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2016 Volvo XC90

Plug-in hybridGas
Standard Sport Utility Vehicle 4WD
4 EPA-rated configurations
Data refreshed 2026-09-11
F
Safety Signal
36 / 100 from the NHTSA recall record
Recalls1 critical8
Complaintsowner reports to NHTSA198
Crash ratingNHTSA overall5★
Fuel economybest combined, EPA25 mpg
202720262025202420232022202120202019201820172016

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 the engine. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy

Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov
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 at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 37224, 36994, 36995, 36149.

Factory warranty running out?

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Recalls (8)

Source: NHTSA recall database
▲high

Seat Belts

R10259
2,911 vehicles
ProblemVolvo 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.RiskAn improperly tightened seat belt buckle may not restrain an occupant as intended, increasing their risk of injury during a crash.FixDealers 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 23V827000reported Dec 7, 2023Volvo Car USA, LLC
○minor

Electrical System

R10093
162 vehicles
ProblemVolvo 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.RiskThe rear passenger may become trapped by the front seat without the ability to cancel the seat's movement, increasing the risk of injury.FixVolvo 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 21V273000reported Apr 21, 2021Volvo Car USA, LLC
!critical

Engine And Engine Cooling

R29936
34,006 vehicles
ProblemVolvo 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.RiskIf 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.FixVolvo 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 19V308000reported Apr 17, 2019Volvo Car USA LLC
▲high

Seat Belts

R89708
74,027 vehicles
ProblemVolvo 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."RiskIf 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.FixVolvo 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 16V798000reported Nov 2, 2016Volvo Car USA LLC
▲high

Air Bags

R89707
43,766 vehicles
ProblemVolvo 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.RiskSignificant water drainage into the passenger compartment may adversely affect air bag deployment in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of occupant injury.FixVolvo 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 16V690000reported Sep 26, 2016Volvo Car USA LLC
●moderate

Visibility

R89702
30,214 vehicles
ProblemVolvo 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."RiskIf the switch is unintentionally pressed and the sunroof panel closes, there is an increased risk of occupant injury.FixVolvo 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 16V268000reported May 4, 2016Volvo Car USA LLC
▲high

Air Bags

3,911 vehicles
ProblemVolvo 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.RiskUnderinflated air bags may not fully protect third row occupants, increasing the risk of injury in the event of a crash.FixVolvo 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 15V497000reported Aug 6, 2015Volvo Cars of N.A., LLC
▲high

Air Bags

R89571
584 vehicles
ProblemVolvo 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.RiskIf 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.FixVolvo 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 15V342000reported Jun 3, 2015Volvo Cars of N.A., LLC

NHTSA defect 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

Source: NHTSA complaint database
198complaints filed

5 involved a crash · 11 a fire · 8 injuries · 0 deaths reported

Filed per 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

Engine87
Electrical System57
Unspecified37
Structure23
Service Brakes14
Fuel/Propulsion System12

What owners describe

“Driving at highway speed and a sudden loss of power. Vehicle has a history oil consumption. Seems that engine has a major defect. Waiting on a second estimate, seems a known catastrophic issue with pistons issue causing major engine work or possible replacement.”Jul 28, 2022 · Engine · NHTSA owner report
“SRS Airbag Service Urgent Drive to workshop light has come on twice. I was told by dealership it is a faulty wire harness where the airbags could possibly deploy if I was in an accident. Volvo does have a recall for the exact issue yet my VIN does not fall in this recall.”Jun 14, 2022 · Air Bags · NHTSA owner report
“The engine was losing almost a quart of oil every thousand miles. It did not always notify me when it was low on oil. No one's safety was put at risk. I ended up refilling a total of 3 quarts before taking it to the dealer. The dealer said that the front crankshaft seal was leaking, and the oil was dripping down it and…”Jun 8, 2022 · Engine · 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

Source: NHTSA NCAP
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 Volvo XC90

0 recalls · 0 complaints

A

2026 Volvo XC90

1 recalls · 6 complaints

A

2025 Volvo XC90

3 recalls · 27 complaints

B

2024 Volvo XC90

4 recalls · 34 complaints

F

2023 Volvo XC90

7 recalls · 39 complaints

F

2022 Volvo XC90

5 recalls · 29 complaints

F

2021 Volvo XC90

7 recalls · 35 complaints

F

2020 Volvo XC90

9 recalls · 30 complaints

D

2019 Volvo XC90

6 recalls · 41 complaints

B

2018 Volvo XC90

3 recalls · 50 complaints

F

2017 Volvo 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. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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