1996 Volvo 850: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 235 complaints
235
Total Complaints
100,000mi
Median Mileage
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
Top Issue
14
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

78,600 25th Percentile
100,000 Median Mileage
144,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
32
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY
20
SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:SEAT HEATER/COOLER
11
TIRES
9
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
9
EQUIPMENT:APPLIANCE:AIR CONDITIONER
7
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:FRONT UNDERHOOD
6
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:CONTROL UNIT/MODULE
6
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
6
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
5

Severity Assessment

14
Crashes
27
Fires
13
Injuries
3
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"AUTO-TRAN: WHILE PARKED, TRANSMISSION SLIPPED OUT OF PARK, ROLLED DOWN INCLINE, HIT A HOUSE. NOTE: LEASED VEHICLE. *AK"
"AT LOW SPEED AND APPLIED BRAKE, IT MADE NOISE AND VIBRATED. PLEASE DESCRIBE . *AK"
"WHILE DRIVING, EXPEIENCED INTERMITTENT ABS FAILURE, WHEN ABS LIGHT APPEARS CONTINUOUSLY AND UPON APPLYING BRAKES HEARD LOUD NOISE.*AK"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28