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2016 Volvo XC90

Plug-in hybrid Gas Midsize / large SUV

202720262025202420232022202120202019201820172016
Specs & fuel economyRecallsComplaintsCrash ratings
F
Safety Signal
36 / 100
FSafety Signal · 36 / 100
8Recalls · 1 critical
198Complaints · owner reports
5★Crash rating · NHTSA overall
25 mpgFuel economy · best combined

The 2016 Volvo XC90 is sold in the U.S. as a plug-in hybrid and gas midsize or large SUV with 4 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the XC90 AWD PHEV, is EPA-rated at 25 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 8 recall campaigns for this model year, 1 rated critical, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of F. Owners have filed 198 complaints, most often about engine. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy (EPA)

ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombRangekWh/100miCharge (240V)Annual fuel*
XC90 AWD PHEVPlug-in hybridAWD2.0L 4-cyl turbo + 34 and 65 kW DCPM242725 (30 MPGe blended)14 mi electric583 h$3,100
XC90 FWDGasFWD2.0L 4-cyl turbo222624$3,250
XC90 AWDGasAWD2.0L 4-cyl turbo222523$3,350
XC90 AWDGasAWD2.0L 4-cyl turbo202522$3,500

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year and EPA reference fuel/electricity prices. Source: fueleconomy.gov vehicle records.

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Recalls (8)

Seat Belts

high
2,911 vehicles

Problem: Volvo Car USA, LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2015-2024 XC90 vehicles. The second-row seat belt buckle and lower belt anchor bolts may not be tightened properly.

Risk: An improperly tightened seat belt buckle may not restrain an occupant as intended, increasing their risk of injury during a crash.

Fix: Dealers will inspect and tighten the second-row seat belt buckle anchorage bolts, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 19, 2024. Owners may contact Volvo Car customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo Car's number for this recall is R10259.

NHTSA campaign 23V827000 · reported Dec 7, 2023 · Volvo Car USA, LLC

Electrical System

minor
162 vehicles

Problem: Volvo Car USA, LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2016-2020 XC90 Excellence vehicles. Liquid or condensation on the rear seat control display may cause the front passenger seat to move back as far as possible.

Risk: The rear passenger may become trapped by the front seat without the ability to cancel the seat's movement, increasing the risk of injury.

Fix: Volvo Car will notify owners, and dealers will update the rear seat control display software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 14, 2021. Owners may contact Volvo Car customer service at 1-888-458-1552. Volvo Car's number for this recall is R10093.

NHTSA campaign 21V273000 · reported Apr 21, 2021 · Volvo Car USA, LLC

Engine And Engine Cooling

critical
34,006 vehicles

Problem: Volvo Cars of N.A., LLC (Volvo Cars) is recalling certain 2016 XC90 vehicles. Exposure to heat and humidity may cause the engine coolant bleeder hose to crack, resulting in a coolant leak.

Risk: If the coolant leak goes unnoticed, coolant may accumulate in the catalytic converter heat shield insulation and catch fire when the vehicle is stationary, increasing the risk of injury.

Fix: Volvo Cars will notify owners, and dealers will replace the engine side coolant bleeder hose, free of charge. The recall began June 12, 2019. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R29936.

NHTSA campaign 19V308000 · reported Apr 17, 2019 · Volvo Car USA LLC

Seat Belts

high
74,027 vehicles

Problem: Volvo Car USA LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 XC90, S90, XC60, V60 Cross Country, V60, S60 Cross Country, S60, and S60 Inscription vehicles manufactured February 16, 2015, to August 22, 2016. On the affected vehicles, the front passenger seat belt buckle attaching stud may loosen, allowing the buckle to separate from the seat belt bracket. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 210, "Seat Belt Assembly Anchorages" and number 209, "Seat Belt Assemblies."

Risk: If the seat belt buckle separates from the bracket, the front seat passenger may not be adequately restrained in the event of a crash, increasing their risk of injury in the event of a crash.

Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the front passenger seat belt buckle stud, replacing the seat belt buckle as needed, free of charge. The recall began January 2017. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R89708.

NHTSA campaign 16V798000 · reported Nov 2, 2016 · Volvo Car USA LLC

Air Bags

high
43,766 vehicles

Problem: Volvo Cars of North America, LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Volvo XC90 and S90 vehicles manufactured April 15, 2015 through September 19, 2016. In the affected vehicles, the drain hose for the air conditioning may leak into the passenger compartment due to a drain hose installation error during manufacturing.

Risk: Significant water drainage into the passenger compartment may adversely affect air bag deployment in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of occupant injury.

Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the air conditioning drain hose for proper installation, replacing the hose as necessary, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on November the 14, 2016. Owners may contact Volvo at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this campaign is R89707.

NHTSA campaign 16V690000 · reported Sep 26, 2016 · Volvo Car USA LLC

Visibility

moderate
30,214 vehicles

Problem: Volvo Car USA LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain model year 2016 XC90 vehicles manufactured January 27, 2015, to April 23, 2016. The sunroofs on the affected vehicles have a switch on the overhead console that may not be adequately recessed to prevent the switch from being unintentionally pressed. When pressed, the sunroof may fully close. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 118, "Power-Operated Window, Partition, and Roof Panel Systems."

