2012 Volvo S60

2012 Volvo S60 recalls (8)

• EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS

  VOLVO IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2006-2012 C70 VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM NOVEMBER 15, 2005, THROUGH JULY 31, 2011, AND MODEL YEAR 2011-2012 S60 VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM JULY 14, 2010, THROUGH APRIL 16, 2011, THAT WERE EQUIPPED WITH OPTIONAL ACCESSORY SPARE TIRE KIT. THESE VEHICLES FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NUMBER. 110, "TIRE SELECTION AND RIMS." THESE VEHICLES DO NOT CONTAIN THE CORRECT INFORMATION FOR VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE OPTIONAL ACCESSORY SPARE TIRE AND WHEEL KIT.

  Remedy: VOLVO WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE VEHICLE AND INSTALL THE LABEL AS NECESSARY, FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON FEBRUARY 23, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VOLVO AT 1-201-768-7300.

• FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP

  VOLVO IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2012 S60 PASSENGER CARS MANUFACTURED FROM NOVEMBER 18, 2010, THROUGH MAY 5, 2011. THE SOFTWARE FOR THE FUEL PUMP UNITS MAY NOT BE COMPATIBLE WITH ALL FUEL PUMPS AND COMPONENTS RESULTING IN INSUFFICIENT FUEL TRANSFER IN THE PUMP UNIT.

  Remedy: VOLVO WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND DEALERS WILL UPGRADE THE ENGINE CONTROL MODULE SOFTWARE, FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 1, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VOLVO AT 1-201-768-7300.

• ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING

  VOLVO IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2012 S60, XC60, S80 AND XC70 VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM MAY 16, 2011, THROUGH OCTOBER 6, 2011. IN THESE VEHICLES, THE WIRE HARNESS UNDER THE FRONT SEATS MAY HAVE NOT BEEN ATTACHED PROPERLY TO THE SEAT FRAME. AS A RESULT, WHEN THE SEATS ARE MOVED TO ADJUST THE SEATING POSITION, THE WIRE HARNESS MAY GET PULLED, CAUSING IT TO DISCONNECT.

  Remedy: VOLVO WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND, IF NECESSARY, SECURE THE SEAT WIRE HARNESS. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 12, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VOLVO CARS AT 1-800-458-1552.

• FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS

  VOLVO IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2012 S60 PASSENGER CARS MANUFACTURED FROM JANUARY 18, 2011, THROUGH JANUARY 28, 2011. THE MALE PART OF THE FUEL LINE QUICK CONNECTOR END SHAPE WAS PRODUCED WITH DIMENSIONS OUT OF SPECIFICATION, LEADING TO EXCESSIVE ASSEMBLY FORCE ON THE FEMALE CONNECTOR ASSEMBLY AND THE POSSIBILITY THAT THE LOCKING FUNCTION MAY NOT BE ENGAGED.

  Remedy: VOLVO DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FUEL LINES FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 24, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VOLVO AT 1-201-768-7300.

• STRUCTURE:BODY

  VOLVO IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2012 S60 AND XC60 PASSENGER VEHICLES. AN INCORRECT MIXTURE OF UNDERBODY COATING AND OVER-APPLICATION CAN RESULT IN RIGID, ICICLE-LIKE AREAS HANGING FROM VEHICLE’S UNDERCARRIAGE.

  Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE VEHICLE UNDERCARRIAGE, AND IF EXCESSIVE UNDERBODY COATING IS FOUND IN THE FUEL LINE AREA, IT WILL BE REMOVED. IF THE INSPECTION REVEALS THAT THE FUEL LINES ARE DAMAGED, THEY WILL BE REPLACED. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 25, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VOLVO CUSTOMER CARE CENTER AT 1-800-458-1552.

• ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

  Volvo Cars of North America, LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 S60 vehicles manufactured June 22, 2010, through May 14, 2012, and equipped with 5-cylinder B5254T5 (VIN code 62) engines. In the affected vehicles, the vehicle may not alert the driver of a low oil pressure situation.

  Remedy: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will update the vehicle's software so that the driver is alerted should there be a low oil pressure situation, free of charge. The recall began on January 10, 2014. Owners may contact Volvo at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this campaign is R29436.

• SEAT BELTS:FRONT

  Volvo Cars of N.A., LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain 2008-2016 V70 and XC70, 2007-2016 S80, 2011-2018 S60 and V60, 2016-2018 S60 Cross Country, 2014-2020 S60L, 2009-2015 S80L, 2009-2016 XC60 and 2015-2018 V60 Cross Country vehicles. The flexible steel cable that connects the seat belt to the front outboard seating positions may fatigue over time, causing the seat belt to not secure the occupant in the event of a crash.

