2004 Volvo XC90 Fuel System Problems

Which parts fail

• Delivery › Fuel pump
  8
• Delivery › Hoses, lines/piping, and fittings
  1

Components named in complaints (fuel pump, injectors, fuel tank, hybrid and EV propulsion).

Mileage when the problem started

• Under 25k
  23%
• 25k–50k
  58%
• 50k–75k
  1321%
• 75k–100k
  1117%
• 100k–150k
  1930%
• 150k+
  1321%

Owner reports

Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2004 Volvo XC90 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).

The contact owns a 2004 Volvo XC90. The contact stated that after his wife started the vehicle, she smelled the odor of gasoline. The contact had been advised by his wife that the vehicle was taking longer to start up and sometimes required two or three attempts to start the vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a local dealer or independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The contact had researched online and related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 09V483000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The failure mileage was approximately 212,000.

The contact owns a 2004 Volvo XC90. The contact stated that after refueling the vehicle, his wife noticed an abnormally strong gasoline odor. The contact's wife was able to continue driving the vehicle; however, the failure would return after refueling or on rainy days. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 09V483000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) however, the VIN was not included. The dealer and the manufacturer were notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist as the VIN was not under recall. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.

Few days ago I came home, parked the car inside the garage and went inside. An hour later I went to the garage for something and noticed a very strong gasoline odor coming from the car. It is not coming from the reservoir and I did not put any fuel recently, so it can't be explained with a fuel spill. I suspect it is coming from the fuel pump. I as hoping or it to goo away, but it did not. It has been a week already.

Unsure of what the issue is with the vehicle but smells like gas in my garage and I found a recall I was never notified about I moved from Washington to Las Vegas and never received any info regarding the fuel pump recall as well as a noise that's been going on for a year now when I drive at 60 miles an hour I've had it looked at and no one seems to know what that issue is

My 2004 Volvo XC90 with a 2.5t engine, 7 pass, intermittently and inadvertently stalls while driving it. It is scary because all electrical goes off, instrument panel, radio, lights, etc, several warning messages appears, such ABS, air bags failure, brake failure, engine failure, etc. It won't respond to acceleration and brakes are very hard to push, the engine does not stop. I have to stop, turn it off, wait few minutes, then start it, everything comes to normal again but with the check engine and the air bags message, then after some minutes of driving the same stalling and electrical issues happen again. This is serious because you are on freeway and you loose brakes and engine control, no information in instrument panel, etc. …

Vehicle smells like gasoline when stopped and parked, and when driving. The smell seems to be strongest at the right rear of the vehicle when parked outside. When parked in the garage, the gasoline smell would be extremely strong and start coming into the house. It was severe enough I opened the garage door manually because I was afraid of blowing up the entire house. It is now staying parked in the driveway because the smell is so bad. There is a recall on certain VIN numbers, however Volvo says mine is not affected by the recall that would fix the smell. The recall appears to have been set up by state in which the vehicle was originally purchased, not necessarily vehicles with the part in question. The state where the vehicle has been since 2001 is virginia. …

We smelled a gasoline odor and the "check engine" light came on so we took our Volvo to a dealer to inspect. They said that there was a crack in the top of the fuel tank. I am the original owner and have taken meticulous care of this vehicle so that sounded very strange. The car only has 108,000 miles in 15 years. I now see where this model was recalled for fuel pump replacement several years ago but it was while I was out of the country for two years (2004-2006) on a project for my employer. I had my parents keep the car while I was gone and none of us received the notice about the recall. Shouldn't Volvo still have to honor this recall since I was not aware of it at the time? …

A few years ago I received a extended warranty for a fuel pump recall. My fuel pump is now leaking gas and filling the car with gas fumes. When I called the Volvo dealer I was told that the extended warranty was no longer valid and it would cost $1,000.00 to have it fixed. I called the vehicle safety hotline and was told that my VIN number wasn't included in the recall and I would need to file a complaint. The car is 16 years old and is in good condition I feel that as Volvo knows that the fuel pump is a safety issue that all cars that have the same fuel pump issue that are still driving the highways should be included in the recall. Nothing happened other than the heavy fuel smell that fills the car when driving and the fuel can be smelled outside of the car after it has been turned off. I have had the car fixed but think that the fuel pump issue should still be addressed. …

To whom it May concern: I currently own a 2004 XC90 t6, and have now encountered the same issue twice with my vehicle. Last year around the same time frame, there was a terrible scent of gasoline fumes throughout the cabin and exterior of the vehicle. The strongest concentration of the odor occurred around the backseat, passenger side. I took the vehicle to my mechanic and it was conclude that the was a fume leak occurring from the seal around the fuel pump. I purchased a new pump and seal from Volvo and had the unit replaced. Exactly around the same time of the year, a year later, I am encountering the same exact issue again. There is an offensively strong odor from gasoline fumes in and around the vehicle originating in the same place. I did some research on the web, and it looks like there have been hundreds of similar issues reported.

A few days ago I began to smell fuel in the rear seat of the vehicle and on the outside. The smell began to get worse and linger for days after operating it. After some research I determined it to be the fuel pump issue that similar years and models were recalled for in 2009. My vehicle wasn't on the recall since it was purchased in pa rather than in one of the southern states. I took it to the dealer and they confirmed it was the fuel pump. Volvo agreed to pay for the part but not the labor which amounts to $800. These fuels pumps present an extreme risk for fire and injury and all vehicles should have been recalled at volvos expense. Volvo should do the right thing and pay for the repairs or NHTSA should force them to. Just because of vehicle was purchased in one state versus another should not dictate whether they are recalled or not.

Related recalls

NHTSA investigations

Fuel System complaints in other XC90 years