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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
3 / 7
Injuries / Deaths:
3 / 0
Average Mileage:
12,802 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2017 Chevrolet Volt electrical problems

electrical problem

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2017 Chevrolet Volt Owner Comments (Page 3 of 13)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #209

Jul 042023

Volt

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

same issue as PE23022 and TSB 18-NA-261 Called 51 parts wharehouses and Chevy dealers to locate part. They all report the same: part is not available and no idea when it will be come available. vehicle is not mobile without working part. Vehicle has lost propulsion while driving. Twice I was lucky no one was behind or on the side of me that I could pull off to the side of the road or a parking lot.

- Tyler, TX, USA

problem #208

Dec 182023

Volt

  • miles
1 month ago was driving on toll and Population power is reduced came on, vehicle was reaving high and felt like power was being reduced/speed, was going 70 and had to immediately decrease speed and get off toll and found closest Chevy shop. Looked at dash and vehicle should have had at least 10 energy miles but it had immediately dropped down to 0. Before taking to Chevy, I had a quick inspection done by a Valvoline shop and they told me the battery had to be replaced. Carvana (Silverrock) warranty refused to do the repair under their coverages as -??batteries were not covered under warranty-?? Had it towed from Valvoline to Chevy. Found out Chevy battery was under warranty so it was taken there. Vehicle was checked in and didn-??t have an eta as hybrid battery was on back order with no ETA. 3 weeks later the part was received and it was a control module not a battery as the -??battery was not failing at the time-??. Service called and said vehicle was ready for pick up. Had vehicle for 1 week and was at work starting it up and after 9 hours sitting started it up and low population came back on and vehicle started idling higher than before then after a minute looked at back of car and a large cloud of while smoke started forming from back of vehicle. Immediately turned off car and called gmc roadside assistance to have vehicle towed to another dealership where is it sitting again for diagnosis with no eta.

- Frisco, TX, USA

problem #207

Dec 272023

Volt

  • miles
Car won't start show codes U2622, U2621, U2620, U2619, P0AFA.

- Pharr, TX, USA

problem #206

Jan 162024

Volt

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While driving in 60 degree weather, the vehicle-??s check engine light lit on the dash and the vehicle abruptly stopped. I was able to push the vehicle safely in heavy traffic. I contacted Onstar who gave me the vehicle diagnosis. Onstar advised the following codes appeared POACA (Hybrid/ electric vehicle powertrain control module requested malfunction indicator lamp illumination), P1AEE ( the electric propulsion system is not performing as expected. Please service immediately), and P1AEF (the electric propulsion system is not performing as expected).

- Granada Hills, CA, USA

problem #205

Jan 132024

Volt

  • miles
Car stopped operation while out doing errands. Car had to be parked and restarted and made it back home. Car would not start again. Had to have it towed to dealership, BECM needs replaced for $2000. Warranty should cover, but part is backordered. Not sure when it will be fixed and with the recent freezing temperatures could have been dangerous.

- Perrysburg, OH, USA

problem #204

Jan 082024

Volt

  • miles
Vehicle stopped running, will not restart. ODB codes show failure of the BECM. Check engine light illuminated, READY indication turned off. Vehicle does not display battery or fuel status. We were left stranded by this failure.

- Honoka'a, HI, USA

problem #203

Jul 272023

Volt

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

First, the electrical system did fail suddenly in August 2023. Luckily, I was parked and so was not injured. I did report the electrical failure to the Hendrick Chevrolet dealership in Durham. But this Chevrolet Volt also does not fill up with gas. At the pump, gas just spills out of the tank. I've seen online that many people have this same problem. At the suggestion of Hendrick Chevrolet dealership in Durham (and after paying $210 for a diagnostic), I replaced the vent valve solenoid. The car filled up with gas twice. But once again, gas starts spilling out of the tank if you try and fill it up. The car only has about 25,000 miles on it and hasn't been driven extensively so it doesn't make sense that it is malfunctioning.

- Durham, NC, USA

problem #202

Dec 192023

Volt

  • miles
While driving the car in electric mode, a chime came on and flashed 'propulsion power is reduced', then it went into engine mode and the car decelerated quickly from posted 70mph speed to less than 40mph even though I pushed the accelerator pedal and reved the engine high. While in this low power driving mode, a warning came on saying the collision detection system was disabled. The concern is the person behind me had no warning since my brake lights did not come on. He sped around me with a bit of road rage. The problem temporarily goes away when you turn the ignition off and back on. I took it to the dealer and the said it needed a new EGR Cooler 4 hours labor $1500. Chevy Dealer pulled two codes P0401 Exhaust Gas Recirculation "A" Flow Insufficient Detected P1E00 Hybrid/EV Powertrain Control Module 2 I paid them the $165 diagnosis fee and got my car back and just plan to restart when it occurs. In another instance, I was pulling out from a parking lot into a busy road in electric mode and the car lost ALL power leaving me exposed in the line of traffic. Error messages on the dash said to 'service BECM' and 'shift to park'. The car was not drivable and had to be towed. Call me if you need any more information. Thank you, [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Cumming, GA, USA

problem #201

Jul 242023

Volt

  • miles
We were driving on the highway (my wife and younger son were passengers, and my 17 year old son was driver). He was in electric mode and then the engine propulsion reduced message came on and the check engine light came on. Car was still running, albeit slower. We stopped and filled up the gas, and got an engine unavailable message. Vehicle switched back to battery mode on its own and because there was no charge, the vehicle stopped ON THE HIGHWAY. The car lost all control and power abilities and it was very dangerous. They were able to pull over into the break down lane and they called a tow. Took the car to Mike Reichenbach Chevrolet in SC and they removed and replaced the EGR valve. However, within the last couple of weeks, my son has received the loss of propulsion message again and the car is violently shaking. This is a safety issue!

