2001 Volvo XC70 problems and owner complaints
Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.
Key facts
66 owner complaints analyzed
5 distinct recall campaigns
79,500 mi median reported failure mileage
Scope: 2001 model year. Data snapshot: . 60 complaints include usable failure mileage.
Most common problems
Power Train:Automatic Transmission is the most frequently named component, appearing in 19 of 66 complaints (28.8%). A complaint can name multiple components.
| Topic | Matching reports | Share of complaints |
|---|---|---|
| Transmission and shifting | 21 | 31.8% |
| Engine operation | 17 | 25.8% |
| Braking behavior | 3 | 4.5% |
| Electrical and battery issues | 3 | 4.5% |
| Fuel system concerns | 2 | 3.0% |
| Steering behavior | 1 | 1.5% |
Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.
Component breakdown
Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Power Train:Automatic Transmission | 19 |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 14 |
| Electrical System | 5 |
| Suspension:Front | 4 |
| Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine | 3 |
| Engine | 2 |
| Engine And Engine Cooling | 2 |
| Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine:Gasoline | 2 |
Power Train:Automatic Transmission: 19; Vehicle Speed Control: 14; Electrical System: 5; Suspension:Front: 4; Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine: 3; Engine: 2; Engine And Engine Cooling: 2; Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine:Gasoline: 2
Reported problems by failure mileage
Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Under 25,000 | 0 |
| 25,000 to 49,999 | 5 |
| 50,000 to 74,999 | 17 |
| 75,000 to 99,999 | 23 |
| 100,000 to 149,999 | 11 |
| 150,000 and above | 4 |
Under 25,000: 0; 25,000 to 49,999: 5; 50,000 to 74,999: 17; 75,000 to 99,999: 23; 100,000 to 149,999: 11; 150,000 and above: 4
75,000 to 99,999 miles has the most reports with usable mileage (23). 6 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.
Complaints over time
Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| 2005 | 27 |
| 2006 | 9 |
| 2007 | 2 |
| 2008 | 3 |
| 2009 | 4 |
| 2010 | 5 |
| 2011 | 12 |
| 2012 | 1 |
| 2013 | 1 |
| 2016 | 1 |
| 2017 | 1 |
2005: 27; 2006: 9; 2007: 2; 2008: 3; 2009: 4; 2010: 5; 2011: 12; 2012: 1; 2013: 1; 2016: 1; 2017: 1
Pattern summary
Power Train:Automatic Transmission leads the component reports. Transmission and shifting appears in 21 complaint narratives. Engine operation appears in 17 complaint narratives. Braking behavior appears in 3 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.
Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.
Complaint evidence
Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.
Owner report 10151744 · 2006-03-03 (March 3, 2006)
WHILE BACKING UP AND STOPPING, I HEARD A "THUNK" FROM UNDER THE CAR. PROCEEDING, THERE WAS A NEW NOISE, WHICH I CHECKED OUT. THE RIGHT ANGLE DRIVE NO LONGER POWERED THE REAR WHEELS, AND I WAS ADVISED TO REPLACE IT, AT A COST OF ABOUT $1,300. WHEN THE GARAGE TOOK THE OLD DRIVE OFF, THEY FOUND THAT THE SPLINED SHAFT BETWEEN THE RIGHT ANGLE DRIVE AND THE TRANSMISSION WAS STRIPPED OF ITS SPLINES, AND THE MATING PART ON THE TRANSMISSION WAS LIKEWISE STRIPPED. VERDICT: NEEDS NEW TRANSMISSION, TOO. I GOT A VOLVO REBUILT TRANSMISSION AND RIGHT ANGLE DR…
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10151744 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10157379 · 2006-05-11 (May 11, 2006)
2001 VOLVO XC70 TRANSMISSION FAIL AT 97K MILES. TRANSMISSION HAS NEVER BEHAVED APPROPRIATELY, UP/DOWN SHIFT ERRATIC, ETC. VEHICLE HAS BEEN THE RECIPIENT OF NUMEROUS SOFTWARE UPGRADES, TRANSMISSION FLUSH/FILTER, AND A NEW VALVE BODY. TRANSMISSION STILL FAILED AND VOLVO SAYS I'M OUT OF LUCK. BOUGHT NEW IN 2001 FOR $42,000. VEHICLE ALSO FAILED TO OPERATE MARCH OF 2006 WHERE A "PERFORMANCE REDUCED" MESSAGE WAS EXHIBITED. AFTER TURNING CAR OFF FOR SEVERAL MOMENTS, THE CAR RAN FINE. I SUSPECTED A POSSIBLE ISSUE WITH THE ETM. PORTLAND VOLVO IN…
Owner-reported narrative. 97,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10157379 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10130923 · 2005-08-01 (August 1, 2005)
ON SEPTEMBER 10, 2004, MY VOLVO XC-70 (2001) STALLED WITHOUT WARNING WHILE I WAS DRIVING 55 MPH ON 695 WEST IN BALTIMORE JUST BEFORE THE EXIT FOR I-83N (EXIT 24). I WAS ALMOST HIT BY A SEMI AND SEVERAL OTHER CARS. MY CAR HAD TO BE TOWED AND THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE BODY WAS REPLACED. HOWEVER, ON DECEMBER 1, 2004, THE SAME PROBLEM OCCURRED WHEN MY CAR STALLED AT AN INTERSECTION BUT WE WERE ABLE TO RESTART IT. THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE WAS REPAIRED AGAIN. *NM
Owner-reported narrative. 69,103 miles reported. Look up ODI 10130923 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10131110 · 2005-08-02 (August 2, 2005)
