter, no marketing, one-click unsubscribe in every message.
Parts & accessories for the 2016 Volvo S80
Search by fitment on eBay Motors — OEM take-offs, aftermarket, and the trim pieces dealers no longer stock. The listing and the price are the seller's.
Find parts for this S80 →Owner complaints
Source: NHTSA complaint database0 involved a crash · 0 a fire · 0 injuries · 0 deaths reported
Filed per year: 2019: 1 · 2021: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2023: 1 · 2024: 1
Most-cited components
In owners' own words
Filed with NHTSA by the people who own these cars, one per problem area. Quoted as written, with anything identifying removed.
I have a 2016Volvo S80. this is my 7th Volvo I have owned. 4 Months ago my car stalled in the middle of ther road. I had no power with the gas petal. Truck behind me trird not to hit me and our sides touched scapping my car and passenger mirrow. The police offier did not charge either of us. I thought I had bad gas??
The contact called on behalf of his wife who owns a 2016 Volvo S80. The contact stated that the engine auto Start/Stop function was not operating as needed and the vehicle had a delay to start automatically upon releasing the brake pedal. There was no warning light illuminated.
The contact owns a 2016 Volvo S80. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle jerked and stalled with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact pulled over safely to the side of the roadway and restarted the vehicle.
I have now had to replace 4 cracked rims on my S80. (First 1/9/1991, Second 2/18/21, Third 4/28/21 and Fourth 8/19/21). Prat number 30758060-5 Aluminium Rim S 71. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? As the air leak out of the tire the car became unsafe to drive.
A warning light came on stating that the oil pressure was low and that the car needed to immediately be stopped. No previous warning lights have ever come on in this vehicle. It was towed to Kenny Jones auto and they stated that there was half a quart of oil in the engine.
Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.
Reported by Volvo itself: 1 death-or-injury claim on this model year in its quarterly Early Warning reports to NHTSA (49 CFR 579.21): 1 injured, as claimed, not verified. Every S80 model year, by year and system → Dated and by system, they are exhibit F of the defect dossier.
Crash ratings
Source: NHTSA NCAPNHTSA has not published 5-Star crash ratings for this model year.
Service bulletins & campaigns
Source: NHTSA manufacturer communicationsMost often about: Equipment, Electrical System, Engine, Equipment Adaptive/Mobility, Wheels.
- 35526.1.8 Service bulletin2026-04-23 · Engine
- This is a Technical Journal: Text plus 2 PDFs and 1 .PNG Oil Consumption test. Perform the test. Follow service procedure Description and Service sections updated to clarify that vehicle reports are not required.
- 37809.1.1 Service bulletin2026-04-07 · Unknown Or Other
- This is a TJ text only - The purpose of this TJ is to be a master reference list to easily identify any components that are on prior approval. This TJ will be regularily updated as items are added or removed from prior approval. Current items under prior approval are listed in the "Service" section
- 37536 Service bulletin2025-12-11 · Unknown Or Other
- This is a TJ text, only no attachments - If the Real Time Traffic Information (RTTI) does not work in Sensus Connect vehicle, follow advice under "Service". This Technical Journal is only valid for vehicles with VDN: VI07 TRAFFIC INFORMATION RTTI + TMC P
- 19245 Service bulletin2025-12-06 · Unknown Or Other
- This is a Technical Journal. Vehicle type and platform identification.
- 8501 Service bulletin2025-04-10 · Exterior Lighting
- This is a Technical Journal: Remote connection, BOMGAR application. Before joining a remote session: •Connect a suitable battery maintainer/charger and verify that the battery voltage indicated in VIDA is between 12.5V and 14.9V. •Connect to the vehicle over a wired connection using a VOE (Volvo OBD to Ethernet) adapter and perform a NEW vehicle readout.
- S10303 Service campaign2025-02-21 · Unknown Or Other
- Volvo Cars USA LLC and Volvo Car Canada LTD on behalf of the Volvo Car Corporation has decided to launch Service Action S10303 on certain model year 2025 EX90 vehicles. Volvo Car Investigations have identified that there is a pairing issue with the key fob. As a result, there is a possibility that the customer’s key fob is not paired to the vehicle. The corrective action is to download SP Softw
- 37175 Service bulletin2025-01-16 · Unknown Or Other
- This is a Technical Journal: Vehicle/Connectivity report checklist. To provide timely and high-quality feedback to the appropriate department or factory
- 8501 Service bulletin2025-01-16 · Exterior Lighting
- This is a Technical Journal: Remote connection, BOMGAR application. Before joining a remote session: •Connect a suitable battery maintainer/charger and verify that the battery voltage indicated in VIDA is between 12.5V and 14.9V. •Connect to the vehicle over a wired connection using a VOE (Volvo OBD to Ethernet) adapter and perform a NEW vehicle readout.
A service bulletin is the manufacturer telling its dealers how to diagnose or repair a known condition. It is not a recall, not a finding that the vehicle is defective, and the work is not automatically free — though a bulletin is often what a dealer works from when you describe a symptom, so quoting the document number can save a diagnosis. The count is every communication filed; the list shows the most recent, one entry per campaign, because a single campaign is usually filed as several documents on the same day. The summaries are NHTSA's; the full documents come from the manufacturer.
Diagnostic trouble codes on file
Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications and complaintsCodes documented against this model year in the federal record. A code appearing here does not mean this vehicle will set it — it means the code is part of this nameplate-year's documented history.
| Code | What it means | Most often filed under | Where it appears |
|---|---|---|---|
| P05EB | Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard. | Engine | 1 bulletin |
Generic codes (the second character is 0 or 2) mean the same thing on every vehicle sold in the United States. Manufacturer-specific codes (1 or 3) mean whatever the automaker assigned, and no honest source can define them for you — which is why the ones here carry the evidence instead of a definition. A code is a link when enough separate federal documents name it across the catalogue to be worth a page of its own; the rest are listed here, where the vehicle is the context that makes them mean something.
