Volvo XC40 Reliability?

IrishSwede13 · Mar 1, 2021

My wife and I are preparing to purchase a 2019 XC40 R-Design and are just looking for anybody's experiences or insight on them. The dealer made a remark that they "have their issues" and suggested we get some 10yr Platinum Warranty (or something like that) for $3k...he said repairs on Volvos are easily twice of those domestically. I am a car guy and can do most repairs myself, but that infotainment system would be beyond me and it seems kinda vital.

Consumer Reports also listed the reliability for the XC40 as:
Body Integrity 1/5
Power Equipment 1/5
In-Car Electronics 2/5
...but everything else is 4/5 or 5/5...but of course those happen to be the things that are beyond my skill level.

Any feedback or recommendation (for the 10yr warranty) would be greatly appreciated!

kDiqq · Mar 1, 2021

Consumer Reports is an extremely unreliable source of information, especially reliability. CR will ding reliability based on a consumer complaints. "I don't know how to work the radio" or "I couldn't adjust the seat the way I wanted" will illicit a negative mark against a brands reliability. The XC40 uses the same exact engine architecture as every other Volvo and the exact same Aisin 8 speed automatic. There are a few car reviewers online who have had a host of 2.0 Volvos as long-term testers with no drama at all. "They have their issues" was a crappy thing for the dealer to say and doesn't mean you need an extended warranty. Though if you want one for piece of mind, you can get a Volvo extended warranty from Steingold for cheaper than anywhere else. There are a couple of suuuuper vocal, very upset members here that have had issues and run-ins with garbage dealers. It's unfortunate but they represent a minority. Many more people have been super satisfied with their Volvos and are happy owners (myself included). Volvo's sales have been exploding, they are locking down awards globally, and reception of the XC40 has been fantastic. All these positive attributes are being represented in their bottom line and, from a stock perspective, they are outperforming their peers by a wide margin. There is a reason for this. I'd proceed confidently, the XC40 is incredibly well-received.

Buzzedewok · Mar 1, 2021

I would have told him I didn’t want to buy a car that is just going to have issues and walked.

IrishSwede13 · Mar 1, 2021

Haha well we actually were prepared to close on the deal, but after his comment we decided to do a little more research...I got the feeling he was just trying to increase the price a bit after we got it knocked down $1,500. I am good with anything mechanical, it is just the infotainment system that had us worried. We have a 2019 Rav4 XSE Hybrid and had an issue with the touch screen and ignition...thankfully it was covered by the warranty, but I saw the total would've been just shy of $3,500...cannot imagine the cost of that for the Volvo. I did see a few issues with the XC40 ignition, but it sounds like that was a computer update issue.

If we purchase a warranty through Steingold is it honored at any Volvo dealership? Is there an option to purchase the extended warranty prior to the CPO warranty expiring?...The sales rep was extremely vague about that...

I also agree about CR the one rating was simply because 3 people talked about wind noise when driving on a highway during the rain (something to do with the drain tubing being too low)...hardly worth the 1/5 rating.

Thanks for all the feedback!

KHarper · Mar 2, 2021

We own an XC40. We took euro delivery of a US spec model and put about 1500 miles on it there. When it was delivered here, we put another 12k or so on it over the next 8 months because of a volunteer position I had. No issues of any consequence other than fuel economy being less than we hoped, but that happens driving a crossover at 70 mph into 30 mph headwinds all the time. We buy another at the drop of a hat.

31355 · Mar 2, 2021

CR is all over the board.....some of their comments and insights are helpful, others are just flat out misrepresentations. I wouldn't use CR to determine much information about a car.

Just FYI.....a used Sensus screen can be bought on eBay for $350 all day long. The LAST thing that would worry me about a purchase is the infotainment system. The failure rate of screens and models is minuscule, and most of the times a "failure" is actually a software issue.

And extended warranty can be great peace of mind and a good investment, especially a quality one at a great price. My mom's S60 is covered for 10 years/120,000 and cost around $3000. Personally, to think in 120,000 miles there will not be $3000 of repairs would be a pretty impressive feat for ANY car. Considering things like ball joints or engine mounts literally have a defined lifespan that is not the life of the car, just one or two repairs of common items in that 120,000 miles likely pays back above the warranty purchase price. You'll note Volvo warranties can be had for a fraction of the price compared to other brands like BMW or Audi.....so what does that tell you about Volvo's anticipation of reliability?

