Limitations when finding your car in the Volvo Cars app

Note

The Volvo Cars app is not a live tracking system. The map will update with your car's last known location only after the engine has been switched off and the vehicle is locked.

Why car location might not be accurate

The Volvo Cars app uses GPS technology to locate your car. If the app doesn't show your car's exact position, it may be due to the following reasons:

• Your car is in an area with poor or no GPS visibility (such as an indoor car park). In this case, the app uses the latest position received as the approximate location.
• Your car couldn't transmit data to Volvo servers when you last parked. The position is sent every time you park your car, but if there's no mobile coverage, the latest position won't be registered or visible in the app.
• GPS coordinates are translated into street addresses for easier understanding. This means your car might appear to be parked on a nearby street when it's actually in a parking garage with poor GPS coverage.
• The car's position is not shown when the car is not in use.

How to improve location accuracy

If your car shows an incorrect position on the map, try these solutions:

Perform a simple calibration:

1. Lock your car
2. Remain stationary for 15-30 seconds.

For more persistent issues:

1. Unlock the vehicle
2. Start the engine for about 30 seconds
3. Turn off the engine
4. Lock the vehicle again.

Check car settings

For the Driving Journal app and location services to work properly:

In your car:

1. Go to Settings > Privacy > Show all apps > Driving Journal > Permissions > Location.
2. Select Allow all the time.

In the Volvo Cars app:

1. Go to the Car tab > Driving Journal > and make sure Turn on trip log is enabled and all necessary permissions are granted.

For more detailed information on the Driving journal, see the Driving journal article.

If problems persist after trying these solutions, visit an authorised Volvo workshop for further help.

Check app and phone settings

• Log out and log back into the Volvo Cars app.
• Check your phone's location settings to ensure they're set to Allow always.
• In the car's display go to Settings > Privacy and ensure location permissions are accepted.
• If the problem persists, delete and reinstall the app.

For pre-owned cars

If you've recently purchased a pre-owned Volvo and the app is showing the previous owner's address, a factory reset of the car may be needed. For more information on how to perform a factory reset see the article Performing a factory reset of a pre-owned car.