I WAS DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE AT ROUGHLY 70 MPH IN MODERATE TRAFFIC WITH MY WIFE AND 2 YOUNG BOYS WHEN THE ACCELERATOR NO LONGER RESPONDED. THE VEHICLE WOULD SURGE WHEN I STEPPED ON THE GAS THEN "STALL". THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT APPEARED WITH A MESSAGE "PERFORMANCE REDUCED". FORTUNATELY WE ROLLED OFF THE HIGHWAY OVER THE MEDIAN AND ONTO THE FRONTAGE ROAD AND INTO A PARKING LOT WHERE WE STOPPED THE CAR AND RESTARTED IT. WE CALLED THE DEALER WHO INSTRUCTED US TO BRING IT IN RIGHT AWAY TO HAVE IT DIAGNOSED. THIS WAS ACTUALLY THE SECOND OCCUR…
Owner-reported narrative. 92,628 miles reported. Look up ODI 10131110 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10118739 · 2005-04-30 (April 30, 2005)
CAR RIGHT FRONT BRAKE WAS MISSING CALIIPER TENSION SPRING-FELL OFF. *AK
Owner-reported narrative. 49,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10118739 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10148035 · 2006-01-18 (January 18, 2006)
I HAVE HAD PROBLEMS WITH THIS CAR STALLING FOR OVER TWO YEARS. I HAVE HAD THE THROTTLE BODY REPLACED TWICE. IN THE MONTH THE CAR HAS BEEN STALLING AT ALL SPEEDS AND SURGING WHEN BRAKING. THIS LAST STALLING EPISODE OCCURRED WHILE PULLING OUT INTO A THOROUGHFARE WHILE I WAS ACCELERATING TO GO SLIGHTLY UPHILL. SINCE I HAD NO POWER, I COULD NOT EVEN STEER THE CAR OFF TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD QUICKLY. IT WAS AT NIGHT, THEREFORE AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS SITUATION. THESE PROBLEMS HAVE BEEN OCCURRING OVER AND OVER AGAIN, DESPITE ALL OF THE SERVICE T…
Owner-reported narrative. 91,910 miles reported. Look up ODI 10148035 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10399312 · 2011-05-06 (May 6, 2011)
THE FAILURE JUST BEGAN AT AROUND 100K MILES, NO SPECIFIC EVENT. THE CAR LURCHES WHEN I AM PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE AFTER I HAVE BROUGHT IT TO A COMPLETE STOP. CAR JERKS WHILE DOWN SHIFTING INTO RIGHT HAND TURNS. CAR JERKS AT INTERSECTIONS WHILE SLOWING DOWN AND/OR ACCELERATING. I AM AFRAID IT IS GOING TO JERK FORWARD AND HIT SOMETHING THAT I, AS A DRIVER, SHOULD NOT BE AT RISK OF HITTING. THIS JERKING BEGAN INTERMITTENTLY AND THE CAR WOULD RUN MORE SMOOTHLY ON THE STREETS AFTER A HIGHWAY TRIP OF SOME DISTANCE, BUT NOW IT HAPPENS ALMOST CONS…
Owner-reported narrative. 124,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10399312 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10896566 · 2016-08-17 (August 17, 2016)
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 VOLVO XC70. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE HATCHBACK DID NOT OPEN WITHOUT ELECTRICITY. WHEN THE VEHICLE'S BATTERY FAILED, THE CONTACT WAS UNABLE TO OPEN THE HATCH. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THERE WAS NO HANDLE OR ANY MEANS TO UNLOCK THE HATCH FROM OUTSIDE OR INSIDE THE VEHICLE WITHOUT POWER, MAKING IT A DEATH TRAP IN AN EMERGENCY SITUATION FOR THOSE SEATED IN THE BACK ROWS. THE CONTACT MADE THE MANUFACTURER AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND WAS INFORMED THAT HIS CONCERN WOULD BE NOTED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 174,810. UPDATED…
Owner-reported narrative. 174,810 miles reported. Look up ODI 10896566 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10129833 · 2005-07-24 (July 24, 2005)
SINCE I PURCHASED MY 2001 VOLVO XC70 WITH 16,535 MILES IN AUGUST 2004, I HAVE HAD IT INTO THE DEALER (BORTON VOLVO) FOUR TIMES TO FIX THE SAME ISSUE: GASOLINE SHOOTING OUT OF THE TANK UPON COMPLETION OF FILLING. THIS OCCURS AT ANY AND ALL GAS STATIONS, EVEN AFTER THE FOLLOWING REMEDIES HAVE BEEN TAKEN: VENT CLEANING, FUEL CONTROL REPLACEMENT, FUEL TANK REPLACEMENT, SENDING UNIT REPLACEMENT, EVAPORATION CANNISTER REPLACEMENT, AND FILLER NECK REPLACEMENT. I BELIEVE THIS TO BE A SAFETY ISSUE AND AN ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE WITH THE VEHICLE. EVEN F…
Owner-reported narrative. 26,598 miles reported. Look up ODI 10129833 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10339267 · 2010-06-21 (June 21, 2010)
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 VOLVO XC70. WHILE ATTEMPTING TO REFUEL THE VEHICLE WITH GASOLINE, THE CONTACT STATED GASOLINE CONTINUED TO SPEW OUT FROM THE FILLER NOSE AND THE EMISSIONS WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THE DEALER ADVISED THERE WAS A SPIDER WEB IN THE VENT WELL OF THE FUEL TANK AND TRIGGERING THE EMISSIONS WARNING LIGHT. THE DEALER MADE UNKNOWN REPAIRS TO THE VEHICLE. ON A LATER DATE, WHILE DRIVING AT UNKNOWN HIGHWAY SPEEDS, THERE WAS SMOKE COMING FROM THE HOOD AND THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO LOSE POWER. THE CONTACT MOVED THE VEHICLE FROM T…
Owner-reported narrative. 79,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10339267 at NHTSA ↗