Print this page

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 4
Injuries / Deaths:
3 / 0
Average Mileage:
16,991 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 miscellaneous problems

miscellaneous problem

Find something helpful? Spread the word.
Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2017 Chevrolet Volt:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

2017 Chevrolet Volt Owner Comments (Page 5 of 6)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #23

Jun 152020

Volt 4-cyl

  • 23,000 miles

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

My 2017 Chevy Volt is having an issue of not letting me shut the vehicle off. It says action required shift to park. Unfortunately, it's already in park and will not let me shut the vehicle off. Today it didn't let me shut it off even after shifting it to a gear then back, wiggling the shifter, I even tried to leave the car with the keys and it was still on when I went back out. (I had locked the door with the remote). And the lights were still on. I got in the car and backed it out and tried it again and thankfully this time that worked. This is truly a problem that needs to be fixed and it looks like other are experiencing it, too. It sounds like it only gets worse. Please do something so this defect is recalled.

- Snohomish, WA, USA

problem #22

May 042020

Volt 4-cyl

  • 54,000 miles
With the vehicle stationary and in park when I try to turn off the vehicle a message comes on the screen that says "action required: Shift to park" although the vehicle is already in park. It does not let you turn off the vehicle.

- Goodyear, AZ, USA

problem #21

May 162020

Volt

  • 90,000 miles
For the propulsion many times while driving it occasionally slows down or speeds up kind of like a bucking horse. For the electrical the bluetooth connectivity to my cell phone and also my fob often disconnect and then I can't lock or unlock my car. For the other issue I have a shift to park problem that locks my car and I can't switch gears or turn the car on or off for a few minutes then it all of a sudden turns back on but the issue is that when it says shift to park it is actually in the park position.

- Palmdale, CA, USA

problem #20

May 102020

Volt 4-cyl

  • 36,500 miles

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

My 2017 Chevy Volt has an issue when I shift to park and press the off button the car wont turn off and the dash reads shift to park. The car is in park so I have to shift back and forth many times before the car finally knows its in park. Very unsafe having a car that wont turn off. Please force GM to issue a recall on this. Its a known issue.

- Chatsworth, CA, USA

problem #19

Apr 172020

Volt

  • miles
Shift to park error that is a known problem that GM has known about. It will give you a "action required: Shift to park" on the display when you put the car in park and will not allow you to turn off the car. I've seen people call it replacing becm or replacing the shifter assembly.this problem is only considered covered in the bumper to bumper warranty, however, every Volt has this issue and should be recalled by GM and fully covered. The dealership knows what the problem is but requires me to pay an $145 inspection fee just to locate the problem.

- Wasco, CA, USA

Search CarComplaints.com for these popular complaint phrases...

problem #18

Jan 082018

Volt

  • 8,500 miles
"shift to park" defect. When the shifter is placed into the "park" position and the car is turned off an indicator states "action required - shift to park". the car will effectively not turn off. One is unable to lock the car and the lights will stay on for a few minutes. Worse yet, the problem is intermittent but gets worse over time. The power must be turned on and off several times, or the shifter moved from park to low a several times in order for the shifter to engage in "park". as the problem get worse over time it's impossible to know if the car off at all. The problem began about a year after I purchased the car new. I took the car into the dealer to have it fixed. The dealer insisted that they could not replicate the problem so couldn't diagnose the problem and fix it. A year later the problem still existed, and at that point the dealer was able to fix the problem (apparently because by then the figured out the problem and the fix). Now, a year later, the problem has resurfaced. Because I am no longer in the warranty period I'll have to pay for the repair. This issue is clearly a manufacturing defect as many 2016 and 2017 Volts have the same problem. GM should issue a recall for this item. It is quite dangerous to not be able to shut off the vehicle and not know if it will be possible to do so. Mine became so bad one time that I called a tow service, but was finally able to shut off the car. Chevy is clearly aware of this problem. It's appalling that Volt owners are left to deal with this potentially dangerous problem and that there appears to not be a permanent fix (as mine is now happening a second time). GM must issue a recall for this item. It is unsafe! regarding the required "when did this happen?" question below - there is no specific date. It's an ongoing problem. I put in the approximate date that the problem started.

