IllustrationBRAKES WERE VERY HARD - CAR WOULD NOT STOP FOR SEVERAL FEET. ALSO CAR WOULDN'T START ON ONE OCCASION - A SHIELD WAS PUT INTO CAR TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING AGAIN
2001 Volvo S40
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2001 Volvo S40 do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 26.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all S40 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
80–25K
825–50K
1050–75K
1475–100K
6100–150K
3150K+
49 reports with mileage · 35 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 10 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
11 crash reports4 fire reports5 injury reports
What owners actually said
84 reportsCONSUMER PUT VEHICLE IN DRIVE AND VEHICLE TOOK OFF. CONSUMER HIT A TELEPHONE POLE WHILE TRYING TO AVOID HITTING ANOTHER VEHICLE.*AK
BATTERY WAS DRAINED, AND THIS CAUSED CAR NOT TO START AT 150 MILES. SRS LIGHT KEPT COMING ON AT 1100 MILES. THIS INDICATED THAT THERE WAS SOMETHING WRONG WITH AIRBAGS. AT 1400 MILES, SRS LIGHT APPEARED AGAIN AFTER DEALER HAD CORRECTED PROBLEM.*AK THE VEHICLE FAILED TO START. THE FORWARD AND BACKWARD SEAT ADJUSTMENT WAS…
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BATTERY WAS DRAINED, AND THIS CAUSED CAR NOT TO START AT 150 MILES. SRS LIGHT KEPT COMING ON AT 1100 MILES. THIS INDICATED THAT THERE WAS SOMETHING WRONG WITH AIRBAGS. AT 1400 MILES, SRS LIGHT APPEARED AGAIN AFTER DEALER HAD CORRECTED PROBLEM.*AK THE VEHICLE FAILED TO START. THE FORWARD AND BACKWARD SEAT ADJUSTMENT WAS NOT WORKING. THERE WAS NOISE COMING FROM THE SUNROOF. THE ENGINE WAS NOISY. THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. *YH
I AM REPORTING THIS INCIDENT BECAUSE THE FRONT DRIVER AND PASSENGER AIRBAGS FULLY DEPLOYED WHEN THE UNDERCARRIAGE OF THE CAR AND RIGHT FRONT TIRE STRUCK PAVEMENT AT APPROX. 45 MILES PER HOUR. THE CAR DID NOT STOP, AND THE DRIVER HAD TO MANUALLY BEAT THE AIRBAGS BACK WITH HIS HANDS TO SEE AND BRING THE CAR TO A STOP. THIS INCID…
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I AM REPORTING THIS INCIDENT BECAUSE THE FRONT DRIVER AND PASSENGER AIRBAGS FULLY DEPLOYED WHEN THE UNDERCARRIAGE OF THE CAR AND RIGHT FRONT TIRE STRUCK PAVEMENT AT APPROX. 45 MILES PER HOUR. THE CAR DID NOT STOP, AND THE DRIVER HAD TO MANUALLY BEAT THE AIRBAGS BACK WITH HIS HANDS TO SEE AND BRING THE CAR TO A STOP. THIS INCIDENT WAS REPORTED TO VOLVO USA, THEY REMOVED THE SENSORS FOR INVESTIGATION, THEN REPORTED BACK TO ME IN WRITING THAT THEY OPERATED NORMALLY, AND THAT THERE WAS SUFFICIENT IMPACT TO THE UNDERCARRIAGE TO CAUSE DEPLOYMENT. I DISAGREE, AND FEEL THAT THE CAR IS UNSAFE TO DRIVE. EITHER THE DESIGN OF THE S40 OR IT'S SENSORS ARE DEFECTIVE. EVERYONE THAT SAW THE CAR AFTER THE INCIDENT WAS VERY SURPRISED THAT THE AIRBAGS DEPLOYED AT ALL, SINCE THERE WAS NO COLLISION INVOLVED -- DAMAGE TO THE OUTSIDE BODY OF THE CAR WAS MINOR. ALL DAMAGE WAS TO THE UNDERCARRIAGE AND INTERIOR (DUE TO THE AIRBAGS). HAD THERE BEEN ANY CARS TRAVELING IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION, VERY SERIOUS INJURY WOULD HAVE RESULTED SINCE THE DRIVER WAS BLINDED AND WOULD HAVE ONLY HAD THE PROTECTION OF ALREADY DEFLATING AIRBAGS HAD A HEAD ON COLLISION OCCURED WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE. I HAVE ALL DOCUMENTATION REPORTED TO VOLVO, AND THEIR WRITTEN RESPONSE.*AK
Official recalls
203V284000 · Equipment:other:labels
Aug 1, 2003
CERTAIN PASSENGER CARS FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 225, "CHILD RESTRAINT ANCHORAGE SYSTEMS." THE SECOND ISOFIX GUIDE WAS NOT INSTALLED IN THESE VEHICLES AND, IN CERTAIN CASES, THE OWNER'S MANUAL ISOFIX INFORMATION IS INCORRECT.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THIS DOES NOT MEET THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE STANDARD.
