There are 29 owner-reported electrical system complaints for the 2001 Volvo S60in NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
1. The vehicle caught fire while driving. The radiator cooling fan stayed on after parking, The vehicle the night before. The vehicle had to be jump started the next morning. yes the vehicle is available for inspection. 2. bodily injury and property damage could have been caused by the fire. 3. Yes. independent service center. Automotive Body and Tire Center. (Skokie IL) 4. Yes. Fire was put out by prospect heights fire department. Police report #PHP23-004049 5. No warning lamps prior to the fire. Symptom of problem was the radiator cooling fan staying on after vehicle was turned off, which caused the battery to discharge.
I HAVE AN SRS AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT STAYS ON AND WILL NOT GO AWAY. THE ELECTRICAL WIRING FOR THE HEADLIGHTS ARE FAULTY, I TRIED EVERYTHING TO FIX THEM NOTHING WORKS. I USED AN INLINE FUSE WITH THE HEADLIGHT WIRING BECAUSE THE BULBS THE CONTINUE TO BLOWOUT. THE VOLVO FORUM SUGGESTED THE INLINE FUSE TO FIX THE ISSUE, BUT IT DID NOT. ONE HEADLIGHT REMAINS ON THE DRIVER SIDE AND THE PASSENGER SIDE COMES ON AND OFF WHEN IT WANTS TO AND IT ALSO DISPLAYS DIPPED BULB FAILURE OR BEAM FAILURE.
CAR STALLED WHILE DRIVING THEN WOULD NOT GO ANY FASTER THAN 15MPH.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 VOLVO S60. WITHOUT WARNING, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO ACCELERATE OVER 20 MPH. THE VEHICLE DRASTICALLY REDUCED SPEED AND STALLED SEVERAL TIMES WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS EXCLUDED FROM NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 06V441000 (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL). THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS NOT AVAILABLE.
CAR JERKS AND CLUNKS WHEN SWITCHING GEARS. ITS STARTING TO GRIND AND CLACK IN 1-2 GEAR AND I HOPS AROUND THE RPMS LINE CRAZY.
THE ENTIRE INSTRUMENT PANEL WENT DEAD AND THE TURN SIGNALS WOULD NOT FUNCTION. ONLY THE HEADLIGHTS WERE WORKING. MESSAGES CAME UP SAYING THAT THERE WAS AN SRS AIRBAG ISSUE AND THAT THERE WAS A BRAKE FAILURE. ALL OF THE MESSAGES WERE FALSE AND THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WENT DEAD. THIS IS A CONCERN SINCE THE MESSAGES ARE INCORRECT ACCORDING TO WHAT THE DEALER TOLD ME AND HAVE SEEN SEVERAL PEOPLE WITH THE SAME ISSUE. I THINK THAT VOLVO SHOULD REPLACE ALL OF THE DIMS AND CEMS FOR EVERY CAR THAT EXHIBITS THIS PROBLEM THE FIRST TIME FOR VEHICLES UNDER 125,000 MILES. THIS SHOULD NOT HAPPEN AND IS A VERY BIG SAFETY ISSUE. THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME THAT THE CLUSTER HAS GONE DEAD. ALSO EACH TIME IT HAS BEEN RAINING AND THE DEALER HAS SAID THAT THERE ARE NO SHORTS IN THE SYSTEM. SOMETHING IS WRONG AND THEY ARE REPLACING EVERY PART WITHOUT FIXING THE ISSUE. *TR
MY WIFE DROVE THE 2001 VOLVO S60 AND NOTICED A NOXIOUS BURNING SMELL AND IMMEDIATELY DROVE IT HOME. SHE THOUGHT IT WAS SOMETHING EXTREMELY WRONG WITH THE HEATER. I DROVE THE CAR 3 DAYS LATER AND AFTER 3 MINUTES NOTICED THE BURNING SMELL AS WELL. I TURNED OFF THE HEATER, AND THE SMELL CONTINUED. I SAW SOME SMOKE TO MY LEFT SIDE AND NOTICED THE SEAT HAD A HOLE THAT WAS MELTING AND BURNING. I TURNED OFF THE HEATED SEAT AND ENSURED THE SEAT DID NOT BURN FURTHER. *TR
