2019 Volvo XC90

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 matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.

The contact owns a 2019 Volvo XC90. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and or while the vehicle was parked, the A/C unit became inoperable, and the defogger failed to clear the front windshield. The contact stated that the A/C was shifted to the MAX setting to operate as needed to defrost the windshield with an abnormal odor blowing through the vents. The vehicle was taken a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the front evaporator core needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 114,000.

NHTSA ID

11749584

Incident

May 22, 2026

Mileage

114,000 mi

The contact owns a 2019 Volvo XC90. The contact stated that while driving at various highway speeds, the vehicle suddenly entered LIMP mode and decelerated before stalling. The failure had occurred on two separate occasions. On one occasion, the vehicle did not restart and was towed to the dealer. During the second occurrence, the vehicle was restarted moments later and was driven to the residence. The vehicle was later towed to the local dealer, where the contact was informed that diagnostic trouble codes for fuel delivery system malfunction and low fuel pressure were retrieved; however, the exact cause of the failure was not determined, and the vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the fuel tank was half-full during the failures. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 79,900.

NHTSA ID

11743566

Incident

May 11, 2026

Mileage

79,900 mi

The front and rear evaporator core of my 2019 Volvo XC90 has failed and I no longer have air conditioning. This issue was diagnosed by a dealer. The evaporator core failure is a massive, widely documented issue specifically targeting the 2016–2020 Volvo SPA-platform models. According to my research, Volvo sold approx. 370,000 vehicles in the US during this period. At roughly $5,000 per vehicle, the owners are being asked to spend over a billion dollars on this known, product defect. Volvo is fully aware of this defect, yet they refuse to cover the full cost of the repair. They issued an official Technical Journal (TJ 35912.1.0) admitting that the system over-cools, causing the evaporator to freeze, expand, and crack. When technicians perform this repair, Volvo explicitly mandates installing a retroactive "jumper cable" resistor harness (Part No. 32241228) to prevent the replacement core from cracking again. The question for you is this: Is this a vehicle safety concern. We might consider why one would need air conditioning in the first place. Is it only for comfort or could it sufficiently cool air to help venerable people form having health issues (e.g., elderly, those with asthma). A recent Lancet study, for example, showed heat related deaths in Europe rising to 63,000 per year. This may be extreme, but if one lives in a southern state where temperatures climb to 100s or even a northern state where this routinely occurs in July and August, lack of A/C could be a serious health and safety concern.

NHTSA ID

11741732

Incident

Mar 11, 2026

The contact owns 2019 Volvo XC90. The contact stated while parked and occupied in the vehicle or while driving various speeds, the contact noticed when attempting to turn the air conditioner on she noticed that the a/c unit was not working as intended in the vehicle. The contact mention she can hear a clicking noise coming from the air conditioner. An independent mechanic and A dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where they recharged the vehicle and no diagnoses, the vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the rear air conditioner vapor needed to be replaced, the vehicle was then taken back to the dealer where they informed her the rear and front vapor needed to be replaced .The vehicle was not repaired. The contact mention these failures have occurred on several different occasions. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and they offered her one thousand dollars out of the seven thousand. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000.

NHTSA ID

11740350

Incident

Jun 15, 2025

Mileage

35,000 mi

The exterior paint on my 2019 Volvo XC90 has experienced significant premature peeling and delamination on the front bumper and surrounding body panels. This is not the result of collision, misuse, or environmental damage the vehicle has been properly maintained and garaged. The paint failure appears to be a factory defect related to improper adhesion, primer application, or a substandard clear coat process during manufacture. The affected components are available for inspection upon request. Safety concern: Peeling and delaminating paint can obscure visibility of underlying corrosion, accelerate rust formation on structural body components, and create road debris hazards if large sections separate at highway speeds — posing risk to following vehicles. The concern was submitted to Volvo Cars USA Customer Care and assigned a formal case number. After requesting photographs and inquiring about paint protection documentation, Volvo denied any financial assistance without conducting a physical inspection, technical review, or providing a written basis for denial. No dealer inspection was performed, and no independent technical evaluation was offered or facilitated by Volvo. There were no warning lamps or electronic symptoms prior to the paint failure. The defect became visually apparent gradually and has progressively worsened. No prior accidents, repaints, or aftermarket modifications have been made to this vehicle. It is my belief that this paint defect may be a systemic manufacturing issue affecting multiple 2019 XC90 vehicles, and that Volvo Cars USA is aware of or should be aware of this condition. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate whether a defect trend exists across this model year and whether a safety recall or technical service bulletin is warranted.