  Remedy: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will replace the seat belt anchor cable for both front seats. The recall began December 10, 2020. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R10029.

• LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH

  Volvo Car of USA LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain 2011-2017 S60, S60I, V60, S60CC and V60CC vehicles. A component within the door latches may break, making the doors difficult to latch and/or leading the driver or a passenger to believe a door is securely closed when, in fact, it is not.

  Remedy: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will replace all four door latches, free of charge. The recall began April 9, 2020. Owners may contact Volvo customer service at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this recall is R89978.

2012 Volvo S60 safety ratings

Source: NHTSA NCAP ratings.

2012 Volvo S60 owner complaints (15)

• VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,SERVICE BRAKES

  Brakes , and vacuum booster, speed control I experienced a sudden acceleration phenomenon and reached speeds of 100+ mph I manipulated the brakes and the gas in order to safe my life I eventually got my speeds down but it was too late I was ejected from the vehicle and nearly died my brakes scrubbed and I pressed my brakes as hard as I could and my car continued to acceleration. The police has the vehicle and there were no warnings signs . I had just bought the vehicle and was on my way home from the dealership never made it home

• AIR BAGS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER

  The driver's side seat airbag system failed. Specifically, diagnostic trouble code SRS-B002011 was retrieved, indicating a circuit short to ground in the left side airbag deployment control system. The technician found a broken clip on the airbag connector housing, causing an intermittent connection failure between the connector and the seat airbag itself. The airbag cannot be relied upon to deploy in a crash. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. I purchased this vehicle on May 10, 2026, and drove it as my primary means of transportation. During that time, the driver's side seat airbag was non-functional due to a circuit short to ground and a broken connector housing. Had I been involved in a collision during that period, the driver's side airbag may not have deployed, significantly increasing the risk of serious injury or death. I was not informed of this defect at the time of purchase and had no knowledge that the airbag system was compromised. I drove the vehicle believing it to be equipped with functioning safety systems. The defect was confirmed by Volvo Cars Tacoma (O'Brien Auto Group), a franchised manufacturer-certified Volvo dealership in Tacoma. Technician #2101608 performed a comprehensive inspection using Volvo's proprietary VIDA diagnostic system dated May 16–30, 2026. The inspection retrieved diagnostic trouble code SRS-B002011 confirming a circuit short to ground in the left side airbag deployment control system, and physically identified a broken clip on the airbag connector housing. The technician documented: "There is likely an intermittent failure at the connection between the airbag connector and the seat airbag itself. Need to start with replacement of airbag and repin connector." The check engine light illuminated within days of my purchase. This prompted me to bring the vehicle to Volvo Cars Tacoma on May 16, 2026 — six days after purchase. I personally did not observe an SRS warning light.

• ENGINE

  I experienced an engine issue that I believe is related to excessive oil consumption and the lack of an oil pressure light warning. The car was driven out of town when a noise was heard coming from the engine. A visual inspection of the engine revealed smoke coming from the engine department when the oil cap was removed. The dipstick was checked and showed no visible oil on the stick. Later in that evening, 3 additional quarts of oil were added to the engine but the addition of oil did not remedy the noise from the engine. The final result was that the car was towed to a Volvo dealership in Florida for repair. I checked the status of the recalls (oil comsumption and no oil pressure light) and the status is closed. From what I can tell, this issue appears to be directly related to previous recalls for the vehicle.

• ENGINE

  Engine has failed and is unrepairable. The car has been maintained well according to the manufacturer’s guidelines with regular oil changes. It has only 94,875 miles. The mechanic said that there is probably a piston gasket failure leading to oil leak into the engine. This appears to have been reported with this year/model vehicles. I would like Volvo to take ownership of poor manufacturing and fix the problem to my satisfaction.

• BACK OVER PREVENTION

  At temperatures around 90* and higher the rear camera flickers and is unusable. This happens without any warning and when vehicle attempting to reverse.

• ENGINE

  Discovered that my engine is burning oil. There was no warning from my vehicle or from Volvo (during regular maintenance) that this was happening. It was just sudden that the check engine light went on and I checked the oil and found that it was basically empty. Volvo confirmed that the engine is burning oil and that this model and make was discovered to have this engine issue. Volvo did not offer a solution other than to buy a new vehicle to replace this one. In my research online, this problem is common for this model and make 2012 S60 T5, may other have reported the same issue and it seems that there is a recall for this problem but my vehicle (VIN) does not report this to be a problem for my car. I’m not sure what to do.

