The contact owns a 2004 Volvo S60. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the instrument panel would not illuminate or operate. During the failure, the fuel gauge, speedometer, odometer, and other information was unavailable to the driver. The cause of the failure was not determined. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 157,000.
Volvo S60 fuel gauge problems
15 of the 1,274 owner complaints about the Volvo S60 describe wrong fuel gauge reading, most of them for the 2003 model year.
- owner complaints
- 15
- worst model year
- 2003
- typical mileage
- 115,000
Is there a fix? There are 5 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
Airbag light 5Headlights 2Door locks 2Stalling 1Fuel smell 1Fuel pump 1Brake failure 1
What owners say
Recall airbags- fuel gauge goes up and down never registers correctly
Entire dashborad has went black gas gauge,speedodmetor,turning signals and hazard lights.
Car interior smelled of gasoline and gasoline leaking into passenger compartment and underneath car. Took car to aaa repair facility where multiple leaks and malfunctions discovered and repaired. Low mileage for year of car and no accidents. Fuel level sensor assembly cracked and leaking - not the gasket - the fuel level sensor plastic housing failed. Fuel pump module assembly leaking.
The dash information system will randomly go blank and display SRS failure. Along with all information lights start blinking on and off. The analog gauge like the speedometer and fuel gauge will go to "0" or just move eratically to any number or position while driving. At night the entire information center go blank the clock and the mileage(no lights at all).
While driving the dash (not the radio, or other electrical components) went out-completely blank. I lost, the tac, the speedometer/odometer, engine gauge and gas gauge. This problem has continued intermittently and I can not relate it to a given speed or weather. Not knowing your speed is a safety issue and at night it's odd to be driving a car w/out an illuminated dash/controls. I do have an SRS code-service immediately. When I was last at the dealer they had "never heard of this issue" and would have to charge me diagnostic fees. Online research shows this to be a common problem and a new dim ($1200) can fix the problem. This is a safety issue and there are too many complaints posted online for this to be a little problem. What is the r/1000 (repair per thousand vehicles)?
The dash information sytem will randomly go blank and display SRS and brake failure, along with all information lights blinking on and off. Also the analog gauges like the speedometer and fuel gauge will go to "0" and empty or just move eratically to any number or position while driving. At night sometimes the entire dash or information center will go black (no lights at all) and on odd occasions one headlight may go out and come back on.
While driving out of a parking lot and accelerating to 35 MPH, entire dashboard blacked out. No speedometer, no odometer, no gas gauge,no message. Radio, windows, and air conditioning continued to work normally, as did headlights, interior lights, and turn signals. I turned off engine and then restarted car. Same symptoms. The third time I restarted car I received message on panel, SRS/airbag service urgent light comes on and stays on. I could not retrieve any other information regarding average speed, how full gas tank is, etc. I just went out to my car, which has been parked for about 21/2 hours since the incident, to get the mileage for this report and panel lights have disappeared again! I will get car to mechanic tomorrow, but I feel this is a very dangerous situation to be in,and especially with night time or high speed highway driving! My mileage is approximately 94,000 miles. I could not get a reading from my odometer as the panel is blacked out again!
The entire instrument panel went dead, and will not come back to life. The tachometer, odometer, speedometer and fuel gauge are off as though the car is off. Several mechanics have quoted me $1200+ to replace the entire instrument panel. The instruments went dead while I was on the interstate and leave me without the information I need to safely drive. Volvo should recall these vehicles and replace the faulty parts, there a quite a few forums on the internet where other volvo drivers have the same instrument failure.
Purchased used s60 in november 2011 with 137,000 miles. A few weeks later various problems manifested: scrambled letters in dashboard message, driver door locks intermittently worked, radio self tuned to different station, speedometer giving false readings or stuck at current speed or reading zero, fuel gauge malfunction, all instruments on panel flickered, all instruments went "dark" while driving. At first restarting car would clear problem. Then frequency between failures increased. Just before complete failure - car needed to be "cold" for instruments to work - with instruments failing once engine warmed. Finally in february 2012 at about 147,021 miles the panel completely failed while driving - giving driver no readings (speed, fuel, temp, mileage, or warning indicators) and would not reset. Internet forums of volvo owners suggested it was a driver information module failure. Owners forums pinpointed 3 probable causes of a dim failure - 1. Loose connection of the motorola microchip, 2. Loose capacitor/resistor 3. Lack of protection from heat/heat transfer to individual prongs in microchip or between capacitor/resistor and the circuit board. Some electrically savvy owners fixed by reflowing/resoldering/heat protecting said components. Our local volvo dealer confirmed dim failure and quoted aprox. $1500 for a new instrument cluster and 3 hrs. Labor. We chose to send dim/instrument cluster out for a refurbishment to baa remanufacturing inc. On reinstallation warning message read "sra/airbag-service urgent". Asked dealer to clear dim code first, then from SRS module per baa-reman instructions. Dealer job description/receipt stated they cleared codes dim 0001, 0003, 0005, 0006, e003, SRS 00d4, e003. No problems with locks/radio/instrument cluster since remanufacture in the last 10,000 miles/5 months. Volvo's original dim circuit board poorly designed/assembled.