Risk: If the switch is unintentionally pressed and the sunroof panel closes, there is an increased risk of occupant injury.

Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will perform a software upgrade that disables the auto-close function, free of charge. The recall began June 24, 2016. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552 or by visiting http://Volvo.custhelp.com. Volvo's number for this recall is R89702.

NHTSA campaign 16V268000 · reported May 4, 2016 · Volvo Car USA LLC

Air Bags

high
3,911 vehicles

Problem: Volvo Cars of N.A., LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain model year 2016 Volvo XC90 vehicles manufactured January 27, 2015, to July 10, 2015. The third row seating side curtain air bags may not fully inflate.

Risk: Underinflated air bags may not fully protect third row occupants, increasing the risk of injury in the event of a crash.

Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will modify the D-pillar interior panels to allow full inflation of the third row airbags, free of charge. The recall began on September 21, 2015. Owners may contact Volvo Customer Care at 1-800-458-1552.

NHTSA campaign 15V497000 · reported Aug 6, 2015 · Volvo Cars of N.A., LLC

Air Bags

high
584 vehicles

Problem: Volvo Cars of N.A., LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain model year 2016 Volvo XC90 vehicles manufactured January 27, 2015, to May 19, 2015. The affected vehicles have front seats whose wiring harness for the Side Impact Protection System (SIPS) may have been routed incorrectly.

Risk: If the wiring harness is routed incorrectly, the wiring may be damaged, disabling the front seat side impact air bag, and increasing the risk of injury to the seat occupant in the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front seat side impact air bag.

Fix: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the routing of the SIPS wiring, correcting the routing and installing a protective sleeve as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on June 30, 2015. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R89571.

NHTSA campaign 15V342000 · reported Jun 3, 2015 · Volvo Cars of N.A., LLC

NHTSA investigations

Electrical System:Propulsion System — Pedestrian alert sounds (closed)

NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matt

Opened Jan 27, 2023 · closed Aug 7, 2023 · action DP22005

Owner complaints

198 complaints filed

5 involved a crash, 11 a fire, 8 injuries, 0 deaths reported by owners.

Filed by year — 2015: 5 · 2016: 24 · 2017: 14 · 2018: 8 · 2019: 11 · 2020: 12 · 2021: 14 · 2022: 26 · 2023: 25 · 2024: 33 · 2025: 13 · 2026: 13

Most-cited components

  • Engine — 87
  • Electrical System — 57
  • Unknown Or Other — 37
  • Structure — 23
  • Service Brakes — 14
“THE VEHICLE CAUGHT ON FIRE AFTER PULLING INTO A PARKING LOT”Oct 23, 2018 · Electrical System · NHTSA owner report
“WHILE THE CAR WAS RUNNING IN MY GARAGE AND THE FRONT DRIVER SIDE DOOR CLOSED, I BELIEVE I PUT IT IN REVERSE THEN WENT TO OPEN THE FRONT DOOR TO SEE IF MY DAUGHTER WAS TIGHTENED IN HER CAR SEAT, THE CAR DIDN'T MOVE. I AM NOT SURE IF I PUT IT BACK IN PARK BUT AFTER I TOOK MY FOOT OFF THE BRAKE, IT DIDN'T MOVE. AFTER A FE…”Aug 4, 2016 · Structure · NHTSA owner report
“WHILE DRIVING BETWEEN CINCINNATI, OH AND NASHVILLE, TN, WE STOPPED IN CAROLLTON, KY TO REFUEL AT A LOCAL GAS STATION. UPON ATTEMPTING TO OPEN THE FUEL DOOR, THE DOOR WOULD NOT UNLOCK. THERE IS NO BUTTON OR SWITCH TO USE TO OPEN THE FUEL DOOR ON THIS VEHICLE. DESPITE SEVERAL ATTEMPTS TO TURN THE LOCK AND UNLOCK THE CAR,…”Jul 17, 2016 · Electrical System · NHTSA owner report

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.

Crash ratings

ConfigurationOverallFrontalSideRolloverRollover risk
SUV AWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆18%
SUV AWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆18%
SUV AWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆16%
SUV FWDnot rated★★★★★★★★★★not rated
SUV FWDnot rated★★★★★★★★★★not rated

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program. Standard driver-assist: forward collision warning, lane departure warning.

Other XC90 model years

A

2027 XC90

0 recalls · 0 complaints

A

2026 XC90

1 recalls · 6 complaints

A

2025 XC90

3 recalls · 27 complaints

B

2024 XC90

4 recalls · 34 complaints

F

2023 XC90

7 recalls · 39 complaints

F

2022 XC90

5 recalls · 29 complaints

F

2021 XC90

7 recalls · 35 complaints

F

2020 XC90

9 recalls · 30 complaints

D

2019 XC90

6 recalls · 41 complaints

B

2018 XC90

3 recalls · 50 complaints

F

2017 XC90

7 recalls · 77 complaints

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). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records (ids 37224, 36994, 36995, 36149). Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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