Literally buying an XC40 is still challenging. There are rarely only a handful at a dealer at any given time, and often inventory is virtually zero. People are still waiting MONTHS to take delivery of a XC40 due to the popularity of the car. Notice the used XC40 is the #1 resale value in its class, showing you even used XC40s are in extreme demand.

If you like the car....get it! They are amazing vehicles, well priced, build like a tank, are relatively sporty and fun to drive, and the tech inside and out is very impressive. After owning one you then began to really take notice of features you couldn't on a test drive, like the amazing output of the LED headlights, the flawless bluetooth phone connection, the effectiveness of AutoPilot or adaptive cruise, or the comfort of the seats after 500 miles. You won't find many bad things to be said about these cars anywhere on the internet. There is a reason for that....

IrishSwede13 · Mar 2, 2021

*********** said:
CR is all over the board.....some of their comments and insights are helpful, others are just flat out misrepresentations. I wouldn't use CR to determine much information about a car.

Just FYI.....a used Sensus screen can be bought on eBay for $350 all day long. The LAST thing that would worry me about a purchase is the infotainment system. The failure rate of screens and models is minuscule, and most of the times a "failure" is actually a software issue.

And extended warranty can be great peace of mind and a good investment, especially a quality one at a great price. My mom's S60 is covered for 10 years/120,000 and cost around $3000. Personally, to think in 120,000 miles there will not be $3000 of repairs would be a pretty impressive feat for ANY car. Considering things like ball joints or engine mounts literally have a defined lifespan that is not the life of the car, just one or two repairs of common items in that 120,000 miles likely pays back above the warranty purchase price. You'll note Volvo warranties can be had for a fraction of the price compared to other brands like BMW or Audi.....so what does that tell you about Volvo's anticipation of reliability?

Literally buying an XC40 is still challenging. There are rarely only a handful at a dealer at any given time, and often inventory is virtually zero. People are still waiting MONTHS to take delivery of a XC40 due to the popularity of the car. Notice the used XC40 is the #1 resale value in its class, showing you even used XC40s are in extreme demand.

If you like the car....get it! They are amazing vehicles, well priced, build like a tank, are relatively sporty and fun to drive, and the tech inside and out is very impressive. After owning one you then began to really take notice of features you couldn't on a test drive, like the amazing output of the LED headlights, the flawless bluetooth phone connection, the effectiveness of AutoPilot or adaptive cruise, or the comfort of the seats after 500 miles. You won't find many bad things to be said about these cars anywhere on the internet. There is a reason for that....

Thanks for the reply...our sales rep should give you a cut of the commission

The XC40's here in Seattle seem to be plentiful. The used ones seem to sit for at least a month or two (except red for some reason). We were able to get a pretty good deal on the price for it and, after hearing all of this, we feel a lot more confident in our purchase...on our way now to go get it.

31355 · Mar 3, 2021

IrishSwede13 said:
Thanks for the reply...our sales rep should give you a cut of the commission The XC40's here in Seattle seem to be plentiful. The used ones seem to sit for at least a month or two (except red for some reason). We were able to get a pretty good deal on the price for it and, after hearing all of this, we feel a lot more confident in our purchase...on our way now to go get it.

Let us know how it turns out! My dealer currently has 1 new XC40 and 1 used XC40 on the lot. A number of the incoming units are pre-sold. Finding a plentifully supply in certain areas of the country is very difficult. However there will start to be more lease cars coming into the used market, so soon that will change.

SteingoldVolvoCars · Mar 5, 2021

IrishSwede13 said:
Haha well we actually were prepared to close on the deal, but after his comment we decided to do a little more research...I got the feeling he was just trying to increase the price a bit after we got it knocked down $1,500. I am good with anything mechanical, it is just the infotainment system that had us worried. We have a 2019 Rav4 XSE Hybrid and had an issue with the touch screen and ignition...thankfully it was covered by the warranty, but I saw the total would've been just shy of $3,500...cannot imagine the cost of that for the Volvo. I did see a few issues with the XC40 ignition, but it sounds like that was a computer update issue.

If we purchase a warranty through Steingold is it honored at any Volvo dealership? Is there an option to purchase the extended warranty prior to the CPO warranty expiring?...The sales rep was extremely vague about that...

I also agree about CR the one rating was simply because 3 people talked about wind noise when driving on a highway during the rain (something to do with the drain tubing being too low)...hardly worth the 1/5 rating.

Thanks for all the feedback!

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IrishSwede13 · Mar 5, 2021

*********** said:
Let us know how it turns out! My dealer currently has 1 new XC40 and 1 used XC40 on the lot. A number of the incoming units are pre-sold. Finding a plentifully supply in certain areas of the country is very difficult. However there will start to be more lease cars coming into the used market, so soon that will change.