Related recalls
Fuel system, gasoline: delivery: fuel pump
- What is wrong
- Volvo Car USA, LLC (Volvo Car) is recalling certain 2019-2020 V90, XC60, S60, V60, V60CC, S90, V90CC, S90L, and XC90 vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump can blow a fuse and fail.
- Risk
- Failure of the low-pressure fuel pump can cause a stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the fuse, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 2, 2021. Owners may contact Volvo Car customer service at 1‑888‑458‑1552. Volvo Car's number for this recall is R10100.
Recall number 21V414000 · Recall details
Fuel system, gasoline: delivery: hoses, lines/piping, and fittings
- What is wrong
- Volvo is recalling certain model year 2012 s60 passenger cars manufactured from january 18, 2011, through january 28, 2011. The male part of the fuel line quick connector end shape was produced with dimensions out of specification, leading to excessive assembly force on the female connector assembly and the possibility that the locking function may not be engaged.
- Risk
- If a vehicle exhibits this condition, the fuel line quick connector may detach and the engine may stall, increasing the risk of a crash. The customer may also notice a fuel smell and leakage. A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source could result in a fire.
- Remedy
- Volvo dealers will replace the fuel lines free of charge. The safety recall began on june 24, 2011. Owners may contact volvo at 1‑201‑768‑7300.
Recall number 11V311000 · Recall details
Fuel system, gasoline: delivery: fuel pump
- What is wrong
- Volvo is recalling certain model year 2012 s60 passenger cars manufactured from november 18, 2010, through may 5, 2011. The software for the fuel pump units may not be compatible with all fuel pumps and components resulting in insufficient fuel transfer in the pump unit.
- Risk
- Under certain driving conditions, there may be engine hesitation and possible engine stall even though the fuel gauge indicates up to 1/4 of the fuel is left in the tank. This condition increases the risk of a vehicle crash.
- Remedy
- Volvo will notify owners and dealers will upgrade the engine control module software, free of charge. The safety recall began on july 1, 2011. Owners may contact volvo at 1‑201‑768‑7300.
Recall number 11V303000 · Recall details
Fuel system, gasoline: delivery: fuel pump
- What is wrong
- Volvo is recalling certain model year 2001-2005 s80, model year 2001-2004 v70, s60, xc70 and model year 2003-2005 xc90 vehicles sold in or registered in the states of alabama, arizona, arkansas, california, florida, georgia, hawaii, kentucky, louisiana, mississippi, nevada, new mexico, north carolina, oklahoma, south carolina, tennessee, texas, utah, virginia and the u.s. Territories. When exposed to certain environmental conditions (hot climate and temperature cycling) over time and in combination with varying fuel quality, the fuel pump can develop cracks in the fuel pump flange.
- Risk
- If the condition occurs vehicle owners may notice fuel smell and/or fuel leak which, in the presence of an ignition source, could result in a fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect the fuel pump installed in the vehicle, and if necessary replace the fuel pump with a part of a modified design. This service will be performed free of charge. The safety recall began on january 15, 2010. Owners may contact volvo at 1‑800‑458‑1552.
Recall number 09V483000 · Recall details
Fuel system, gasoline: delivery: fuel pump
- What is wrong
- On certain vehicles originally sold in or currently registered in the states of arizona and nevada, due to the combination of fuel quality and climate conditions, the fuel pump may, in certain cases, experience a reduced functionality. The most common symptoms would be fuel odor.
- Risk
- Fuel leakage in the presence of an ignition source could result in a fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the fuel pump free of charge. The recall began on july 10, 2007. Owners may contact volvo at 1‑800‑458‑1552.
Recall number 07V152000 · Recall details
Questions about the Volvo S60 fuel gauge
Which Volvo S60 years have wrong fuel gauge reading problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2003 (7 complaints), 2002 (5 complaints) and 2004 (2 complaints).
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