New Seat Belt Recall is Largest in Volvo History

Volvo has recalled more than 2 million vehicles worldwide after discovering a potential issue with the front seat belts.

The defect involves a steel cable that anchors seat belts to the car. The company says the cable can become worn in some situations and may affect the seat belts’ ability to restrain occupants in the event of a collision, according to Consumer Reports. The company said the measure is preventive, with no injuries or accidents attributed to the problem. 

Volvo, owned by China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group since 2010, says all the affected vehicles, which were manufactured between 2006 and 2019, are built on an older EUCD platform. Current models are not affected.

Speaking to Swedish public radio, Volvo press spokesman Stefan Elfstrom said the issue stems from a steel cable which anchors the seat belt to the car. The company has reportedly seen “that this wire can be subject to wear and tear under special conditions,” reducing the seat belt’s protection. 

“This is a very rare problem,” Elfstrom added.

Volvo spokesperson Jim Nichols concurred when he told Consumer Reports the problem is rare.

“It’s a very rare problem, and we don’t have any reports of it, but after our due diligence and research, we found that there was a way in which the customer could move the seat belt and seat belt buckle where over time it could rub and damage the cable,” Nichols said. “We’re doing this out of an abundance of caution.”

Although no injuries have been reported with the recall, it is the largest recall in the Swedish brand’s history, the Car Connection reported. A Volvo spokesman told Reuters the company would not comment on the cost of the recall.

In the U.S., the recall affects more than 307,653 vehicles, according to Consumer Reports. The following models are involved in the recall:

• S60
• S60L
• S60CC
• V60
• V60CC
• XC60
• V70
• XC70 
• S80
• S80L

Volvo said consumers will be notified of the recall by mail, with instructions on bringing their vehicles in to have the part replaced. Alternatively, consumers may contact Volvo by calling 800-458-1552 or by reaching out to their local dealership.

Vehicle owners can use the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s website or Volvo’s recall page to check whether their vehicle is subject to any open recalls.

Volvo Recalls & Beyond

Seat belt recalls in general are fairly common. Over the past two years, major automakers in the U.S., Germany, Japan and Korea have recalled millions of vehicles for seat belt defects.

In 2019, Ford and General Motors each issued a seat belt recall.

The Ford recall affected 113,000 2015 Fusion and Lincoln vehicles in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

The company discovered a defect in the front seat belt assembly in which a rise in temperature in the seat belt anchor could compromise the cable’s strength, making the seat belt ineffective in a collision. 

GM recalled 640,000 2019 and 2020 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickup trucks when it found a defect with the vehicles’ seat belt mechanism that caused the carpet to catch fire.

Mercedes-Benz USA issued a similar recall in November for nearly 30,000 2018-2019 models after finding a glitch that could cause an alarm indicating a properly fastened seat belt was not secured. The company worried the defect could potentially affect other vehicle safety systems.

Volkswagen recalled more than 76,000 late-model vehicles last year over a defect that could cause rear seat belts to become unlatched when the vehicle made a sudden turn. Volkswagen first identified the defect in 2018, but continued selling the vehicles with a makeshift “repair” in place — a plastic cable tie.

Kia recalled 30,000 Tellurides in 2019 after it was discovered that they contained seat belt assemblies without automatic locking retractors.

Earlier this year, Toyota notified customers of a seat belt recall affecting nearly 9,500 new Toyota Corollas and C-HRs. In those vehicles, the seat belt assembly has a defective webbing sensor.

The seat belt issue is not the first major recall this year for Volvo, which touts its safety and reliability.

In March, Volvo recalled every vehicle in its 2019-2020 lineup over concerns about its automatic emergency braking system, Motor Trend reported. In that recall, which affected about 121,605 vehicles, the company discovered the automatic emergency braking system may fail to detect obstacles and not engage when needed, according to documents filed with the NHTSA. 

The cause of that recall was reportedly a missing software code, which made the Active Safety Domain Master (ASDM) not fully compatible with the new vehicles’ hardware. Volvo was among the first brands to make the feature standard, Motor Trend said.

As with the recent seat belt recall, Volvo did not receive any reports of injuries, fatalities or collisions related to the braking system defect before issuing the recall, according to Motor Trend. Volvo introduced updated software into vehicles produced on or after March 11, 2020.

In related legal news, a U.K. Volvo recall has been issued due to a potentially dangerous windscreen wiper defect. The windscreen wiper defect, affects 31,778 vehicles in the U.K. 

Is your Volvo subject to the recent seat belt recall? Let us know in the comments below.

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