WHEN I APPLY PRESSURE TO THE BRAKE PEDAL I GET AN ERROR MESSAGE SOMETIMES, NOT ALWAYS, THAT SAYS "CHECK BRAKE LIGHTS". WHEN THE MESSAGE IS UP, THE LEFT AND RIGHT BRAKES IN THE BACK OF THE VEHICLE DO NOT ILLUMINATE, BUT THE MIDDLE ONE IN THE BACK OF MY REAR WINDOW STILL DOES. WHEN THE MESSAGE GOES AWAY, ALL LIGHTS ILLUMINATE. *TR
WHILE STOPPING AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT, I NOTICED ALL THE WARNING LIGHTS ON THE LOWER RIGHT SIDE OF THE INSTRUMENT PANEL CAME ON AND IMMEDIATELY WENT OFF, NO OTHER INDICATIONS. WHILE WAITING AT THE LIGHT, EVERYTHING APPEARED NORMAL. WHEN THE LIGHT CHANGED TO GREEN, I PUSHED ON THE GAS PEDAL TO PULL AWAY AND NOTHING HAPPENED. THE CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE AT ALL. NO LIGHTS WERE ON. I PUSHED TO GAS PEDAL TO THE FLOOR AND BACK UP AND THEN HALF WAY DOWN, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WORKED. IT WOULD NOT GO ANY FASTER THAN IDLE. NO INCREASE IN RPM'S AT ALL, NO MATTER WHAT POSITION THE GAS PEDAL WAS IN. I'M IN THE FAST LANE AT RUSH HOUR AND COULD ONLY GO ABOUT 4 MILES PER HOUR. I MANAGED TO WORK MY WAY OVER THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND PULL INTO A PARKING LOT. I STOPPED AND PUT THE CAR INTO PARK. I HEARD A "CLICK" AS IF A RELAY WAS RESET. I THEN PUT THE CAR INTO REVERSE AND IT SEEMED TO WORK. I PUT IT IN DRIVE AGAIN AND EVERYTHING APPEARED TO WORK OKAY AFTER THAT. I TOOK IT TO TURNER VOLVO, HERE IN SACRAMENTO, CA AND THEY SAID THEY COULDN'T DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM AND THERE WEREN'T ANY CODES IN THE COMPUTER SO THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO. THIS WAS AN "EXTREMELY" DANGEROUS SITUATION AND COULD HAVE CAUSED A VERY SERIOUS ACCIDENT, MADE WORSE BY THE FACT THAT MY 5 YEAR OLD NIECE WAS WITH ME AT THE TIME THIS HAPPENED. WE COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED AND TURNER VOLVO SAYS THERE'S NOTHING THEY CAN DO. WELL TURNER, THANKS FOR NOTHING AND FOR TAKING OUR LIVES SO LIGHTLY. MAYBE SOMEDAY A MEMBER OF YOUR FAMILY WILL BE INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT CAUSED BY THIS PROBLEM AND THEN WE'LL SEE WHAT YOU THINK. THIS IS AN ONGOING PROBLEM WITH VOLVO'S AND NEEDS TO BE TAKING CARE OF BY THE MANUFACTURER NOT THE PEOPLE WHO TRUSTED YOU ENOUGH TO BUY YOUR CARS. *TR
ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS: FIRST, THE LIGHT BULBS, INCLUDING HEADLIGHTS, BRAKE LIGHTS, AND TURN SIGNALS, ON MY 2001 VOLVO S60 HAD TO BE REPLACED AT LEAST EVERY TWO MONTHS. THIS IS CAUSING PROBLEMS WITH VISIBILITY AND ALSO WITH THE LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENT -- THEY DON'T LIKE IT WHEN I'M DRIVING THROUGH TOWN WITH NO LIGHTS ON. SECOND, THE INTERIOR LAMPS ABOVE MY DASHBOARD AND THE SUNROOF STOPPED WORKING ON AN INTERMITTENT BASIS. FOR NO SEEN REASON, I WON'T BE ABLE TO OPEN OR CLOSE THE SUNROOF (NOT GREAT WHEN IT'S RAINING AND I CAN'T GET IT CLOSED) AND THE LIGHTS WON'T WORK EITHER. *JB
RIGHT FRONT POWER WINDOW AND LOCK IN OPERABLE. LEFT (DRIVER'S SIDE) DOOR LOOK SWITCH INOPERABLE. AMBIENT TEMPERATURE READOUT INOPERABLE. *NM
RIGHT FRONT POWER WINDOW INOPERABLE FROM EITHER SIDE SWITCH CONTROL. POWER DOOR LOCKS DO NOT RESPOND TO REMOTE. AMBIENT TEMPRARTURE READOUT INOPERABLE. DEALER CLAIMED TO HAVE UPGRADE COMPONENT SOFTWARE. POSITION BULB OUTAGE ERROR TEXT: REPLACED RIGHT REAR POSITION BULB. *NM
POWER OUTLETS ARE INOPERABLE AGAIN. BRAKE LAMPS OUTAGE AGAIN. REPLACE FUSE AND BULBS. *NM
POWER OUTLETS INOPERABLE. DEALER SERVICE REPLACED FUSE (20 AMP BLADE YELLOW). *NM
