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Volvo S60Model year report

2012 Volvo S60 Problems

Compared with other Volvo S60 years

More complaints than typical for this model

94/100 2.8× a typical year · 50 = typical

Nearby years with fewer complaints than typical and no open NHTSA investigation: 2014

Based only on NHTSA complaints, recalls and investigations. Not adjusted for how many vehicles were sold, and not a reliability rating. How this is calculated

Complaints
121filed with NHTSA
Median mileage
78,500miles, 82 complaints with mileage
Recalls
8campaigns on record
Trend
FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.
NHTSA crash rating
5 / 5stars overall, 2 rated versions
EPA fuel economy
23 mpgcombined, 2.5L 5-cyl FWD · 20 city / 30 hwy

Sources: NHTSA records for the 2012 Volvo S60 (complaints, recalls, investigations), NHTSA crash tests, EPA fuel economy. Report an error

What owners report

Owners of the 2012 S60 most often report excessive engine oil consumption, with many saying the oil level dropped well before scheduled changes and that warning lights did not come on in time; several complaints describe engines that stalled or seized as a result. Door latch and rear door unlatching complaints, along with electrical and infotainment faults, make up most of the remaining reports.

  1. Engine

    Excessive oil consumption and oil-related engine damage

    • 41 complaints (34%)
    • median 91,239 mi at 6.5 yrs old (32 state mileage)
    • owner-quoted repair $3,375 (median of 6 quotes)
    • filed 2015–2026

    Owners describe the car using oil at a high rate between changes, sometimes needing several quarts added within weeks or months, with no visible leak or smoke. Many say the low oil pressure warning did not illuminate until the engine was already knocking, stalling, or seized, and dealers variously attributed the consumption to piston rings, reported it as a known issue, or found no fault. Some complaints note the engine needed replacement. Reported across a wide range from about 24,000 to 155,000 miles, most commonly in the 60,000-120,000 mile range.

    Recall 13V5920001 related service bulletin

    What to check: Check the dipstick and look for oil consumption records between services, and ask whether the low oil pressure warning software recall (13V592000) was performed. A technical journal describes an oil consumption test procedure, so ask whether one was run.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “My car doesn't notify me that the engine oil is low. Last year, I drove all the way to mississippi without it warning that the oil was lo with barely any oil on the dip stick. We stopped to check it when we got gas and that is how we knew. It has been low several times this year without notifying me. I have to constantly check the oil to ensure there is enough in there. It does not have an oil leak as there is no oil on the concrete. …”

    NHTSA complaint #11367102, filed 2020-10, 135,000 miles

    “Consuming oil between oil changes and no warning light of low oil pressure shows up. Just lucky to have checked the dip-stick during my routine checkup and found oil completely depleted. Added 5 quarts of synthetic oil again checking in three weeks I had to add another 2 quarts. This is not good at all. The manufacturer needs to be notified of this problem which is very rampant and many people have had their vehicles engine seize. A recall to fix the problem is needed asap. The vehicle has only 62k”

    NHTSA complaint #11112498, filed 2018-07, 62,000 miles
  2. Engine

    Stalling or loss of power while driving

    • 15 complaints (12%)
    • median 80,930 mi at 7.3 yrs old (14 state mileage)
    • filed 2014–2023

    Owners report the car losing power or stalling at speed or at low speed without prior warning, sometimes with a shudder, burning smell, or an inability to restart. Dealers in these accounts replaced starters, spark plugs and coils, or diagnosed accessory belt and timing damage, and in some cases recommended engine replacement. Reported from about 3,500 to 150,000 miles, with many cases between 60,000 and 100,000 miles.

    Recall 11V303000

    What to check: Test drive at highway speed and listen for belt or pulley noise, then ask for service records covering the accessory/drive belt, starter, and fuel pump software recall (11V303000).

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “Car stalled (2 times ) while driving it. Could not steer or operate any part of the car. Once I almost got rear ended my a truck on a highway. My Volvo dealer's service department could not figure out the problem. (I recently read about the GM ignition problems and that sounds exactly like what was happening with this car).”

    NHTSA complaint #10566259, filed 2014-02, 3,500 miles

    “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 complaint #11383627, filed 2020-12, 136,000 miles
  3. Body and structure

    Rear door opening or failing to latch

    • 8 complaints (7%)
    • median 81,300 mi at 8.6 yrs old (5 state mileage, few)
    • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
    • filed 2016–2023

    Complaints describe rear doors, often the driver's side rear, opening unexpectedly while driving or turning, and doors that no longer latch securely. Owners also report the door-ajar indicator failing to show when a door is not fully closed, and at least one says the parts needed to complete the door latch recall were unavailable at the time. Reported from roughly 71,000 to 161,000 miles, usually during city driving or turning.

    Recall 19V849000

    What to check: Ask whether the door latch recall (19V849000) was completed and test each rear door for a firm, positive latch that holds when pulled from outside.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “Recall notice on 11/2019 to replace all doors due to a safety issue (recall #: r89978: door latches). Recently on 12/1/2019, 12/23/2019 and 1/5/2020 I noticed that my rear right door slightly opened while city driving in suburban neighborhood (lots of stops) and the door signal did not indicate. They did not fully open but the latch seems to have an issue. Have been reaching out to service and Volvo does not have the parts needed.”

