Volvo XC40 SUV - Reliability & safety

The Volvo XC40 finished in 32nd place in our 2024 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey of the top 50 models on sale. Buyers like its high-quality interior and practicality the most but are less keen on the price, considering it poor value for money.

Volvo XC40 reliability

Volvo as a brand performed well in our most recent brand-specific Driver Power owner satisfaction survey, coming in 12th place out of 32 manufacturers and ahead of its premium German rivals BMW (21st), Mercedes (25th), and Audi (30th), but behind Lexus in eighth and Jaguar in 10th. Reliability isn’t a strong point, with 27th of Volvo owners reporting an issue with their car in the first year, though this isn’t specific to the XC40.

Safety

The Volvo XC40 has been given five stars in independent Euro NCAP crash tests, with impressive scores across the board that make it the safest small SUV. A 97% score for adult occupant protection is certainly reassuring, along with a high 87% score for child occupants.

Perhaps the car's key safety technology is City Safety autonomous emergency braking, which can not only detect vehicles, but pedestrians, cyclists and even large animals, helping prevent collisions or at least lessen their severity. There are also systems to help keep the car on the road, and prevent it heading towards oncoming traffic, all fitted as standard.

Every XC40 also comes with Volvo On Call, a smartphone app and emergency assistance package that allows you to control some functions of the car remotely (like locking and unlocking), and can alert the emergency services if you're involved in a crash.