There are 2 stored owner reports matching the lighting leading-label group for the 2001 Volvo S40 in our NHTSA-sourced dataset. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This group counts stored reports whose component label starts with one of this site's matching prefixes, ignoring case. Each matching report counts once within the group. Components mentioned later in the label or only in the narrative are not searched. How component counts work
Loaded 2 of 2 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)WITH THE LOW BEAMS ON, NIGHT TIME VISIBILITY IS POOR AND TREACHEROUS. I HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM WITH MY VOLVO 960 WHICH THE SERVICEMAN STATES CAN NOT BE ADJUSTED ANY BETTER. I HIT A DEER LAST WEEK IN THE S40 AND I STRONGLY BELIEVE IT WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED IF THE HEADLIGHTS WERE EFFECTIVE. I HAVE OWNED AND DRIVEN SEVERAL CARS BEFORE INCLUDING A MAZDA MIATA AND A FORD EXPLORER RECENTLY AND BOTH VEHICLES HAVE EXCELLENT NIGHT TIME HEADLAMP VISIBILITY. I STRONGLY BELIEVE THIS IS A VOLVO DESIGN PROBLEM. THERE IS GREATER VSIBILITY TO THE SIDE THAN TO THE FRONT OF THE VEHICLE. PLEASE INVESTIGATE THIS ISSUE BEFORE SOMEONE GETS SERIOUSLY HURT.
HEADLIGHTS DO NOT THROW A BEAM BUT RATHER A SPRAY OF DISPERSED LIGHT THAT LIGHTS MORE OF THE SIDE OF THE ROAD THAN IN FRONT OF THE VEHICLE. I DO NOT FEEL SAFE DRIVING THIS VEHICLE AT NIGHT, ESPECIALLY ON NARROW DARK BACKROADS (WHICH I HAVE TO TRAVEL FREQUENTLY). DEALER SAID THEY HAVE DONE EVERYTHING THEY CAN.*AK
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
NHTSA source checks for this vehicle year
Checks are recorded separately for each dataset, not for the whole page. Dates use UTC. A missing check date does not mean no records exist.
Vehicle import recorded: Apr 28, 2026. This is the stored import date, not confirmation that every source was successfully refreshed.