• ENGINE

  The contact owns a 2012 Volvo S60. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, an unknown belt fractured, and the vehicle failed to start. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact called the local dealer, who informed the contact about diagnostic testing, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

• VISIBILITY

  While driving or parked water is dripping down my window shield. This obstructs my view and distracts me from driving. It further distracts my driving if I have to wipe away the water which usually leads to smearing which causes further obstruction to my field of vision.

• VISIBILITY

  original windshield never replaced unglueing to the point where you can push the glass and have it move and minor seepage of water

• ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING

  The contact owns a 2012 Volvo S60. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, she smelled a burning odor in the interior of the vehicle, after which the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to coast to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact became aware that the engine was without oil; however, the low oil warning light was not illuminated. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer nor an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V592000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 137,000.

• ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE

  On June 2, 2023 I went to start my car and the engine would not turn over. The dashboard displayed a number of warning lights and messages (DSTC Service Required, SRS Airbag Service Urgent, Transmission Service Required, Coolant System Service Required). When the tow truck driver arrived later that day, they tried to jumpstart my car but reported the battery was completely dead. I had the car taken to a local shop that specialized in Volvo cars. A few days later the shop called to tell me that not only was the battery dead, but my car key was no longer responding, and that the Engine Control Module "exploded." None of the mechanics at the shop had seen such a thing before. The shop also told me that they could not figure out what had been draining the battery. I was advised to reach out to the dealership. I did and happened to meet with the general manager and a lead technician who happened to be on site. I was told that while rare, the Engine Control Module can "explode." I was willing to drop the matter until I started seeing "Low Battery" warnings in early Sept. of 2023. I was finally able to get the car into the dealership on 1/2/24. After talking with the mechanic, he suggested that the satellite radio in my car was continuously draining my battery and to resolve the problem all they would need to do is download new software. A few hours later the mechanic confirmed that my car needed an RDAR upgrade to stop the battery drainage. I do not understand how the dealership could sell me the car without checking to make sure the software had been upgraded in the first place. RDAR failure is not something that pops up as a recall or major safety concern. If the car had lost power while in motion, there could have been serious consequences.

• ENGINE

  Surpintine belt shredded due to faulty belt tensioner. Shreds of belt wedged between crankshaft timing sprocket on engine causing engine to jump timing while driving down highway and vehicle lost all power and very hard to steer due to all valves in motor bent because of poor design. Definitely a safety concern. Volvo is aware but does nothing. 11,000 dollars to replace engine.

• ENGINE

  The contact owns a 2012 Volvo S60. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The vehicle was later towed to the local dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the drive belt had failed, causing damage to the timing cover and other drive belts. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 62,000.

• UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE

  I bought used s60 and sent car to auto shop due to engine seize . I was told The engine needed to be replaced. I has replacement done. Car ran good and I was pleased. Months later, the vehicle made a clicking noise when I arrived home. When I checked the oil the following morning, there was no oil in car. I was never given a low oil level indication or warning. Now car is making crazy tapping sounds. i

• EXTERIOR LIGHTING

  These headlight assemblies commonly develop significant water ingress problems as they age. Owners report issues in wet climates even when these cars were relatively new, resulting in bulb ignition problems as water finds it way into the ballasts, resulting in high-voltage shorting. The water in the headlight housings also "fogs" up the forward lens, resulting in a poor distribution of light out the front, both poor for the driver and dazzling for oncoming traffic. The headlights can work fine for weeks or months, and then a wet week comes along and 1 or both headlights fail to operate or work but poorly and blind oncoming traffic. If caught after dark in the rain the headlights often fail to function. If this could be solved with new headlight assemblies for a reasonable price, I would not consider this a major safety issue, unfortunately, they are difficult to source, astronomically priced (~$1100 per assembly), and replacing them doesn't seem to fix this problem for many owners of these cars. The way these assemblies are vented from the factory seems to be problematic for water ingress and the position of the ballasts ensures that any significant water ingress causes the ballast to short internally. I believe that the atmospheric vent on these must be positioned in such a way that they suck water in as they cool if its raining. The all-halogen assemblies for these cars work better, likely because there's no ballast for the water to leak into and more heat from the bulb to quickly evaporate the water out of the same assembly design. The poorly designed housing is "saved" by the simpler electronics and thermal output of the bulbs. Unfortunately, different factory programming is required to run the all-halogen assemblies. A recall should be issued to replace all of these gimmicky (and distracting) "steerable" xenon headlights with the halogen versions, with the reprogramming effort included in the recall.