    NHTSA complaint #11386744, filed 2021-01, 71,430 miles

    “Drivers side rear door disengaged while turning onto the highway access rode with passengers in the back, the rear passenger nearly fell out of the car. The door no longer latches which creates a huge safety concern, making me unable to safely operate the vehicle.”

    NHTSA complaint #11218298, filed 2019-06, 161,000 miles
  4. Electrical system

    Keyless entry and infotainment electrical faults

    Mentioned in 4 of 60 sampled complaints

    Owners describe keyless entry failing door by door, which a dealer attributed to water getting into the door handle and damaging the sensor and wiring. Others report the navigation and audio screen intermittently failing to load, Bluetooth dropping in and out, audio cutting out, and modules taking down the backup camera and radio. Mostly reported between about 60,000 and 120,000 miles.

    Recall 12V0750001 related service bulletin

    What to check: Try every door's keyless unlock and lock function, and test the screen, radio, Bluetooth and backup camera through a full start-up cycle. Ask whether the front seat wiring harness recall (12V075000) was completed.

    2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

    “Vehicle had a no start, no crank condition while parked. Was towed to dealership. Dealer determined no start, no crank condition was caused by outdated software. I do not think Volvo should design a car to not start if software is outdated. Had I needed to use the car to drive to hospital or some other emergency this would have been an issue.”

    NHTSA complaint #11093399, filed 2018-05, 62,450 miles

    “The sensus/navigation system is plagued with bugs. Frequently my bluetooth fails to connect, audio randomly stops working for all satnav/radio functions, sometimes the screen fails to load up at all. All seems to happen completely randomly. Some days radio functions great but some days I can not listen to any audio at all. Some days my phone connects to bluetooth without me even trying to connect, and some days the satnav radio does not connect at all. …”

    NHTSA complaint #11281680, filed 2019-11, 93,000 miles

Buying note. On a 2012 S60, oil level records and evidence of the two oil-related items matter more than mileage, since consumption complaints are the most common here; also confirm the door latch and low oil pressure warning recalls were completed, and test the rear doors and keyless entry.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.

NHTSA recorded 121 consumer complaints for the 2012 Volvo S60. 82 of the complaints include a mileage, and 29% of those were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles; the median is 78,500 miles. Of all complaints, 8 involved a crash, 13 an injury, according to the filers. NHTSA lists 8 recall campaigns and 268 technical service bulletins for this model year. Compared with the other 5 Volvo S60 model years that have at least 25 complaints and are old enough to compare, this one scores 94 out of 100, where 50 is a typical year for the model (more complaints than typical for this model). The comparison allows for the era and for how long each year has had to collect complaints, but not for how many vehicles were sold.

Which parts are reported most

Complaints can name more than one part, so the counts add up to more than the total. Select a part to see its complaints, recalls and bulletins.

Also reported: Transmission and drivetrain (4), Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors) (4), Exterior lighting (3), Latches, locks and linkages (3), Electronic stability control (2), Equipment (2), Forward collision avoidance (2), Back-over prevention (rear camera) (1), Engine cooling (1), Seats (1).

Example complaints

Engine: “At around 51,000 miles, the oil pressure light blinked. We checked the oil and found that we had to add 5 quarts on 11/5/2017. Volvo added another quart on 12/26/2017. We are concerned about the oil usage and safety, and are keeping in contact with our Volvo dealer to see if this continues.”

NHTSA complaint #11063666, filed 2018-01, 51,000 miles

Electrical system: “Having electrical problems and software problems. In the middle of driving all electronics will go off. Also, car wont always shut down or start properly. Looked over many forums and found the exact complaints. There have been other recalls for electrical and software for the S60, but apparently they dont apply to my VIN, even though I am having the exact same issue.”

NHTSA complaint #10850541, filed 2016-03, 29,100 miles

Other or unknown: “I was driving down the interstate, suddenly I heard a loud boom. I could hear something sliding down my roof and off the back of the car. I didn't know what was going on, then I heard a wind noise above. I realized that my sunroof was broken and glass was cascading down and flying off of my car. It just spontaneously exploded. I pulled over to look at the sunroof and to see if there was a rock that hit it or something else. There was nothing there except for a shattered sunroof with a huge hole. The glass was pointing upward as if it had exploded from the inside.”

NHTSA complaint #10809037, filed 2015-12, 39,824 miles

Seat belts: “On august 24, 2013, I was involved in a car accident. A car stopped short on the highway. The car in front of me hit that car. I then hit the car in front of me. I had only a few seconds to react. Another car then re-ended me. My airbag nor seatbelt pretentioners deployed. I had difficulty turning the car off. The car was totaled. Within a few weeks of the incident, I reported the matter to Volvo. They sent an investigator out. Volvo claims that sensors were not activated since the damage was above them, and there was not any problem. …”

NHTSA complaint #10560896, filed 2014-01, 15,000 miles

Mileage when problems were reported

29% of the 82 complaints with a mileage were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles; the middle half falls between 42,325 and 104,000 miles.