- Soquel, CA, USA

problem #17

Jan 132020

Volt

  • 50,000 miles

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

The software controlling the rear camera, navigation and main battery failed. The systems became unusable (the screen became blacked out so the rear camera etc could not be used). Once the update was performed it works fine. Chevy charged us for the cost of this even though we feel this is a safety issue and should be a recalled item. After researching the problem found this is a known issue

- Reston, VA, USA

problem #16

Jan 052020

Volt

  • 47,551 miles
Received a warning by automated E-mail from my car that charging was interrupted on my hybrid electric car while charging in my garage. Normal weather, attached garage, 220V level 2 charger. I thought at first that I might have forgotten to charge it and drove to work. Normally, dynamic braking does not do well until a few miles from home. However, when I reached the point that I switch to more ecological dynamic braking, it was unable to dump the charge from braking to the battery. I continued driving on gas and displays were unstable. Losing dynamic braking in an electrical vehicle is an extreme safety issue (former automotive resident engineer and failure investigator). I drove the car back home and was unable to restart engine. I read online that it cannot recharge its 12V battery system in this condition as well as its motive battery. I had to jump the car to drive it to the dealer. The dealer had my car for 10 days and replaced the battery electric control module (becm) and recharged the car and sent me home. It was ok for a few days. I got the same error again on Sunday 1/05as an E-mail from my car warning that its charging had discontinued indicating that the problem still exists or has happened again within a week. I request that the omb investigate for recall and replacement with becm upgraded to allow charging of the 12V battery system as well as investigate failure modes for becm and requiring that they be addressed. Failure modes, stationary- 12V and high voltage battery fail to charge when plugged in. Driving - 12V does not regenerate during driving and high voltage system is offline disabling safety features such as dynamic breaking causing a breaking reaction change that may delay driver reaction leading to vehicle entering intersection into a crash. I also request that omb investigate the early failure of the 12V battery storage system.

- Oelwein, IA, USA

problem #15

Nov 192019

Volt

  • 27,000 miles
When I attempted to turn off the vehicle, with the shift set to "P", I get a message that appears, "action required shift to park", and the vehicle will not turn off. I would have to turn the car on and off several times, sometimes roughly 6-7 times and sometimes I would have to move the shifter back and forth between D, N, R, etc. I had my local dealership (van GMC/Chevrolet) and they replaced the shifter harness which was a known issue. My Volt is continuing to flash the 'action required/shift to park' message and hesitates to turn off and then powers down.

- Glendale, AZ, USA

problem #14

Nov 122019

Volt

  • 24,000 miles
I opened my rear lift gate to put away my car charger and it slammed closed on it's own. For some reason the rear lift gate would not stay open unless I hold it up. I think this is very dangerous because you expect when you lift the lift gate it stays open on it's own. Everyone should be careful.

- Daly City, CA, USA

problem #13

Sep 272019

Volt

  • 36,000 miles

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

Faulty front proximity sensor or camera resulting in false positives of object in front of the car. False warning lights and warning sounds as if an object is in front of the car when no object is in sight. Usually during the rain but occasionally not. Occurs when the vehicle is traveling less than 6mph. Happens around 75% of the time during the rain and about 5% of the time during dry weather.

- Amherst, NH, USA

problem #12

Nov 302018

Volt

  • 14,300 miles
I leased this car in September 2017. On November 30, 2018, I got onto the freeway while running on gas and the vehicle began smoking within about 5 minutes. I pulled over and got out and the vehicle caught fire and was destroyed. There were no previous mechanical or electrical issues or any warning signs. I have driven the vehicle countless times on gas rather than electric charge. The fire started under the hood on the passenger side. The entire interior, all windows, the front tires, and the front of the car were completely destroyed. I have seen 2 other reviews on this website about spontaneous vehicle fires.

- Oakland, CA, USA

problem #11

Jun 022018

Volt

  • 12,600 miles
Upon attempt to power down the vehicle, with shift control set to "P", message nevertheless appears reading "action required shift to park", and vehicle will not power down.

