2017 CHEVROLET BOLT EV Complaints

The steering has become stiff; the steering wheel does not return to center after a turn without driver assistance.

I started losing Regen braking intermittently, when this happens the brakes themselves don't work well and there's no warning, you lift of the pedal expecting the car to stop and its rolling freely, to push brake and its not stopping like you expect, then it thuds and lunges forward a bit and stops. It was rarely happening, now the car can barely be driven. I have not got it into a shop yet. It throws DTC P182B, P182D, P1840, and U0401 every time. Clearing them, even while still moving brings it all back to normal, except an image of my previous drive will be frozen on infotainment that I have to hard reset to get it to work. Also backup camera does now work when these codes are active. I have found 1 person online that is having this exact issue. It's terrifying to approach a stop light and used to 1 pedal driving and I'm rolling freely instead. the first incident of it was 03/05/26 and has progressively worsened. My code scanner keeps records of when I clear the codes,

The steering gear (rack and pinion) assembly exhibits clunking when turning the steering wheel at low speeds, and does not return to center at higher speed (stays in turned position when let go). This is available for inspection upon request. Our safety is put at risk because the steering feels strange and does not behave as with other cars, requiring force to return the wheel to center in a turn at speed. This problem has been confirmed by a qualified service center and they attempted to fix it by replacing the intermediate steering column, but it did not resolve the issue. There were no warning messages.

Sometimes, when driving in a turn, either direction, and hands are released from the steering wheel, the vehicle does not return to center. Force is required to cause the steering to begin returning to center. Once it begins returning to center, seems to always continue to center. This is a dangerous departure from decades of common vehicle operation. An unsuspecting driver can drive into an obstacle or people.

I am reporting a safety issue involving the high-voltage battery system of my vehicle. Vehicle: 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV VIN: [XXX] Mileage: 87,125 miles The vehicle has generated a P302F diagnostic trouble code, which indicates high-voltage battery cell imbalance. This condition may pose a safety risk related to battery performance and thermal stability. The authorized Chevrolet dealership has refused to diagnose the issue under warranty unless I pre-authorize a $600 diagnostic fee. The vehicle is covered under an active GM buyback warranty and a 10-year / 100,000-mile battery warranty due to a recall battery replacement. Due to the safety implications of a high-voltage battery fault, I believe refusal to diagnose the issue under warranty may pose a risk and warrants review. I am submitting this complaint to document the issue and request investigation. Thank you. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Vehicle started to surge while driving (both small acceleration forward and large deceleration) without any change in brake or accelerator position. Eventually a "Propulsion Power Reduced" message was presented on the console followed immediately by no forward propulsion (accelerator completely unresponsive) and forced to coast to a stop on the side of the highway. Car refused to shift out of park or neutral following breakdown. Car taken to dealer to troubleshoot and was told that a P0A3F code was present and that the engine harness needed to be replaced in accordance with NHTSA bulletin 19-NA-220. This bulletin calls out that the harness was likely damaged during initial install at factory and the dealer representative confirmed that the pins were damaged as described. Car was given back to drive home after harness was checked (owner decided to explore options before scheduling repair), but broke down due to surging and complete loss of power within 2 miles of dealer. Troubleshooting to confirm harness damage is suspected to have worsen the condition and made un-commanded accel/deceleration followed by complete loss of power likely. Uncertain why this condition would be exempt from recall if OEM is aware of installation issues at factory. Driving with this condition was as bad or worse than other type model loss of power conditions that have been recalled. Recommend at least clarifying that cars confirmed to fall under this bulletin and associated inspection should not be deemed roadworthy until a repair is made.

Steering rack broke, wheel won’t return to center. Dealer wants $3k dollars to fix. This should be recalled as the amount of cars it happens to is significantly high.

My wife of [XXX] and grandson were driving our Chevrolet Bolt, crossing a busy 4 lane highway when suddenly and w/o any prior warning, the Bolt lost propulsion. Caught blocking 2 of those lanes, she was fortunate that men stopped their trucks and pushed her car up hill and into a church parking lot. She called me and I tried resetting everything to factory settings, and the Bolt seemed okay-for a short time. I hooked a diagnostic unit to the car and found an error code that indicated either the failure of the pre-charge resistor or the HV contactor-both in the battery pack. This was a pack replaced by the dealership back when Bolts were randomly catching fire and destroying themselves and nearby property. Now these packs are failing again and there are service bulletins addressing this fact and that it is common in 2017 and 2018 Bolts. GM however has not sent out warnings to its unfortunate customers warning them of this common failure and life- threatening problem. Luckily today I'm dealing with the Bolts warranty rather than two funerals. All of that took place on 11/22/25. In the hour following the first failure, this situation repeated itself 4 more times. The last time there was no restarting it, or the car would shake if put into drive or reverse. As it was Saturday we had to wait until today 11/24/25 to get it towed to the dealership for $140. This failure will require dropping the battery pack and running three tests, then replacement of the faulty components. This should be under warranty according to our and the dealerships records, but this issue need to hit the national news and all Bolt owners should be sent letters warning of sudden and unpredictable failures. This was life threatening for us and will be for many others. Imagine this happening at interstate speeds in heavy traffic. Lives will be lost. This is the second and more dangerous failure for these horrible vehicles, and GM should at this point replace these or refund every owner. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATI

The steering on the car does not return to center and sticks to the position turned and has to be manually pushed back to center. This is an issue with the steering rack.

The steering does not self-center after making a turn. It feels stiff and remains in the turned position, requiring manual effort to bring it back to center.