Volvo engine shut off didn't start back up - freaked out?

My father's 2017 was idle at a red light than when we went to drive it just completely shut off. We couldn't get it to start back up. All the electrical just cut off. Couldn't turn on the flashers, open the trunk, put it in neutral.. Etc. Had to have it towed to the dealership. It was very scary. We had just gotten off the Parkway and were in the middle lane at the light with cars everywhere. Today, my father said it happened again. Smh this time he's alone. I'm going to have to look into getting flares and cones for him. This is a serious and dangers safety hazard. The first time they said some fuse had come a loose or blew out smh.

I had a similar experience. I was stopped in a busy intersection turning left. When I was finally able to go my car wouldn’t start. I tried several times to start the car to no avail. After a few minutes it finally started but I could not get it into drive. This experiywas terrifying- I have my children and my daughters friend in the car.

This same thing happened to me in my 2017 XC90. First time was at a red light with my toddler in the car (i was able to put my flashers on, put it in park and it took restarting it twice for it to work), and second time was today at a red light in heavy traffic on the way to work (I “only” had to pump the gas pedle a few times for it to reignite.) It’s terrifying. I’m bringing it in next week for them to check it. If they cannot figure it out, I’m seriously considering a new car. Until my car appointment, I’m going to switch the gas saving feature and turn off engine standby mode when vehicle is not moving.

My car is a disaster. We are at the dealer at least once per month with computer related issues. I thought I had a lemon until reading this.

I have had same issue with a 2017 XC90 T6. Three times in the past 2 weeks. Autostop OK at a red light, but then won't restart. (Or rather won't restart until after continually trying to restart for about 3 minutes while blocking traffic.) Has anyone found a common cause or known issue? Seems like there are enough of us having same exact issue.

Same here! There was a recall recently - guess they should have another one! Terrifying experience... https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/645973/Volvo-recalls-cars-glitch-stops- motor-driving

Hmm, so a similar recall in 2016. There's no official recall at this moment. The issue needs more attention. For it to happen multiple times to a vehicle is crazy. I wonder if the other new SUVs (xc60,xc40) have had similar occurrences like in 2016.

This is happening to me right now! At least I’m in a carpark. My car was serviced last week - could there have been some recent software upgrade that is causing this? Nightmare. I am not buying another Volvo.

It also happened to mine after a service call. It seems that every time we go in for service we have computer related issues after.

In my case, the dealer (where I had it towed) said it was a loose cable on the starter motor. They firmed it up and so far it's been reliable (though it's only been a few days since I've had it back). I'm hopeful that that's all it was. Will re-post if it turns into something else. (In any case, it does seem like there were quite a few people affected by similar issues.)

I googled to find out if others are having this issue. My car has stalled for a while. I was told at my Fall oil change, the auto stop feature: 1- can “cycle” and the engine shuts off after a certain number 2- needs a software update So, I paid more mind. Before my recent oil change, it happened after maybe 6 blocks of driving. I was then told my battery is only at 89% - which can cause there not to be enough power. Does that sound right to anyone? After being told I need a $300+ battery and $600+ brakes, i think this car I love is looking more like a lemon to me.

I also had to replace my brakes, rotors and tires at 20,000 miles

Had the same problem of my MY16 XC90 not starting back up after stopping at the traffic lights. Happened a few times already and the dealer tried fixing the same issue three to four times but still hasn’t fixed it. I think think it’s a software issue because this only started to happen straight after my vehicle being serviced with a software upgrade. This issue definitely needs to attract more attention because it’s not only causing inconvenience, but has the potential to put the driver and passengers in a very dangerous situation.

anyone had their issue fixed? and if so what was the problem?

My car is doing the same, was hoping someone found an issue

Well I can give my update, in my case it seemed to be a bad battery. Tested fine voltage wise at first glance but when ran under the 1.5 hour battery test it was bad, replaced it and we will now see

I got rid of mine. After looking into it, I feel like this auto stop/start feature is very hard on the volvo and caused too many high costs. It doesn’t seem to be anything defective or covered under warranted so I just gave up.

Just happened to me today on the freeway. Very scary. I have a 2017 XC90.

Happened to my 2016 Volvo XC90 while stopped at a busy intersection with TWO babies in the car. It finally started back up after multiple tries and maybe 5 minutes. So frustrating and so scary.

My 2016 Xc60 has been turning off while in drive randomly for awhile now. There have been some scary situations. I replaced the battery and it still is doing it. Seems to happen at uphill stop signs more often. Getting it serviced in a week and will mention the recall, thanks for posting this. Thought I just had bad luck with cars.

I’m my humble opinion, this is a stupid idea. Starters cost way more than the small amount of gas you save with this feature. I experimented with the feature on and off over many trips and I could see no perceptible difference. Also the sticker says 23mpg city and 27hwy.i have never gotten more than about 22mpg overall.They must have checked the mileage going down a mountain with a tail wind.

I think this situation is very scary. It's happened to me many times. The mechanic doesn't know what to do about it. I am frustrated. I already spent so much money. Does anyone know what's wrong? or how to fix the problem?

After selling mine, I made mention of this at my new dealer and mechanic. Both said the same thing- that the software updates need to be kept up too frequently. When I mentioned to my mechanic how I was told I needed to replace my battery early and burned through the life of other things he didn’t seem familiar with Volvo being a problem but I didn’t go on. I can’t keep up maintenance on a car like that. I am not good with that. I am not sure if only Volvo mechanics get this info automatically.... They are such beautiful cars.

