"How reliable is the 2003 Volvo S40?"

"Based on 23 NHTSA complaints, the 2003 Volvo S40 has a median complaint mileage of 85106 miles. The most common issue is POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION."

"What are common problems with the 2003 Volvo S40?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2003 Volvo S40 is POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, accounting for a significant portion of the 23 total complaints filed."

2003 Volvo S40: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 23 complaints

Total Complaints

85,106mi

Median Mileage

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

73,514 25th Percentile

85,106 Median Mileage

108,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

TIRES

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM:FUEL RAIL

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL

SUSPENSION:FRONT:SPRINGS:AIR SUSPENSION:LINES AND FITTINGS

EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:COOLING SYSTEM

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"TRANSMISSION SLIPS FROM 2ND TO 3RD FROM TIME TO TIME. ADDITIONALLY, THE CAR SHIFTS HARSHLY FROM 3RD TO 2ND GEAR. *JB"

"I AM CURRENTLY DRIVING A 2003 VOLVO S40. IT HAS BEEN EXPERIENCING A TRANSMISSION SLIP BETWEEN 2ND AND 3RD GEARS. I HAD TAKEN THE CAR BACK TO THE DEALER FOR TWO TIMES DUE TO THE ABOVE PROBLEM. THE ONLY THING THEY DID WAS UPGRADING THE PROGRAM, WHICH IT DID NOT HELP AT ALL. THE MAJOR PROBLEM IS I ..."

"TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:I WOULD LIKE TO REPORT A COMPLAINT THAT ONE OF THE MICHELIN TIRES ON MY NEW VOLVO S40 (BOUGHT ON JAN 25, 2003: [XXX]) BLEW OUT WHILE I WAS DRIVING TO WORK. FORTUNATELY, I WAS NOT IN AN ACCIDENT AS I WAS DRIVING AT ABOUT 25MPH. ON THE SAME DAY FRIDAY (DEC 12, 03) I CONTACTED TH..."

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