The contact owns a 2009 Volvo S60. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the column turn signal lever detached. The contact stated that the turn signal and headlight switches were inoperable due to the failure. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. The dealer was made aware of the failure, and an appointment was scheduled for a future date. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 155,000.
Volvo S60 headlights problems
34 of the 1,274 owner complaints about the Volvo S60 describe headlights failing or too dim, most of them for the 2004 model year.
- owner complaints
- 34
- worst model year
- 2004
- typical mileage
- 80,000
By model year
Often reported together
Airbag light 5Stalling 4Brake failure 4Wipers 3Check engine light 3Hesitation 2Fuel gauge 2Ball joint 2
Trouble codes mentioned
C1055 1
What owners say
The problem is when the weather turns cold my car a Volvo 2003 S 60 turn signals do not operate, or if they do turn on sometimes the turn signals won't stop flashing until you turn the ignition off. The head lights also will not turn on at any setting during this time. When the weather turns warm again everything works until the weather turns cold again. It appears to be related to the CENTRAL ELECTRONIC MODULE. It happens every time the weather is cold. It happen very unexpectedly my wife was driving down the road and was almost in an accident. The turn signals switch has already been replaced with a new Volvo turn signal switch.The turn signal still does not work. According to XEMODEX.INC this is a common problem for Volvo's S 60 2001-2010.
2019 Volvo S60 headlamp system malfunction alert headlights/foglights to blink or turn off when turning the vehicle at night. I keep my headlights on auto so they are on during the day and I have only seen the error at night
These headlight assemblies commonly develop significant water ingress problems as they age. Owners report issues in wet climates even when these cars were relatively new, resulting in bulb ignition problems as water finds it way into the ballasts, resulting in high-voltage shorting. The water in the headlight housings also "fogs" up the forward lens, resulting in a poor distribution of light out the front, both poor for the driver and dazzling for oncoming traffic. The headlights can work fine for weeks or months, and then a wet week comes along and 1 or both headlights fail to operate or work but poorly and blind oncoming traffic. If caught after dark in the rain the headlights often fail to function. If this could be solved with new headlight assemblies for a reasonable price, I would not consider this a major safety issue, unfortunately, they are difficult to source, astronomically priced (~$1100 per assembly), and replacing them doesn't seem to fix this problem for many owners of these cars. The way these assemblies are vented from the factory seems to be problematic for water ingress and the position of the ballasts ensures that any significant water ingress causes the ballast to short internally. I believe that the atmospheric vent on these must be positioned in such a way that they suck water in as they cool if its raining. The all-halogen assemblies for these cars work better, likely because there's no ballast for the water to leak into and more heat from the bulb to quickly evaporate the water out of the same assembly design. The poorly designed housing is "saved" by the simpler electronics and thermal output of the bulbs. Unfortunately, different factory programming is required to run the all-halogen assemblies. A recall should be issued to replace all of these gimmicky (and distracting) "steerable" xenon headlights with the halogen versions, with the reprogramming effort included in the recall.
Headlight Failure. Light flickers on and off intermittently and triggers " low beam headlamp malfunction" on dashboard. No vehicle accidents or other trauma to the affected headlight. Only remedy is to replace headlight at a cost of $3,400.
When I first bought this Volvo there was condensation in both of the headlights then took it for a test drive and I really liked it and when I got back the dealer said if I was to buy it he would take care of both headlights so I assumed that he did but I bought it and left and was driving and then a code came on in the car saying low beam out I was like oh [XXX] so took it back to them they had me go buy $120 light bulb and that wasn't the problem they did some working and testing and said that it was the low beam ballast so I bought 1 for the drivers side and that fixed that problem but then not even a week later the same light came on saying low beam out, took it back and they said that it was the same thing on opposite side on passenger side so they said order the part and we'll fix it I did that took it back to them and they said it was fixed not even a day later and the light was back on swing low beam out I'm thinking that there is an issue that has to deal with some kind of recall with these lights cause there is no way that they should break that easy or quick so please get back to me and let me know thank you INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
When I purchased the 2012 volvo S60 back in June we started to drive and it said low beam out and later found out that it was the drivers side low beam took it back and they tried a new headlight but didn't work but we found the problem it was the ballast to the hid bulb was bad changed it bam fixed 2 days later the light came back on and said low beam out but this time it was the passenger side took it back and they checked and said that it was the samething the low beam hid ballast so got that they changed it and bam fixed well left there and less than a week later the light comes back in saying low beam out and only its the same side again this time the passenger side, so my question and concern is I can't ve the only one having this issue with my headlights causing me to drive with high beams on which isn't safe so please get back to me with an answer I believe there is something faulty with these S60 r-design hid low beam headlights please help
I have an SRS airbag warning light stays on and will not go away. The electrical wiring for the headlights are faulty, I tried everything to fix them nothing works. I used an inline fuse with the headlight wiring because the bulbs the continue to blowout. The volvo forum suggested the inline fuse to fix the issue, but it did not. One headlight remains on the driver side and the passenger side comes on and off when it wants to and it also displays dipped bulb failure or beam failure.
While driving car, a fire started under the hood near the headlight , flames were flying although car had no engine light and ran great. Pulled over and people had fire extinguisher and fire company came to make sure if was all out. Extensive damage done to car. I am told it should of blown a fuse instead of lighting on fire with my grandson and dogs in the car with no warning. Insurance said it is electrical with the car and will not cover.
The passenger side light works intermittently this has been a slight issue since 2006 when I have had new lights installed on a regular basis. Despite me going to the dealer for over the last 11 years or so it is only getting more frequent in age. It is not the bulb but the wiring in the vehicle that is faulty. This can be dangerous especially when combined with the fog that the lights have put on the glass over the years. I have paid to have the fog removed twice and the wiring harness checked. After living in 5 different states I see this in almost every s60 in the mid 2000 always one head light out. It will come back on when you encounter a bump so it is a missed connection at some point in the wire harness. This creates such limited vision in night and I am constantly getting honked at. I have pulled over and jiggled the wires which will allow the light to work until you turn a corner, hit a bump or it just fades. I believe the headlamps should all be replaced and the wiring fixed this is such an issue in the evenings.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the Volvo S60 headlights
Which Volvo S60 years have headlights failing or too dim problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2004 (8 complaints), 2003 (6 complaints) and 2001 (4 complaints).
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