Well we saw the used one again in better lighting and I noticed the rims were painted and 3 of 4 tire walls had scuffs (signs it struck the curb and was repaired), the trim was slightly darker in the rear of the vehicle (like it had been recently replaced) and after test driving a new XC40 there was an audible difference in the engine noise (sounded like the transmission was skipping first gear)...I pressed our rep and he said it was still considered accident free because there was no insurance claims made, but he did admit they had done some extensive body work in-house (said it was standard, but to me that is sketchy). They were asking $39k for that and came down $37.5k (said they couldn't go lower because they had so much invested in the repair work). To make a long story short we qualified for the Affinity program (Medical/Law Enforcement) and we got a new XC40 with all available packages knocked down from $48.5 to $43.5...paying $6k more for the peace of mind seemed like a no-brainer. I couldn't justify spending that kind of money for something with that extensive of damage...our 15 year old CRV has less damage...

Now my follow up question...are there extended warranties on new vehicles? They kind of went over one that covered the maintenance fees for an additional 3 years (7yrs instead of the initial 4yrs), but that was astronomically overpriced. He eluded that every 10k miles the routine service is about $1,600...but that seems outlandishly high? $1,600 for an oil change, tire rotation, computer update and air
filters? I do all that myself..only thing is the computer updates.

Wayne T5 · Mar 5, 2021

Yes, to move up to a two year newer car that hasn't had bodywork for $6k is certainly a no-brainer - congrats!

Yes, Volvo service is expensive but that looks like a factor of 10 ($160x10) for what a 10k service probably costs. If you're used to doing your own maintenance work then continue doing that.

You can get an extended warranty which is different than the services they tried to sell you.

DFrantz · Mar 5, 2021

The XC40s hold their value too well to make great used cars at this point. You likely made the right call. In house repairs are probably more extensive than most people realize for many vehicles... recondition is huge... but it sounds to me like that one had more than just recondition done to it. You can buy prepaid maintenance and warranty from any Volvo dealer after the fact. Some are paid sponsors here on this site, so I won't step on their toes. It sounds like they try to make up all their money on the back end between the warranty talk you had and outrageous service costs suggested.

Buzzedewok · Mar 6, 2021

DFrantz said:
The XC40s hold their value too well to make great used cars at this point. You likely made the right call. In house repairs are probably more extensive than most people realize for many vehicles... recondition is huge... but it sounds to me like that one had more than just recondition done to it. You can buy prepaid maintenance and warranty from any Volvo dealer after the fact. Some are paid sponsors here on this site, so I won't step on their toes. It sounds like they try to make up all their money on the back end between the warranty talk you had and outrageous service costs suggested.

Can you only get the warranty through Volvo on a new one as long as it's less than 1000 miles?

DFrantz · Mar 6, 2021

I think it gets bumped to used car at that point, but the price difference isn't huge. You can add a Volvo warranty easy so long as it's still under the original warranty (there might be a cut off just before it runs out or something).

SteingoldVolvoCars · Mar 6, 2021

Exactly - after 1,000 miles, options change a bit and you'll need to use the link below: Login - Darwin Direct

Pricing is still very aggressive, but the 11 year and 10 year options are no longer available.

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SwedePro1 · Apr 9, 2021

IrishSwede13 said:
My wife and I are preparing to purchase a 2019 XC40 R-Design and are just looking for anybody's experiences or insight on them. The dealer made a remark that they "have their issues" and suggested we get some 10yr Platinum Warranty (or something like that) for $3k...he said repairs on Volvos are easily twice of those domestically. I am a car guy and can do most repairs myself, but that infotainment system would be beyond me and it seems kinda vital.

Consumer Reports also listed the reliability for the XC40 as:
Body Integrity 1/5
Power Equipment 1/5
In-Car Electronics 2/5
...but everything else is 4/5 or 5/5...but of course those happen to be the things that are beyond my skill level.

Any feedback or recommendation (for the 10yr warranty) would be greatly appreciated!

Do not rely or recommend consumer reports. The XC40 beats out BMW, Audi and MB combined. The XC40 body integrity is made of boron steel. No one has more than Volvo.

Volvo XC40 Reliability?

IrishSwede13

kDiqq

Buzzedewok

IrishSwede13

KHarper

31355

IrishSwede13

31355

SteingoldVolvoCars

IrishSwede13

Wayne T5

DFrantz

Buzzedewok

DFrantz

SteingoldVolvoCars

SwedePro1

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