7%0–107%10–2515%25–5017%50–7524%75–10023%100–1506%150+
Share of complaints by mileage when the problem was reported, in thousands of miles (82 complaints with mileage). Red bars: under 50,000 miles. Bucket widths differ. Median: 78,500 miles.

Complaints by year filed

Trend: falling. Complaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.

’12’14’16’18’2016’22’24’26
Complaints by year the complaint was filed with NHTSA. Red bars: the last 3 full calendar years used for the trend. The current year (2026) is partial.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for the 2012 Volvo S60. Frontal results are shown driver / passenger; rollover shows the star rating and NHTSA's estimated risk of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.

VersionOverallFrontalSideSide poleRollover
S60 · sedan AWD★★★★★5 / 5555 · 10.0% risk
S60 · sedan FWD★★★★★5 / 5555 · 10.0% risk

Driver aids listed by NHTSA for the 2012 model year: forward collision warning optional, lane departure warning optional, automatic emergency braking not available.

Neighbouring years: 2013: same overall rating. A redesign between years can change both the car and the test.

Source: NHTSA New Car Assessment Program (5-Star Safety Ratings), nhtsa.gov/ratings.

Fuel economy and running cost

EPA ratings for each 2012 Volvo S60 version. Annual fuel cost is the EPA's estimate at its current fuel prices for 15,000 miles a year (55% city driving).

VersionEngineTransmissionCityHwyComb.Fuel / yr
S60 AWD3.0L 6-cyl6-speed automatic182621$3,200
S60 FWD2.5L 5-cyl6-speed automatic203023$2,900

Source: U.S. EPA and Department of Energy, fueleconomy.gov. Ratings are for comparing vehicles; real-world mileage varies with driving and conditions.

Recalls and investigations

See all 8 recalls for the 2012 Volvo S60 → · Check a VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls

Technical service bulletins

TSBs are manufacturer notes to dealers about known repair procedures. They are not recalls and do not by themselves mean a vehicle has a fault. 268 on record; the latest 10 are shown.

See all 268 bulletins →

Other model years of the Volvo S60

YearComplaintsMedian miRecallsCrash ★MPGScore (50 = typical)Trend
20242213,0004530—Too new
20221542,0004530—Rising
20218—3527—Not enough data
20201211,7506527—Not enough data
20192515,3005—2857 · TypicalStable
20171742,4276529—Stable
20162733,000452929 · FewerFalling
20155947,535252941 · TypicalRising
20142531,000352420 · FewerStable
20138753,000452467 · MoreFalling
201212178,500852394 · MoreFalling
2011513,1506—21—Not enough data
20097106,7503—22—Not enough data
20081051,5002—22—Not enough data
20072156,9182—22—Falling
20063146,5623—22Not compared (before 2008)Rising
20054455,5003—22Not compared (before 2008)Falling
200419879,1225—22Not compared (before 2008)Falling
200312079,6956—21Not compared (before 2008)Falling
200218689,1268—21Not compared (before 2008)Falling
200122380,5008—21Not compared (before 2008)Falling

All Volvo S60 model years · Best and worst years by complaints

Frequently asked questions

What are the most common problems with the 2012 Volvo S60?

Owners of the 2012 S60 most often report excessive engine oil consumption, with many saying the oil level dropped well before scheduled changes and that warning lights did not come on in time; several complaints describe engines that stalled or seized as a result. The issues reported most often: Excessive oil consumption and oil-related engine damage; Stalling or loss of power while driving; Rear door opening or failing to latch.

How many NHTSA complaints does the 2012 Volvo S60 have?

NHTSA recorded 121 consumer complaints for the 2012 Volvo S60 as of Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

What part of the 2012 Volvo S60 is reported most often?

Engine is named most often, in 61 complaints (50% of the total), followed by electrical system with 17.

Has the 2012 Volvo S60 been recalled?

NHTSA lists 8 recall campaigns for this model year. To check a specific vehicle, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

How did the 2012 Volvo S60 do in NHTSA crash tests?

NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings give the 2012 Volvo S60 5 out of 5 stars overall, across 2 rated versions (body style and drive). Ratings from different model years are only comparable when the vehicle was not redesigned in between.

What gas mileage does the 2012 Volvo S60 get?

The EPA rates the 2012 Volvo S60 (S60 FWD, 2.5L 5-cyl) at 23 mpg combined, 20 city and 30 highway, with an estimated annual fuel cost of $2,900 at 15,000 miles a year. Other engine and drive versions are rated differently.

At what mileage are problems with the 2012 Volvo S60 reported?

Among the 82 complaints that include a mileage, the median is 78,500 miles and the middle half falls between 42,325 and 104,000 miles; 29% were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles.

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Crash ratings are from NHTSA’s New Car Assessment Program. Fuel economy is from the EPA and DOE (fueleconomy.gov).

Complaint counts come from NHTSA’s public complaint database; we count each complaint once. The source records for this vehicle are on nhtsa.gov. Scores and trends are our own summaries of that data, described in the methodology. This page is not legal, safety or repair advice: for a specific vehicle, check its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and ask a qualified mechanic. See an error? Tell us.