Buyer Research

2018 Volvo S60 — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $13,500–$19,000. This is one of the more reliable vehicles in its class — here's what to watch for anyway.

Deciding between model years? Compare the 14 Volvo S60 years we've written up →

Kestrel Take

Four complaints. That is four people, not a reliability rating, and it says more about how few 2018 S60s Volvo sold — a run-out year for the second generation while the new car waited — than about the car. What the record holds is one recall, the front seat belt anchor cables, and three one-off failures: an engine control module at 44,000 miles, a dead blower fan that left the windshield fogged, and a check-engine light. The door latch recall that covers 2011–2017 S60s stops at this year. Treat it as the 2017 with a year less age: check the oil level readout, look at the crank pulley from below, and confirm the seat belt campaign on the VIN.

What we checked

Checked against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 4 owner complaints for the 2018 Volvo S60, and 1 recall campaign.

That is too small a record to read a pattern from, so we are not going to pretend otherwise — with numbers this low one owner moves the percentage by a lot. What has been filed is grouped under electrics and electronics (1), the engine (1), glass, wipers and mirrors (1). Treat those as things to look at, not as the vehicle's known weaknesses. A thin file usually means few of these were sold or few owners filed. It is not evidence the vehicle is trouble-free, and the issues below are our own research rather than a reading of this record.

One recall campaign covers this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.

Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.

Known Issues for the 2018 Volvo S60

Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.

Front seat belt anchor cable can wear through (recall)Medium

Recall 20V378 covers 2011–2018 S60s: the flexible steel cable that ties each front outboard seat belt to the seat can fray with years of use and may not hold in a crash. Volvo replaces both front anchor cables at no cost. The campaign opened in December 2020, when a 2018 was two years old and possibly on its second owner, so do not assume the notice reached this car. Run the VIN on the NHTSA lookup; pull each front belt fully out and back and look at the lower anchor beside the seat base for fraying.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: 1 NHTSA recall campaign on this model year.

Engine control module failure at 44,000 miles — check-engine light, two shops to diagnoseMedium

One owner's check-engine light turned out, after two independent shops and a dealer, to be a failed engine control module at 44,200 miles, and the dealer said it was unusual on a car that young. One report is not a pattern and we are not calling it one; it is here because an ECM on a Drive-E is a four-figure part that has to be programmed to the VIN, and because a check-engine light on the test drive is the cheapest warning you will ever get. Have any stored codes read before you talk price. A module that will not communicate with the scan tool at all is the expensive version.

Repair cost (estimate): $1,200–$2,500 for a programmed engine control module; $100–$150 for a diagnostic scan

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (1), the engine (1).

Blower fan dies — no heat, no air, and a windshield that will not defrostMedium

One owner's climate fan stopped altogether, so nothing came out of the vents and the windshield could not be cleared; the dealer replaced the fan. It is a single report on this year, but the same failure sits on the 2013 and 2014 S60 pages, and it is a thirty-second check: start the car, run the blower from low to high, and make sure the airflow rises with each step and the defrost setting sends it to the glass. A fan that only works on high is usually the resistor pack, which is cheaper than the motor.

Repair cost (estimate): $150–$300 for a blower resistor; $350–$700 for a blower motor

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under glass, wipers and mirrors (1).

2.0L Drive-E accessory belt and crank pulley — look from below before you buyMedium

Nothing on the 2018 record, but the engine is the one on the 2015 and 2016 pages where a crank pulley coming apart or a seized alternator threw the serpentine belt behind the timing cover and bent valves. A three-minute look with a flashlight from underneath covers it: the rubber ring bonded into the crank pulley should be uncracked with no bulge, the belt should sit centred on every pulley with clean edges, and the accessory side should be quiet at idle. If the seller has replaced the damper and belts, that receipt is worth more than the detailing.

Repair cost (estimate): $400–$800 for a damper and belts in advance; $4,000–$8,000 for valves and a head after a failure — about 49% of what this car is typically worth

Source: not yet checked against public records.

Oil level on a Drive-E lives in the driver display, not on a dipstickLow

There is no dipstick under the hood of a 2018 S60. The oil level readout is in the driver display, needs the engine warm and the car on level ground, and is the only way to know whether this car uses oil the way the 2013–2016 five-cylinder and early Drive-E cars did. Nothing on the 2018 record says it does; we are not claiming it does. Scroll to the readout before the test drive and again after, and ask for oil-change receipts. A seller who has never found the readout has never checked.

Repair cost (estimate): $0–$100 for a dealer oil level check

Source: not yet checked against public records.

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Check-engine light on, or a scan tool that cannot talk to the engine module
✗Blower that only works on one speed, or sends nothing to the windshield on defrost
✗Oil level readout in the driver display below the midpoint
✗Cracked or bulging rubber on the crank pulley when viewed from below
✗Seat belt recall shown open on the NHTSA VIN lookup

Good Signs

✓Recall 20V378 shown closed on the VIN lookup
✓A clean code scan with the engine module answering on the first try
✓Blower rising through every speed with strong airflow on the defrost setting
✓Receipt for a replacement crank pulley and belts
✓Oil-change receipts with the electronic level reading noted at each visit