MODELYEARINDEX

Which Volvo XC60 years to avoid

Across 11 scored model years, the 2021, 2018 and 2019 model years carry the highest severity-weighted complaint rates.

Ownership label · Volvo XC60 Full report
F
Grade 2010–2021
2021 vs model median 3.1×
Model median3× median
Driver Assist 12
Electrical 9
Brakes 7
Avoid

2018 · 2021

Best

2013 · 2014

Year by year

Severity-weighted complaints filed in each model year’s first 60 months on the road, so every year is measured over an identical window.

Year Complaint volume vs median Reports Grade
2010
0.86× 18 C
2011
1.25× 20 C
2012
1.00× 11 C
2013
0.68× 10 B
2014
0.63× 10 B
2015
2.25× 36 D
2017
0.75× 12 B
2018
2.21× 30 F
2019
1.77× 27 D
2020
0.96× 21 C
2021
3.11× 55 F
2022 P
6.54× 115 F
2023 P
4.46× 81 F
2024 P
2.48× 35 F
2025 P
3.32× 48 F

P — provisional. These years have not completed 60 months on the road, so their totals are incomplete and they are excluded from the verdict.

What owners report

The component groups most often named, with one representative report. These are unverified — allegations, not findings.

2018 F 30 reports · median 4,500 mi

  1. Brakes 6

    This happened on two separate occasions - while driving normally on a regular city street the engine suddenly shut off. With no power available, the power steering and brakes were also affected. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Driver Assist 5

    My wife and I picked up our new volvo XC60 t8 a week ago and we tried the park assist pilot function for the first time last night in our apartment's garage. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Electrical 5

    I bough the car in april 2018 and in june 2018 with the car having 1200 miles on board, while I was on a trip 85 miles away from home, I've experienced an engine failure. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

8 crash · 10 injuries

2021 F 55 reports

  1. Driver Assist 12

    On two occasions the automatic breaking/city safety engaged on my volvo XC60 2021 vehicle. In both incidences there was no need for this to happen. First incident (o/a june 25, 2021) occurred while changing lanes. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  2. Electrical 9

    Today my sensus in the center console as well as instrument panel that shows the map between the gauges went black and switched my drive mode out of eco, shutting off my cruise cintrol and turned off my bluetooth phone… owner complaint filed with NHTSA

  3. Brakes 7

    The contact owned a 2021 volvo XC60. The contact stated that while driving approximately 25 MPH, the vehicle suddenly began to accelerate and the brakes failed to stop. owner complaint filed with NHTSA

6 crash · 7 injuries

The best year for the XC60

Ranked by overall score among years with a full 60 months on the road.

2014 is the best-scoring XC60 model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 79.4 out of 100 — a score that combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations.

Yearvs medianReportsGrade
2014 0.63× 10 B
2013 0.68× 10 B
2017 0.75× 12 B

Recalls

35 campaigns on record.

Campaign Component Model years Units affected
25V282000 BACK OVER PREVENTION:SOFTWARE 2022–2025 413,151
25V908000 BACK OVER PREVENTION:SOFTWARE 2022–2025 413,151
20V378000 SEAT BELTS:FRONT 2010–2015 308,260
20V144000 FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING 2019, 2020 121,605
20V503000 VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD WIPER/WASHER:LINKAGES 2018–2020 87,226
21V414000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:FUSES AND CIRCUIT BREAKERS 2019, 2020 85,550
16V798000 SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY 2017 74,027
19V046000 STRUCTURE:BODY:TAILGATE 2018, 2019 45,990
12V075000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING 2012 32,552
23V012000 SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 2023 27,457
21V682000 SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR 2021, 2022 19,149
18V800000 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:SOFTWARE 2017–2019 17,548

+ 23 further campaigns

How long do they last?

Complaint records show when problems get reported, not how long a car survives. Too few owners recorded an odometer reading on this model to give a median mileage at failure.

Common questions

Answered directly from this model’s record.

Which Volvo XC60 years should you avoid?
2021, 2018, 2019 carry the highest severity-weighted complaint rates of any Volvo XC60 model year measured over an identical 60-month window.
What is the best year for the Volvo XC60?
2014 is the best-scoring Volvo XC60 model year with a full 60 months on the road, at 79.4 out of 100. The score combines complaint rate, recall campaigns and open investigations.
How many recalls does the Volvo XC60 have?
35 distinct recall campaigns are on record across all scored Volvo XC60 model years. A recall is a matter of record: the manufacturer filed a defect report with NHTSA.

How this was calculated

Every model year is scored over an identical window: complaints filed with NHTSA during the first 60 months after that model year went on sale. Without this, older cars look worse purely because they have had longer to accumulate reports.

Limitations. Complaints are unverified reports submitted voluntarily by owners; they are allegations, not findings, and reporting rates vary between models. Model years with fewer than 60 months on the road are marked provisional and excluded from verdicts. Cross-model comparison is withheld pending production-volume data.

Full methodology · Sources · Data vintage August 9, 2026

Working 2021 XC60
Complaints in window
55
Severity-weighted
87
Model median (weighted)
28
vs model median
3.11×
Recall campaigns (weighted)
5
Open investigations
0
Score 12.5 F