- Seattle, WA, USA

problem #10

Apr 252018

Volt

  • 15,000 miles
Like others, including the incident in rancho cucomonga, ca on the same day, April 25th, I was driving on the highway at high speed. I was in the carpool lane on the 210 freeway. I think I also was told to put the car in park. I lost the ability to accelerate on at a very dangerous time, while I was the furthest to the left in the late afternoon. Miraculously, there was only 1 car quite far behind me. So, after deceleration was forced upon my car, I began to steer the car to the right through 5 lanes - one of the widest parts of the highway at that point. Here is what I now think. I have been through loss of power in my 2014 Volt. I had accidentally turned it off while being on the highway. They fixed that design flaw in this 2017 model. I have shared my theory with GM. GM/Chevy has 3-way called me with the "stolen vehicles dept". they aggressively describe how they won't issue a slow-down through the on-star unless they have a request through police, the police are behind, the lights blink, etc. But, they're reluctant to share what happens next. They've been reluctant to share how they track your vehicle through the VIN and gps tracking. They're reluctant to share that this system can be hacked. It is evident that much can go wrong once the ability to control your car is placed in other's hands -- who aren't in the car driving it. The dealership could see the code of the slow-down. Of course they were surprised. This wasn't just a "failure". this is a "feature" in the car...but someone else used it without our permission. I want the on-star control disabled in my car!!! it could have killed my daughter and me. It could have killed the others who reported a similar situation.

- Altadena, CA, USA

problem #9

Apr 072018

Volt

  • 20,000 miles
Urgent urgent. This is something wrong with the 2017 Volt. My vehicle caught on fire while driving down the interstate at higher speeds. I have found two others that this has happened too. GM didn't even investigate before denying liability, they made a determination over photos. All 3 vehicles had over 20K miles on it. Others lives may be in danger. Please investigate.

- Austin, TX, USA

problem #8

Apr 072018

Volt

  • 20,000 miles
On sat April 7th, my 2017 Chevy Volt randomly caught fire while driving down the interstate. I was able to pull over and exit the vehicle only suffering from smoke inhalation. This was my second Volt and I had driven it over 20K miles. Here is what I do know. There was no warning, only flames engulfing the front of my vehicle. 8 days prior, the Chevy dealership did some recall updates on my vehicle. I was traveling at highway speeds (70+) on the gas backup mode this was the first time driving at these speeds on 0 battery after picking up my car from the dealership it has been 4 days since the incident and I am utterly disappointed that nobody from GM has reached out to me regarding this incident.

- Austin, TX, USA

problem #7

Nov 012017

Volt

  • 10,000 miles
I purchased a new 2017 Chevrolet Volt equipment with automatic parking assist. On November 1, 2017, I was driving on bath street in santa barbara. I decided to park on bath at pueblo street. The first time, I engaged the apa feature to assist with parallel parking, I followed the instructions on the dashboard. After coming to a complete stop, I followed the direction to shift the car into reverse. The moment I completed the shift and I lifted by foot from the brake, the vehicle accelerated unexpectedly in reverse at a high rate of speed. The steering wheel turned to the right, and the car continued to accelerate out of control until it had jumped the curb and sideswiped a telephone pole. I had the vehicle towed to a Chevy dealer and filed a claim for product defect with General Motors. General Motors has subsequently declined the claim.

- Santa Barbara, CA, USA

problem #6

Oct 152017

Volt

  • 9,500 miles
Michelin greenx energy saver A/S tires (dot M3 38 001X, tpo spec1473ms) two sidewall blowouts in on month from relatively minor curbing scrapes. Also had to replace another tire with a sidewall rip before it blew out in July. Has cost us $900, between tire replacements, tow charges, and lyft rides. No energy savings there. Photo is of the most recent occurrence on 10/15. We replaced the last two with with heavier tires.

- Westwood, MA, USA

problem #5

Aug 212017

Volt

  • 5,000 miles
At times, the vehicle will not recognize the key fob and will not start, lock, or unlock. This happens seemingly randomly when the vehicle is stationary and off. I can not reproduce the problem, but it happens about 2-3 times a month. It seems that if I get the fob away from the car for about 15 minutes and return, the vehicle then recognizes the key again.

- Murray, UT, USA

problem #4

Jul 282017

Volt

  • 5,487 miles
This afternoon my wife & daughter were out shopping here near tampa--outside temp 'only' 93* today with real feel 108. They returned to the car, unlocked but did not remote start, & placed their packages in the hatch before sitting in the car & closing the doors. My wife tried to start the car & got the message others have gotten about the key fob not being recognized. They tried again to start the car & got the message again & could read enough before it disappeared to put the key fob in the center console. Then the doors locked while the windows were up & they still couldn't start the car. I headed to their location, about 15 minutes away, prepared to break the window. I was about to tell them to call 911 when they said the car was finally able to start & they drove home without further incident.

- Land O Lakes, FL, USA

Read the next 3 complaints »

Search CarComplaints.com for these popular complaint phrases...

Not what you are looking for?