- Naples, FL, USA

problem #200

Jan 082024

Volt

  • miles
The Volts BECM has failed. There are warning lights constantly warning about Engine and low Propulsion. There are multiple symptoms. Most serious is that car has stalled while driving 3 times. If I pull over, put in park, then turn off; I can restart the engine using battery mode. It does not drive well in gas mode where gas fuels generator to charge battery for propulsion. It is now very loud and often won't allow you to drive faster than 30 MPH. The mileage diagnostics (MPG) are just over 50% of what they were before problem started. It often randomly switches from battery mode to gas. This is undesired. My problem is that the only certified tech is on other side of Island Volcano. I have no confidence that I can drive it to dealer, given the distance and power required to climb mountain. So, I am stuck with no way to fix. There are widespread reported issues, similar to mine, caused by defective BECM (Battery Energy Control Module). Problem started September 2023 and have issues every day I dare drive it.

- Kailua Kona, HI, USA

problem #199

Dec 182023

Volt

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Upon starting vehicle and shifting to drive, vehicle gives message to "shift to park" and will do nothing else. Also, while battery is fully charged, vehicle will display "unable to charge" and show no mileage left on EV mode - then at times (but not always) upon starting vehicle, mileage increases to what it expected.

- Chandler, AZ, USA

problem #198

Nov 042023

Volt

  • miles
Vehicle suddenly would not function. All systems became inoperable. When serviced it was determined to be a sudden failure of the BECM module which required total replacement. Part was on national back order leaving vehicle unusable for weeks.

- Asheville, NC, USA

problem #197

Oct 032023

Volt

  • miles
My Chevy Volt has been having spotty pop-ups stating that "Propulsion Power is Reduced" for about a month, but I was not sure how reliable the pop-up was as there were plenty of days the pop-up would not come on when starting the car. On the day of my incident in October 2023, I once again received the "Propulsion Power is Reduced" pop-up when I started my car. While driving, I stopped at a stoplight, and my battery drained. When the battery is drained, I usually don't have anything to worry about, as the Volt is an EV hybrid, and I can use the gas until I can charge my vehicle again. But the Check Engine Light came on when the battery drained this time. When the light became green, I started to drive like normal, but I suddenly got a pop-up on the screen regarding the engine no longer working, and the car rapidly began to cruise while I was in the middle of the road. I was lucky enough to have space to pull over to the side, have a tow truck to get me, and not be in the middle of a busy street or highway. I scheduled an appointment with my local Chevy dealer for an inspection and figured something could be done to fix my vehicle. I was told my car was under warranty and what parts were needed to repair it. This was in October 2023, and I have been waiting for nearly 3 months for the EGR Valve required to repair my car after being told countless times that it is in backorder. I don't understand how a part can be in backorder for so long for a vehicle that is not being produced anymore. I was told I could drive my car in electric mode, but I do not want to risk the safety of others by having my battery suddenly become drained, as the EV Range the dashboard shows is never correct and rapidly drains.

- Salinas, CA, USA

problem #196

Dec 192023

Volt

  • miles
Failure of the BECM and -??Shift to park-?? message. The vehicle will spontaneously produce a shift to park message when starting up the vehicle and turning it off. The vehicle will also show a 0 mile EV range and use the engine where a message saying -??propulsion power reduced-??. This will also cause the car to shut off randomly. The vehicle has not been inspected by a shop or the dealership. There is no warning or message when this happen. Check engine will appear once the vehicle has these issues.

- Miamisburg, OH, USA

problem #195

Dec 222023

Volt

  • miles
so we inspected your vehicle and it needs a battery module, that part is on back order and we have no ETA when it will come in. That is what the dealership sent me. There are people on Chevy Volt forums saying it's the EGR valve and they've been waiting months with non-working cars. Is anyone doing their job around here?

- Los Angeles, CA, USA

problem #194

Jul 012023

Volt

  • miles
EGR valve failed. Dealer supplied part has been on back order for more than five months.

- E. Freetown, MA, USA

problem #193

Dec 022023

Volt

  • miles
All of a sudden while braking on a freeway offramp, the check engine light came on and a reduced propulsion warning came on my screen. The car ran weird for about a day, then it wouldn't start. I had it towed to a dealer, they diagnosed the BECM went bad, now my car has been there 2.5 weeks and there's no estimated ship date for the part, much less repair date. If they said they had enough parts for BECM failures, they're either lying to you or they're lying to me.

- Bartlett, TN, USA

problem #192

Oct 122023

Volt

  • miles
I was driving and then the car turned off and was unable to restart. There was no warning. The car was fine and then it wasn't. The power steering also stops working. Fortunately I was at a red light and not in the intersection yet. The check engine light wasn't on. The BECM (battery control module) failed. I had to get the car towed to the dealership for the repair. The dealership repaired the issue for free since I was still under warranty.

- Raleigh, NC, USA

problem #191

Nov 282023

Volt

  • miles
The BECM located in the battery compartment failed The vehicle was completely immobilized and would turn on but would not "start" leaving me stranded. Away from home. The local Chevrolet dealership confirmed the BECM was at fault The vehicle gave no clear indication of a pending BECM failure before the failure

- Redford , MI, USA

problem #190

Dec 182023

Volt

  • 26,000 miles
The contact owns a 2017 Chevrolet Volt. The contact stated that while driving approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle suddenly lost power and decelerated to 35 MPH. During the failure, the message "Reduced Power" was displayed. After turning off and restarting the vehicle, the failure remained, and the vehicle was driven to the residence at a reduced speed. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were contacted. The failure mileage was 26,000.

- Marblehead, MA, USA

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