Problems · by component
2015 Volvo S-Class engine problems
27 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2015 Volvo S-Class cite engine, 40% of all 67 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
27
40% of all complaints
Crashes
0
Reported by owners
Fires
2
Reported by owners
Injuries
0
Reported by owners
What owners say about the engine
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“The contact owns a 2015 Volvo S60. The contact stated that on several occasions, the vehicle hesitated while starting. Upon starting, the vehicle shuddered, vibrated, lost power, and entered Limp mode. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds on several occasions, the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was restarted after each failure; however, after the last occurrence, the vehicle took longer to restart. The check engine warning light blinked on several occasions. The vehicle was driven to the contact's residence and later taken to an independent mechanic for diagnosis. The contact was informed that the engine had failed, and the piston rings or the engine needed to be replaced. The failure mileage was 150,000.”
“On 4/6/2026 At about 2:30 p.m. my son [XXX] stated that he started the car and was in the process of driving out of the parking lot when he saw smoke coming thru the vents in the car. My son [XXX] stated that he got out the car and opened the hood and the car was on fire. [XXX] stated that he called the fire department and they came and put out the fire.”
“Requesting reimbursement from Volvo Cars USA for a known defect in the engine’s piston rings. This defect has resulted in excessive oil consumption and necessitated costly repairs. Volvo reached a legal settlement in May 2023 regarding this defect—which affects the piston rings, pistons, and/or piston heads in certain 2013–2016 models. I never received a recall notice or any communication from the company informing me of the issue and the extension of warranty for my car. Had I received a letter before the expiration of the 8-year extended warranty, I would have had the opportunity to have the oil consumption test performed and the piston ring repair completed, all at no cost to me per Volvo quality notice P10207. Vehicle: •Year/Model: 2015.5 Volvo S60, VIN [XXX] •Current Mileage: 92,850 •Purchase: Purchased new in 2015 from Volvo of Princeton, NJ (Princeton Volvo) and delivered at the factory in Gothenburg, Sweden May 2023 then shipped to Princeton Volvo in July 2023. •Maintenance History: The vehicle has been consistently serviced at either the Princeton Volvo dealership or at a local AAA-approved repair center. Defect Timeline (for details and costs incurred…”
“Alternator belt shredded and got underneath the timing belt causing the engine timing to go off and severe engine damage that I will now have to total the car or spend $13-15K to replace. The car stalled after leaving a stop sign so I wasn't going fast. I spoke to my local mechanic and he had another Volvo S60 T5 in his shop with the same issue showing up but that owner was lucky enough to not have the engine destroyed in the process. From what he is saying is that every other car has some kind of timing belt protection that the Volvo S60 is missing. In searching the Internet this is a very common issue that occurs. I registered a complaint with Volvo today.”
“Was on the highway driving back from my aunts house and there were no signs anything was wrong with my car. No alerts on the dash besides low pressure tire which I filled up. As I was almost home, an alert randomly came up with “no oil pressure” along with a check engine light flashing and the car started shaking (misfiring). The car flashed a message that said something about reduced engine performance. As my car was shaking fervently, it was slowing down and failed to accelerate, causing cars behind me to almost crash. No oil pressure can also cause fires and put my life at risk. I had much time left to get my oil changed and yet I had oil message lights come on. I believe this is a problem with the piston rings that are defective & there was just recently a class action suit of them. I have had to continually fill up oil, and now I suddenly have an engine that does not work and threatened the safety of myself and others on the road. Volvo diagnosed the issue as being valve broken, piston ring damage, along with other engine components. I now need an entire new engine.”
“I have been getting a low oil level sign in my car after 5 months of doing an oil change. This is not the first time this has happened. It is suspected this may be a oil consumption issue and not an oil leak as there is no visible sign of oil leak. The oil consumption problem has been confirmed by an independent mechanic.”
Showing 6 of 27 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 30, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.