After four months of ownership (Momentum T5 trim) and 5,000 miles we have encountered the first real problem with the car. The tailgate outside handle (which also houses the rear view camera and license plate lights) has broken. The handle is made of plastic and attached to the tailgate with two screws. The plastic surrounding the screws has broken, making the handle fall out... Please see the attached picture from the manual with a close-up of the part in question.
Apparently this problem is not unique to us, other XC40 owners have reported this issue: https://www.xc40forums.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=592
It seems that Volvo did not design sufficient strength in the handle and how it is attached to the tailgate. Although the tailgate is intended to be operated using the power feature (at least on most if not all trims sold in the US), it is inevitable that sooner or later people are going to open and close the tailgate manually, since they do not know about the power option. As the owner you cannot stand next to tailgate every time a passenger opens/closes the tailgate. The manual does refer to operating the tailgate manually, so the handle should be able to support this.
I will visit the dealer shortly to see what can be done (using duct tape in the mean time to hold the handle in place), but it likely requires replacement of the complete handle including the embedded electronics. For now I would recommend current and future owners to use the powered options (key fob, dashboard button, kicking motion, tailgate buttons) as much as possible and instruct passengers using the tailgate accordingly to avoid placing stress on the tailgate handle.
Apparently this problem is not unique to us, other XC40 owners have reported this issue: https://www.xc40forums.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=592
It seems that Volvo did not design sufficient strength in the handle and how it is attached to the tailgate. Although the tailgate is intended to be operated using the power feature (at least on most if not all trims sold in the US), it is inevitable that sooner or later people are going to open and close the tailgate manually, since they do not know about the power option. As the owner you cannot stand next to tailgate every time a passenger opens/closes the tailgate. The manual does refer to operating the tailgate manually, so the handle should be able to support this.
I will visit the dealer shortly to see what can be done (using duct tape in the mean time to hold the handle in place), but it likely requires replacement of the complete handle including the embedded electronics. For now I would recommend current and future owners to use the powered options (key fob, dashboard button, kicking motion, tailgate buttons) as much as possible and instruct passengers using the tailgate accordingly to avoid placing stress on the tailgate handle.
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