For me it appears to have been the starter. It wasn't the software (which cost me about $400 to upgrade); it wasn't the loose battery connection (another few hundred). The new starter (around $1000) seems to have solved the problem for now. Though it's only been installed for about a month.

I am experiencing this on my 2016 xc 90 - it started a couple months ago, and has now happened 3 times - never when my husband is in the car or while the dealer has it. they have no idea. The error that comes up says vehicle is not on, you have to put it in park, and pray it turns on after doing the knob multiple times. sw is updated, that didnt fix it. I am about ready to say goodbye to my car - and i have really enjoyed it but this is dangerous!

I just purchased a pre-owned 2017 S60 T5 on 2/18/20 with a little over 10,000 miles on odometer. It has been cutting off when I put it in park. Also radio cuts off several times a day, don't know if that is a separate issue, or is related. When I got the car 3 weeks ago from Gunther Volvo in Delray, Fl. I noticed the front camera wasn't working. I took the car back in to their shop the first week and it turns out that the factory installed camera was replaced with aftermarket product after an accident (before I got it), and, in doing the replacement, the new camera was installed electrically to the cigarette lighter fuse. I asked that it be re-installed properly, but Gunther dealership refused stating that was the correct installation. Really? a camera in a cigarette lighter fuse? I contacted Volvo customer service, but so far have not received any assistance from agent, Parris. I have requested that my complaint be sent to the next layer of bureaucracy.

This is also happening to me. Would love an update from anyone with the same issue. I’ve taken it to the dealer twice with the same issue. Supposedly a software issue fixed it the first time, for the second, they couldn’t figure it out, ran multiple tests and told me they thought it was because I spilled something on the center console. They replaced the start / stop switch and the starter motor. Note: we bought the dealer loaner vehicle and this must’ve happened before we got it. And now 3 months later it’s happening again. Will this ever be fixed? We have also had to replace our battery yearly and think this may have something to do with it.

After this happened the 3rd time, we replaced the starter and it hasn’t happened again. It was always during the auto engine shut off feature to save fuel (at red light or stopped in traffic).

Bought 2016 xc90 with 50K miles beginning of year. As others have noted, we have experienced the same issue on a two occasions when the car is at a stop and the engine shut off feature is on. Was able to immediately restart. However today (7/12), while pulling out onto road from gas station, it happened again but this time could not get the car to restart. I’m writing this as I sit in a hotel with wife and 2 year- old while car has been towed to a mechanic. We had car serviced two weeks ago (oil change) at a Volvo dealership. Was told the car checked out fine and had no issues except needing brakes. Had rear brakes and rotors replaced last week (not at dealership). Will try to update this post with final outcome.

Update: mechanic charged battery and then said they found a loose switch wire. Tighten it and it started. Drove it home but had same issue next day. Had it tow to dealership. They determined it was a bad starter. Cost: $1,100.

Bottom line is that my $70K, 2018 XC-90 T6 is a piece of $h!t The vehicle has less than 40K miles on it and we've experienced 3 separate catastrophic failures while driving which included turbo charger/super charger failure and now this failure where the vehicle shuts down completely while sitting at a stop light. When you go to start the engine you get a message saying the vehicle is already running. I just got off the phone with the service manager and he's claiming it's a bad starter. I have no confidence in the reliability of this vehicle and the safety of this vehicle while it's being operated. Also, I had to have the brakes replaced on it 4 times due to the constant squealing. The dealership blames the brakes issue on the 20" wheels. I say BS because I own a 2019 Pilot with 20" wheels and there's now issue with squealing brakes. Finally, I also own a 2006 Pilot I bought brand new ($30K cheaper than the Volvo) and have put over 240K miles on it and it's never once had a catastrophic failure. In closing I will never ever purchase another Volvo product and I will be ditching this piece of $h!t and buying another Honda Pilot.

I’m a tow driver. Any newer vehicle that has electronic emergency brakes are generally garbage vehicles in my opinion. Sensor could go bad and cause you to stop in the middle of the road. I got a 2008 Ford super duty and it runs fine. Stick with the old school models and designs. Avoid buying vehicles that have features where the engine shuts off at a stop light. Just going to where out the starter too quick and cause more service work costs. Get a vehicle with handbrake emergency brake or a foot pedal emergency brake. These car manufacturers are more concerned about bringing your car in for more money and selling you new cars than your safety. That is how I feel about certain brands.

We have a 2016 XC 90 that is having the same issue. It first started as wouldn't start. It then became stalling out while at lights. We turned off the idle shutdown and that did not work. Volvo is replacing the starter for about $1,000. Hopefully this works. Being shut down in traffic is not an enjoyable experience.

I have the exactly problem with my 2016 XC90, and started with the malfunction of the turbo, and it was replaced for a new one and cost me more then 2.000€. 2 weeks later, he shut down in very heavy traffic, and only returned to work more than 30 minutes later. At Volvo they replaced the steering lock. €400 One week later, it didn't start after filling up. Now, they say it's a wiring problem and they want to change the starter motor and it costs another €1,100. I stopped trusting the brand's assistance in Portugal, but it seems to me that the problem is widespread throughout the world. Volvo's assistance no longer inspires the confidence it once did.