There are 2 owner-reported electrical system complaints for the 2003 Volvo S40in NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
I RETURNED TO MY CAR AND FOUND THAT I COULD NOT TURN THE IGNITION SWITCH AND AS A RESULT OF THE SECURITY SYSTEM MY CAR WAS TOTALLY INOPERATIVE. THE CAR HAD TO BE TOWED TO THE NEAREST DEALER, WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED WITH A BROKEN IGNITION SWITCH, SPECIFICALLY THE DEVICE THAT READS THE CHIP IN THE KEY HAS FAILED AND WILL NOT ACCEPT ANY KEY. CURRENTLY THE CAR HAS BEEN SITTING AT THE DEALER FOR OVER 4 WEEKS. BECAUSE THE KEYS AND SWITCHES ARE MATCHED WE CANNOT GET AN AFTER-MARKET REPLACEMENT SWITCH. FURTHER, THE PARTS ARE BACK ORDERED AT THE DEALER, BACK ORDERED AT VOLVO NORTH AMERICA, BACK ORDERED AT VOLVO IN SWEDEN, AND THEY CANNOT EVEN GET ME A DATE WHEN THE PART MIGHT BE AVAILABLE. AS AN RELIABILITY ENGINEER, THE IGNITION SWITCH FAILURE WOULD BE CLASSIFIED AS A CRITICALITY 1, SINGLE POINT FAILURE, IN OTHER WORDS IT RESULTS IN LOSS OF VEHICLE. THERE IS NO INDICATION OF PENDING FAILURE, AND NO WAY TO MITIGATE THE PROBLEM IF IT OCCURS. YOU ARE STRANDED WHERE EVER THE CAR WAS LAST PARKED. AND WORSE, IN THIS CONDITION THE CAR HAS NO RESALE VALUE, EXCEPT MAYBE AT A "CHOP SHOP", SO I CANNOT EVEN TRADE IT IN FOR A NEW CAR. *TR
GOT A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ON AND TRIED TO GET A FULL DIAGNOSTIC TEST DONE, BUT THE POWER CONTROL MODULE WAS NOT COMMUNICATING WITH VEHICLE. *JB
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.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026