Volvo recalls 5,381 XC40 Recharge EVs in the US over faulty wheelhouse harness

Swedish luxury car marquee Volvo has recalled a total of 5,381 units of XC40 Recharge electric compact SUVs in the US over a faulty wheelhouse harness. The automaker has said that the affected XC40 Recharge compact electric SUVs were built between 8th September 2020 and 13th August 2021. These affected compact SUVs are claimed to have been equipped with a faulty left wheelhouse harness, which may result in water entering the cable harness and reaching the accelerator pedal, causing corrosion in the internal circuits of the accelerator pedal and corrupting the signals from the pedal.

Volvo claims that due to this problem, the impacted XC40 Recharge compact electric SUVs may experience unintended acceleration or no acceleration at all. Also, these EVs may experience issues such as a loss of drive or an inability to start. Volvo claims that the impacted vehicles come equip[ped with a built-in safety function that is activated when receiving faulty signals that reduce acceleration and ensures the EV is still controllable. A sudden decrease in speed or acceleration on roads can cause a major mishap.

The Swedish carmaker was first alerted about the possibility of the problem in the first quarter of 2022 when the auto company started receiving reports of different issues with the acceleration pedal behaviour involving the Volvo XC40 Recharge.

Volvo has said that the owners of the affected XC40 Recharge EVs are being encouraged to take their vehicles to the local dealership where the compact electric SUV can be inspected for the corrosion in the accelerator pedal and the harness can be replaced if required. It also said that the affected cars will also be equipped with a capillary breaking splice in order to stop any risk of water intrusion.