NHTSA ID

11738272

Incident

Mar 1, 2024

The suspension module failed due to water accumulation on floorboards. Suspect other electronics may be at risk. Water ingress cause by a combination of what dealer said was a worn out sunroof gasket and two of four drains that became plugged. Further examination from dealer found the plugged drains were crimped from when the vehicle was manufactured. The dealer blamed the excessive water ingress was further allowed by a failed sunroof seal. The vehicle has always been serviced by the dealer and problem areas like that were either not inspected or not reported. The seal appears as good as the day we purchased vehicle from dealer. It seems it needs a more expert eye to detect how it fails. The result was standing water in the floor boards and body cavities, which then caused the suspension module to fail. The entire interior had to be disassembled to verify there was no further electrical damage. The dashboard and other interior pieces needed to be removed to replace or correct the drains. This appears to be a common problem with this model although no service advisories seem to have been issued. Total estimated damage is about $5200. Vehicle has only 60K miles. Volvo has rejected responsibility for the compromised drain and failed sunroof seal. Service documentation attached, not including the estimated $1700 to remove dash for repairs.

NHTSA ID

11736779

Incident

Apr 17, 2026

The contact owns a 2019 Volvo XC90. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle lurched forward while switching back and forth between electric and gasoline mode. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where an unknown repair was performed; however, the failure recurred while driving three years later. Additionally, the turtle warning light was illuminated with the message "Engine System Reduced Performance". The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

NHTSA ID

11730933

Incident

Apr 13, 2023

Mileage

80,000 mi

The contact owned a 2019 Volvo XC90. The contact stated that while driving approximately 50-52 MPH, there smoke coming from the front passenger’s side wheel well of the vehicle. The contact stated that an off-duty Police Officer witnessed the failure and activated the Emergency Lights, allowing the contact to safely pull off the highway The contact immediately pulled over and stopped the vehicle. The grandson seated in the front passenger’s seat immediately exited the vehicle and the contact was able to unbuckle and removed the [XXX] from the second-row middle seat. The contact stated that moments later there were explosions, and there was black smoke and flames engulfing the vehicle. The vehicle was destroyed. There were no injuries sustained; however, all three occupants of the vehicle experienced emotional trauma from the vehicle catching on fire. Medical attention was not needed. A Police Report was filed at the scene and the vehicle was towed away. The contact stated that the car seat in the rear of the vehicle was destroyed. The vehicle was examined by an Insurance Adjuster, and it was determined that the fire had started in the engine compartment. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 61,511. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11719068

Incident

Oct 20, 2025

Mileage

61,511 mi

This is a Technical Journal: Text plus 1 .jpg attachment - If remote control key is not detected by the car and shows message in DIM "Car key not found" or if functions such as lock/unlock are not working, please follow advice for detecting key

This is a Technical Journal: Intermittent knocking noise during acceleration. If the sound corresponds to attached sound file, change front drive shafts to the below part numbers.

This is a Technical Journal: Headlamp condensation inside lens - information/leak test. If the result is not ok (air leak), it is ok to replace the headlamp

This is a Technical Journal: Panoramic sunroof, sealing strip has a gap

This is a Technical Journal: Text plus 2 PDFs and 1 .PNG Oil Consumption test. Perform the test. Follow service procedure
 Description and Service sections updated to clarify that vehicle reports are not required.

This is a TJ text only - The purpose of this TJ is to be a master reference list to easily identify any components that are on prior approval. This TJ will be regularily updated as items are added or removed from prior approval.
 Current items under prior approval are listed in the "Service" section