Remedy: OWNERS WILL RECEIVE A LETTER/PACKAGE CONSISTING OF THE SECOND ISOFIX GUIDE WITH INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS, AND IN CERTAIN CASES, THE CORRECTED OWNER'S MANUAL MAY BE PROVIDED. IF THE OWNER WANTS TO TAKE THEIR VEHICLE TO A VOLVO DEALER FOR INSTALLATION OF THE GUIDE, IT WILL BE PERFORMED AT NO CHARGE TO THE OWNER. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN ON DECEMBER 19, 2003. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT VOLVO AT 1-800-458-1552.
01V169000 · Equipment:appliance:air Conditioner
May 21, 2001
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: SEDAN AND WAGON PASSENGER VEHICLES. A DIODE IN THE ELECTRONIC CLIMATE CONTROL SYSTEM MAY HAVE A REDUCED SERVICE LIFE.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: IF THE DIODE FAILS, THE HEATER FAN STOPS OPERATING AND THE DEFROSTER FUNCTION IS AFFECTED.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL AN ADAPTER WITH A DIODE FITTED TO THE HEATER FAN MOTOR. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN JUNE 11, 2001. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE REMEDY WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME SHOULD CONTACT VOLVO AT 1-800-458-1552.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
1EA02026 · Volvo S40/V40 My 2000-2001
Opened Sep 10, 2002 · Closed Nov 21, 2003
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Service Brakes, Hydraulic
IN A NOVEMBER 6, 2003 SAFETY DEFECT REPORT, VOLVO INDICATED THAT THEY WILL CONDUCT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT RECALL OF THE 2000 MODEL YEAR (MY) SUBJECT VEHICLES (ABOUT 36,000 VEHICLES).VOLVO WILL ALSO CONDUCT A SERVICE CAMPAIGN OF ABOUT 31,000 2001 MY SUBJECT VEHICLES.ODI INVESTIGATED BOTH THE 2000 AND 2001 MY VEHICLES AND DETERMINED THAT THE 2001 MY VEHICLES EXPERIENCED SUBSTANTIALLY LOWER RATES OF FAILURES BASED ON THE NUMBER OF OWNER REPORTS AND WARRANTY CLAIMS SUBMITTED TO ODI.ODI BELIEVES THAT THE PROPOSED ACTION IS SUFFICIENT TO RESOLVE THIS INVESTIGATION'S SAFETY ISSUES. FOR THE CRASHES, IN ADDITION TO THE 22 SUBMITTED BY VOLVO, ODI FOUND 10 ADDITIONAL CRASH ALLEGATIONS IN THE OWNER REPORTS, FIELD REPORTS, AND WARRANTY CLAIMS SUBMITTED BY VOLVO.OF THESE 32 CRASHES, ODI BELIEVES THAT 10 ARE CLEARLY RELATED TO THE ALLEGED DEFECT, AND 5 APPEAR TO BE RELATED.OF THE 17 REMAINING CASES, TWO DID NOT INVOLVE A CRASH AND THE OTHER 15 COULD NOT BE DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO THE ALLEGED DEFECT.ODI WILL SUPPLEMENT THIS RESUME WITH A CLOSING REPORT AND ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL DETAILS CONCERNING THE DEFECT.