Home · 2012 Volvo S60 T5 · Complaints

What 121 owners told NHTSA about the 2012 Volvo S60 T5

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (121)Crash / fire / injury (15)Engine (61)Electrical system (17)Seat belts (9)Fuel system (8)Steering (8)Body & structure (7)Airbags (6)Brakes (6)Speed control (6)Transmission & drivetrain (4)

6 of 121 complaints match · Brakes · clear filters

Jun 23, 2026Speed controlBrakesCrash1 injury

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

NHTSA ODI 11746049

Dec 16, 2020BrakesEngine

AS I APPROACHED A RED LIGHT I BEGAN TO SLOW DOWN AND MY CAR STARTED TO SHAKE AND THEN IT TURNED OFF I WAS UNABLE TO TURN ON MY HAZARDS TO WARN OTHER DRIVERS OR PULL OVER TO THE SIDE, AFTER A COUPLE SECONDS THE LIGHTS CAME BACK ON AND I PUT THE CAR IN P AND STARTED IT AGAIN. IT HAPPENED AGAIN LATER ON THE SAME DAY.

NHTSA ODI 11383627

Jan 23, 2013Brakes

BRAKES COMPLETELY GAVE OUT WHILE I WAS DRIVING ON RT. 85 IN ATLANTA. FORTUNATELY I WAS ABLE TO GET OVER TO THE SHOULDER AND I DIDN'T HIT ANYONE. CALLED VOLVO ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE AND THEY SENT A TOWING COMPANY. CAR IS STILL IN SHOP AND NOT YET DIAGNOSED. I'M TERRIFIED TO GET BACK INTO THAT CAR! *TR

NHTSA ODI 10494430

Jul 21, 2012Electrical systemSpeed controlBrakes

THE ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL IN MY VEHICLE HAS BEEN OCCASIONALLY MALFUNCTIONING (ABOUT 10-15 TIMES SINCE PURCHASING MY VEHICLE IN MAY) CAUSING IT TO APPLY THE PARKING BRAKE AT SPEEDS OF ABOUT 5 MPH. THIS CAUSES MY VEHICLE TO ABRUPTLY STOP WITHOUT THE BRAKE LIGHTS BEING ACTIVATED. I THEN HAVE TO DEPRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL AND RELEASE THE PARKING BRAKE. THEN MY CRUISE CONTROL IS INOPERATIVE UNTIL I RESTART THE VEHICLE. I WAS NEARLY REAR ENDED AFTER THE MOST RECENT OCCURRENCE. I'VE TAKEN MY VEHICLE TO THE NEAREST VOLVO REPAIR CENTER FOUR TIMES TO BE REPAIRED BUT THE MALFUNCTION STILL OCCURS. VOLVO IS UNWILLING TO REPLACE MY CAR UNDER THE LEMON LAW. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10466894

Jun 21, 2012Speed controlElectronic Stability Control (esc)Brakes

THIS IS THE SECOND OCCASION ON WHICH THIS DEFECT HAS APPEARED, THE PRIOR INCIDENT HAPPENING IN APPROXIMATELY MARCH 2012, AT A MILEAGE OF APPROXIMATELY 5000 MILES. I HAVE OWNED THE CAR FOR JUST UNDER SIX MONTHS. I LIVE IN A SOUTHEASTERN US STATE AND TRAVELLED TO MY SECOND HOME IN FLORIDA. THE CAR HAS BEEN PARKED IN FLORIDA FEWER THAN 20 TOTAL DAYS. ON BOTH OF THE LAST TWO OCCASIONS DURING WHICH THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED IN FLORIDA, AN ANIMAL WAS APPARENTLY ABLE TO CLIMB DEEP INTO THE UNDERBODY OF THE CAR AND CHEW ON WIRES CONTROLLING THE DYNAMIC TRACTION STABILITY CONTROL SYSTEM, THE ANTILOCK BRAKING SYSTEM, THE CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM, AND THE VOLVO CITY SAFETY CRASH AVOIDANCE SYSTEM. ON BOTH OCCASIONS, THE INTERNAL CAR ALERT SYSTEM DETECTED THE PROBLEM, ALERTED ME, AND VOLVO AGREED TO COVER THE COST OF THE REPAIRS, THOUGH TODAY, ON THE SECOND OCCASION, VOLVO INDICATED THEY WILL NOT COVER THIS FORM OF DAMAGE IN THE FUTURE. I PROPOSED TO BOTH MY VOLVO DEALERSHIP AND TO THE NATIONAL VOLVO CUSTOMER CARE CENTER THAT AN APPROPRIATE FORM OF SHIELDING SHOULD BE ADDED TO COVER THE WIRES CONTROLLING THESE SYSTEMS TO PREVENT AN ANIMAL'S ACCESS TO THEM. TO THE BEST OF MY KNOWLEDGE, THIS SUGGESTION WAS IGNORED, AS NO SPECIAL SHIELDING WAS DESCRIBED/OFFERED, DESPITE THE CRITICAL NATURE OF THESE SYSTEMS. THIS PROBLEM HAS NEVER OCCURRED WITH EITHER OF THE OTHER TWO VEHICLES WHICH I REGULARLY TAKE TO THE SAME LOCATION, THUS, I BELIEVE THIS IS A DESIGN FLAW IN WHICH EITHER THE MATERIALS USED IN THESE WIRING SYSTEMS ARE PARTICULARLY ATTRACTIVE TO WHATEVER ANIMAL CHEWED THE WIRES (E.G. SOY-BASED WIRE COATING POLYMERS PERHAPS), OR MORE LIKELY, THE WIRES ARE NOT SUFFICIENTLY SHIELDED/JACKETED TO PREVENT SUCH DAMAGE. IN EACH CASE, SINCE THERE WAS NOT A NEARBY VOLVO DEALERSHIP, I DROVE MY VEHICLE BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP FROM WHICH I PURCHASED IT WITHOUT FUNCTIONAL SAFETY SYSTEMS.

NHTSA ODI 10462673

Apr 10, 2012BrakesSpeed controlEquipment Adaptive/mobility

THE ACTIVE CRUISE CONTROL STOPS FOR NO REASON. THIS PROBLEM IS INTERMITTENT. ON A NUMBER OF OCCASIONS (~20 TIMES SINCE I PICKED UP THE CAR), THE CAR SLOWS DOWN AS THE TRAFFICS SLOWS DOWN. THE CAR IS ALMOST AT A STOP (5-10 MPH) AND THE EMERGENCY BRAKES COMES ON, THE CARS BRAKES HARD & STOPS AND THE PARKING BRAKE TURNS ON. THE ALERT "CRUISE CONTROL UNAVAILABLE" SHOW IN THE DISPLAY. THEREAFTER THE CRUISE WILL NOT ENGAGE. AFTER I SHUT OFF THE CAR AND RESTART IT, THE CRUISE AGAIN WORKS AGAIN. IN ADDITION TO NOT PERFORMING AS ADVERTISED, THIS REPRESENTS A SAFETY HAZARD. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10454695

Working with the data? Download all 121 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 18, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2012 Volvo S60 T5 verdict →