I BOUGHT THIS USED 2001 VOLVO S60 WITH 54K ON IT. FOUND OUT THAT HAS THIS PROBLEM OF COMPUTER SHUTTING DOWN WITH NO WARNINGS AND THERE'S ONLY POWER TO RADIO AND THE A/C FAN...NO SIGNALS NO INSTRUMENT PANEL AND NOTHING WORKED. THERE WAS ALL THESE MESSAGES SAYING BRAKE FAILURE, EMISSION CONTROL FAILURE AND SRS FAILURE MESSAGE. ENGINE RAN AS LONG AS IT WAS ON, ONCE TURNED OFF WOULD NOT START AGAIN. THE CAR COMPUTER RESETS BY ITSELF IN ABOUT 10-15 MINUTES. TOOK IT TO VOLVO DEALER TWO TIMES EXPLAINING THE DETAILS. THEY DID A SOFTWARE UPGRADE, CLEARED THE CODES AND RESET THE COMPUTER. BOTH TIMES, THE CAR WORKED FOR A WHILE BUT HAPPENED AGAIN. TWO DAYS AGO HAPPENED IN THE FREEWAY AND I ALMOST HAD A CRASH (NO SIGNALS AND ALSO COULDN'T OPEN WINDOWS TO HAND SIGNAL). I FEEL LIKE THEY ARE AWARE OF THE PROBLEM, BUT DON'T WANT THE CONSUMER TO KNOW ABOUT IT SO THEY KEEP DOING THE CHEAP FIX OF CLEARING CODE UNTIL NEXT TIME. I'M REALLY CONCERNED ABOUT THE SAFETY OF THE CAR NOW ESPECIALLY IN THE FREEWAY. *JB
ERROR TEXT LAMPS OUTAGES: 2 BRAKE LAMP BULBS, 2 TAG LAMP BULBS AND A RIGHT REAR POSITION BULB REPLACED. *NM
THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULATOR (ETM) IN MY 01' VOLVO S60, LIKE MANY OTHERS, HAS BECOME FAULTY. WHILE SITTING IDLE OR IN DRIVE, THE RPM'S WILL FLUCTUATE ERRATICALLY CAUSING WHAT SEEMS TO BE BURSTS IN ACCELERATION AND NEAR STALLS. CONSEQUENCES OF THIS DEFECT INCLUDE IMPROMPTU BREAKING TO CORRECT RPM FLUCTUATIONS. THE CAR WAS DIAGNOSED A MONTH AGO BY A CERTIFIED VOLVO DEALER WITH A FAILING ETM. MY WIFE AND I ARE SAVING MONEY SO THAT THE REPAIR CAN BE DONE. HOPEFULLY VOLVO RECALLS THE PART SO THAT WE CAN HAVE OURS REPLACED ASAP BEFORE MORE SEVERE COMPLICATIONS OCCUR. *NM
MY 2001 S 60 VOLVO SEDAN LOSES POWER DURING ACCELERATION. THE RPMS RACE BUT THE VEHICLE FEELS LIKE IT'S GOING TO STALL. I HAVE BROUGHT THIS VEHICLE BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP 5 TIMES FOR THE SAME COMPLAINT. ON THE FIFTH TIME, THEY REPLACED THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE MODULE. THAT WAS ON AUGUST 1, 2005. SINCE THE PROBLEM WAS INTERMITTENT, I CAN'T TELL YET IF THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN FIXED. *JB
MY 2001 VOLVO V70XC HAD AN ELECTRONIC THROTTLE FAILURE ON THE HIGHWAY ON 8/01/05 WHICH RESULTED IN AN IMMEDIATE DECELERATION AND TOTAL LOSS OF POWER. MY COMPLAINT IS CONSISTENT WITH THE CURRENT NHTSA INVESTIGATION #PE05041. THE THROTTLE ACCELERATION HAPPENED AGAIN 4 DAYS LATER ON RTE 128 IN BOSTON AND AN ACCIDENT WAS AVERTED AS I GOT GOING BEFORE A CAR RAN INTO ME IN THE BREAK DOWN LANE. MY LOCAL VOLVO DEALER REPLACED THE THROTTLE MECHANISM FOR $1,300 THIS WEEK BUT DID NOT MAKE ME AWARE OF YOUR INVESTIGATION OR THE CALIFORNIA OR MASSACHUSSETT'S LAWSUITS REGARDING THIS PROBLEM. *JB
DT: 2001 VOLVO S60. THE CONSUMER STATES IN TRAFFIC THE VEHICLE WILL CUT OUT AND IT WILL NOT MOVE. WHEN TRYING TO PULL OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD IT WILL COME BACK ON. THIS HAPPENED THREE TIMES. VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALERSHIP TO BE INSPECTED. THEY FOUND THAT THERE WAS A MALFUNCTION WITH THE ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE. THIS WOULD COST THE CONSUMER $400 TO FIX IT. THIS FIRST HAPPENED ON MAY 26, 2005 ,AND MOST RECENTLY ON AUGUST 1, 2005.*AK
Showing 1–20 of 29 complaints
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