Affiliate disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you request a quote or buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Nothing on this page changes because of it.
Common questions about the 2016 S80
Source: EPA, NHTSA and manufacturer press kitsDoes the 2016 Volvo S80 have any recalls?
NHTSA has posted 2 recall campaigns for the 2016 Volvo S80. The most serious on file is 20V378000, covering Seat Belts. Check your own VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls; a recall applies to specific build ranges, not every car.
How safe is the 2016 Volvo S80?
NHTSA has not published a crash-test rating for the 2016 Volvo S80 yet. On the recall record WhichTrim grades it B (87/100), which measures open and severe recalls rather than crash protection.
What is the fuel economy of the 2016 Volvo S80?
For the 2016 Volvo S80, the best EPA combined figure is 29 mpg. Figures are the EPA's own, per configuration, and every one is listed above.
What are the dimensions of the 2016 Volvo S80?
Transport Canada measured it at 190.9 in long, 73.2 in wide (body, without mirrors), 58.7 in tall, on a 111.8 in wheelbase. Curb weight: 3,730 lb. Those are its measurements of the North American versions; every figure is in the table above.
What do owners complain about on the 2016 Volvo S80?
Owners have filed 6 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Volvo S80, most often about engine, unspecified, wheels. Complaints are unverified owner reports, so treat the pattern as a signal and the individual report as an anecdote.
How clean is the 2016 Volvo S80?
The EPA smog rating for the 2016 Volvo S80 runs 5 to 6 out of 10 across its configurations. That score covers tailpipe pollutants other than greenhouse gases, and it only compares vehicles within the same model year. It is certified for all fifty states, so it can be registered new anywhere in the U.S. Its configurations were certified to different standards — Bin 5, LEV-III ULEV125 — which the table above lists per configuration.
Are there service bulletins for the 2016 Volvo S80?
The manufacturer has filed 320 service bulletins and related communications with NHTSA for the 2016 Volvo S80, most often covering equipment, electrical system, engine. The most recent is dated 2026-04-23. A bulletin is not a recall: it is the repair procedure a manufacturer sends its dealers for a condition it knows about, and the work is not automatically paid for. It is still worth knowing — if the symptom matches, quoting the bulletin number at the service desk can save a diagnosis. The document numbers and summaries are listed above.
What we hold, and what an empty row means
Paid vehicle-history reports will not tell you the difference between “nothing happened to this car” and “we never received that record” — both of the big two say as much in their own help pages. Most of what is on this page comes from complete federal registers, so we can tell you which is which, row by row.
| Data | Held | Source | What it covers — or what empty means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel economy & configurations | 1 configurations | EPA certification records | Every configuration the EPA certified for sale, with its own test figures. |
| Emission certificates | 1 configurations | EPA emission certificates | Smog rating, standard and the sales area that decides where the car can be sold new. |
| Recalls | 2 | NHTSA recall campaigns | A complete federal register: every campaign covering this model year, with severity and advisory flags. |
| Owner complaints | 6 | NHTSA complaint database | Also complete, but unverified: these are reports owners filed, not findings. Counts scale with how many were sold. |
| Crash ratings | none | NHTSA NCAP | NHTSA has not tested this model year. Cars are selected for testing, so untested is not unsafe. |
| Service bulletins | 320 | NHTSA manufacturer communications | Everything the manufacturer told its dealers about a defect or malfunction, short of a recall. |
| Investigations | none | NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation | No defect investigation has been opened. |
| Driver-assist crash reports | none | NHTSA Standing General Order 2021-01 | No report has been filed. Only entities named in the order report, and only crashes they hear of — so this is also what an unequipped car, or a manufacturer without telematics, looks like. |
| Specifications filed with NHTSA | 10 fields | NHTSA vPIC, decoded from VIN patterns | What the manufacturer filed under the federal VIN rule — a configuration, not the full trim ladder. |
| Measured dimensions | 7 fields | Transport Canada, Canadian Vehicle Specifications | Length, width, height, wheelbase, track and curb weight, measured on the North American versions. |
| Trims, pricing & equipment | none | Manufacturer press kit | We have not transcribed a press kit for this model year yet. This is our gap, not the manufacturer's — the one row here where an empty cell means we are behind. |
Rebuilt nightly; this page was generated 2026-10-26. Every figure above is traceable to the source named beside it, and the JSON for this page carries the same values with their identifiers.
Sources & method
Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). The most serious recall counts in full and each further one counts 85% of the one before, because a vehicle sold in millions is recalled more often than a rare one without being more dangerous — and because a flat subtraction bottomed the scale out, scoring a vehicle with 22 recalls within a point of one with six. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Read it as what it counts: recall campaigns on the federal record, weighted by severity. The damping reduces the sales bias by roughly 40% but does not remove it: like our complaint counts, this is not normalized by how many were sold, so a best-seller still scores somewhat worse than an obscure model with the same real risk. NHTSA crash ratings, do-not-drive and park-outside advisories, and the crash, fire, injury and death counts in owner complaints are reported separately on every page and never blended into the letter — a vehicle can hold five stars and a poor letter at once, and where that happens we say so rather than leave you to notice. Because the scale subtracts from a clean sheet, a model year too new to have been recalled, complained about or bulletined scores full marks on an empty record; we label those grades provisional rather than present them as earned.
EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed nightly.