2012 Volvo S60 engine problems

Related recalls

• Recall 13V592000Nov 22, 201330,929 vehicles
  ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

  Volvo Cars of North America, LLC (Volvo) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 S60 vehicles manufactured June 22, 2010, through May 14, 2012, and equipped with 5-cylinder B5254T5 (VIN code 62) engines. In the affected vehicles, the vehicle may not alert the driver of a low oil pressure situation.

  Risk: Without being warned of a low oil pressure situation, the driver may continue to drive the vehicle until it stalls, which increases the risk of a crash.

  Remedy: Volvo will notify owners, and dealers will update the vehicle's software so that the driver is alerted should there be a low oil pressure situation, free of charge. The recall began on January 10, 2014. Owners may contact Volvo at 1-800-458-1552. Volvo's number for this campaign is R29436.

What owners say

1. Filed Apr 22, 2026GAEngine

   I experienced an engine issue that I believe is related to excessive oil consumption and the lack of an oil pressure light warning. The car was driven out of town when a noise was heard coming from the engine. A visual inspection of the engine revealed smoke coming from the engine department when the oil cap was removed. The dipstick was checked and showed no visible oil on the stick. Later in that evening, 3 additional quarts of oil were added to the engine but the addition…

   NHTSA complaint #11732954 · source
2. Filed Feb 22, 2025CAEngine

   Engine has failed and is unrepairable. The car has been maintained well according to the manufacturer’s guidelines with regular oil changes. It has only 94,875 miles. The mechanic said that there is probably a piston gasket failure leading to oil leak into the engine. This appears to have been reported with this year/model vehicles. I would like Volvo to take ownership of poor manufacturing and fix the problem to my satisfaction.

   NHTSA complaint #11644323 · source
3. Filed Jul 7, 2024ALEngine

   Discovered that my engine is burning oil. There was no warning from my vehicle or from Volvo (during regular maintenance) that this was happening. It was just sudden that the check engine light went on and I checked the oil and found that it was basically empty. Volvo confirmed that the engine is burning oil and that this model and make was discovered to have this engine issue. Volvo did not offer a solution other than to buy a new vehicle to replace this one. In my research…

   NHTSA complaint #11599825 · source
4. Filed May 21, 202480,000 miNJEngine

   The contact owns a 2012 Volvo S60. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, an unknown belt fractured, and the vehicle failed to start. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact called the local dealer, who informed the contact about diagnostic testing, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

   NHTSA complaint #11589833 · source
5. Filed Feb 7, 2024137,000 miNCEngine

   The contact owns a 2012 Volvo S60. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, she smelled a burning odor in the interior of the vehicle, after which the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to coast to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle failed to restart. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact became aware that the engine was without oil; however, the low oil warning light was not illuminated.…

   NHTSA complaint #11570537 · source
6. Filed Jan 10, 2024CAElectrical SystemEngine

   On June 2, 2023 I went to start my car and the engine would not turn over. The dashboard displayed a number of warning lights and messages (DSTC Service Required, SRS Airbag Service Urgent, Transmission Service Required, Coolant System Service Required). When the tow truck driver arrived later that day, they tried to jumpstart my car but reported the battery was completely dead. I had the car taken to a local shop that specialized in Volvo cars. A few days later the shop…

   NHTSA complaint #11564522 · source
7. Filed Dec 19, 2023NCEngine

   Surpintine belt shredded due to faulty belt tensioner. Shreds of belt wedged between crankshaft timing sprocket on engine causing engine to jump timing while driving down highway and vehicle lost all power and very hard to steer due to all valves in motor bent because of poor design. Definitely a safety concern. Volvo is aware but does nothing. 11,000 dollars to replace engine.

   NHTSA complaint #11560890 · source
8. Filed Dec 5, 202362,000 miCATowedEngine

   The contact owns a 2012 Volvo S60. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. The vehicle was later towed to the local dealer who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the drive belt had failed, causing damage to the timing cover and other drive belts. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 62,000.

   NHTSA complaint #11558481 · source
9. Filed Oct 6, 2023TXEngineOther / Unknown

   I bought used s60 and sent car to auto shop due to engine seize . I was told The engine needed to be replaced. I has replacement done. Car ran good and I was pleased. Months later, the vehicle made a clicking noise when I arrived home. When I checked the oil the following morning, there was no oil in car. I was never given a low oil level indication or warning. Now car is making crazy tapping sounds. i

   NHTSA complaint #11548673 · source
10. Filed Mar 1, 2022NHEngine

    On December 1, 2021 I was driving my 2012 Volvo S60 T5, that I purchased 3/2021 with 99,489 miles on it, on the highway and it stalled without warning after almost crashing. There were no warning alerts or check engine light that came on the dashboard and the car had 1,000 miles until the next oil change. After browsing the internet, we realized that the car had a recall because their vehicles were not warning the driver that there was low oil pressure allowing the driver to…

    NHTSA complaint #11454757 · source
11. Filed Feb 17, 2022VAElectrical SystemEngineFuel, Hybrid & EV Propulsion

    My wife and I were driving to BWI airport for a 10:30am flight from Virginia Beach in the Express Lane on I-95N going 75mph when all of a sudden at 8:30am the engine seized and I got a message telling me I would experience "Reduced Engine Performance" as my car puttered to a stop with white smoke pouring out of the exhaust. Prior to this message I had no warnings or messages on my dashboard. I got out of my car to check my oil and it was completely evaporated, so I called…

    NHTSA complaint #11452418 · source
12. Filed Feb 11, 2022TXEngine

    It looks as if my car should have been included in the 62Vin recall for engine sensor not stating low oil. Car started to knock and shutoff with no warning for low oil pressure. Diagnostic show oil was issue but even when completely drained car still does not display low oil which caused motor to blow. Contacted volvo and they would not add vehicle to recalls even though car year manufactured period and engine vin matched recall.

    NHTSA complaint #11451489 · source

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Defects Investigation public data. Complaints are submitted by owners and are not verified by NHTSA or by us; a complaint does not prove a defect exists. View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov Methodology