Safe
43000 miles and the "transmission service urgent" light came on. Slipping from stop to first / reverse to first.
Great car otherwise, fuel mileage is terrible though.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know
Review Date: 23rd October, 2008
I like it but I want my money back on the transmission
Transmission out.
Radio scan button on steering wheel never worked.
Need new tires often.
I have a 2005 XC90 and the transmission has already gone out at 54000 miles.
I purchase my car in Germany and had it shipped to the States. As soon as it arrived in Alabama that is when the transmission went out on me.
I had a Nissan Sentra for eleven years and never had to replace my transmission. I think it is a crying shame for this to happen this early. Volvo really needs to give the owners a refund when we have to have the transmission replaced so soon.
I'm all for a class action suit.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know
Review Date: 25th June, 2008
Very poor reliability issues
Replaced Both rear wheel bearings at about 50K
Steering became stiff and made rear end type noises
Dealer said it was Angle Gear (AWD) and would recommend replacing transmission as well. Said it would save labor and several had to replace transmission later. This was not covered by Volvo or assisted. Very disappointing as only 94K miles. This should last 200k miles or more. I've never had to replace a transmission on any other vehicle. The cost of repair was $6000. When I went to pick-up car steering was still stiff. Rack and power steering pump were replaced. Still rear end noise. Dealer replaced rear wheel bearing. This indicates a manufacturing design flaw. I would not purchase or recommend a Volvo. Manufacturer would not help on the transmission or angle gear. I know several XC90 owners that have had transmissions replaced.
Very nice car but not well engineered.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 16th June, 2008
I purchased a 2005 Volvo XC90 T6 with 39000 miles on it for my wife because I like the superior safety ratings and because the XC90 is a good looking, well thought out car. It was absolutely like new in every detail. However, after one week the transmission went out. The dealer replaced it with a rebuilt, rather than new, GM transmission. Dealer said Volvo would not replace it with anything else. That's not good since the GM transmission is known for having problems. The trans was replaced under warranty along with the radiator.
In addition, the heater/AC went bad and had to have the guts replaced. The entire trans/AC repair took four weeks. I picked up the car on a Saturday and by Sunday had to use Volvo Roadside Assistance because the battery died. On Monday the car died again and had to be towed to the dealership. The AC/heater blower was coming on when the car was parked with the ignition off. Obviously, it would drain the battery. Also the radiator fan would come on when the car was cold and ignition was off. And to ad insult to injury, the battery was bad and had to be replaced.
During the six weeks we have had the car it has spent 4 1/2 weeks in the shop. Is this a sign of things to come? And what if the trans goes out again in 30,000 miles? Who gets to pay the $9000.00 bill the dealer said it would have cost me if Volvo hadn't covered it.
Could it be the Volvo's are so safe because they spend so much time in the shop and so little time on the road?
30th Sep 2008, 19:54
I have a 2005 XC-90 t6 I purchased in Germany, too. The trans mission would periodically slip over the last year but Volvo service could not duplicate the problem. Last week it locked up in 3rd gear during my commute home. I had it towed from my house to the dealer. They will be replacing the transmission at 55000 miles. This does not appear to be a unique experience yet there are no recalls or service notices. This is really an unacceptable level of performance especially for a premium priced vehicle.