What breaks most · 1997 to 2024 model years
Volvo S90 problems by year
Owners have filed 68 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Volvo S90 across model years 1997 to 2024. Three years stand out: 1998 for brakes (hydraulic) complaints, 2018 for electrical system complaints and 2017 for suspension complaints. The quietest years are 1999, 2022 and 2019.
- Years to check closely: 1998, 2018, 2017
- Fewest complaints: 1999, 2022, 2019
- Complaints on file
- 681997 to 2024, all trims
- Worst year
- 199825 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 61 fires · 4 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 50kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 21Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 2 | 0 | Air bags (2) | |
| 25 | 2 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (8) | |
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Suspension (1) | |
| 8 | 1 | 4 | Unknown or other (4) | |
| 16 | 0 | 2 | Unknown or other (4) | |
| 3 | 1 | 4 | Electrical system (2) | |
| 3 | 0 | 3 | Forward collision system (2) | |
| 2 | 0 | 3 | Seat belts (1) | |
| 2 | 0 | 3 | Backup camera and sensors (1) | |
| 1 | 0 | 2 | Unknown or other (1) |
What fails on the 1998 Volvo S90
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 32% |
8 | 0 | Shop brakes (hydraulic) parts for the 1998 Volvo S90 |
| VisibilityMirrors and glass | 20% |
5 | 0 | Shop all visibility parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Speed control and throttleThrottle and pedal sensors | 16% |
4 | 2 | Shop speed control and throttle parts for the 1998 Volvo S90 |
| Equipment and infotainment | 16% |
4 | 0 | — |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 12% |
3 | 0 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Unknown or other | 8% |
2 | 0 | — |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 8% |
2 | 0 | Shop body and structure parts for the 1998 Volvo S90 |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 4% |
1 | 0 | Shop electrical system parts for the 1998 Volvo S90 |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
Brake line is frayed without anything touching the line. Contacted dealer, and dealer was not willing to do anything. Please provide further information. *ak
-
Rear right door lock failed, stuck closed. Extremely unsafe if someone was sitting in the back and unable to leave vehicle. It has been confirmed by others. It has been inspected by an independent mechanic. There has been zero warning lights to indicate the issue
-
I could smell gasoline coming from the vents for several days. I opened the hood and found gasoline leaking from one of the hoses near the engine. I had the car towed to the volvo dealership and they found a leaking low pressure fuel sensor and replaced it.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Volvo S90 years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 1998, 2018, 2017 carry the most filings on the Volvo S90. The 1998 alone has 25 complaints, led by brakes (hydraulic).
What is the most common Volvo S90 problem?
On the 1998 model year, the most-reported component is brakes (hydraulic) with 8 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Volvo S90 problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Volvo S90 complaints that include mileage is about 50,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.