2017 CHEVROLET VOLT Complaints

While driving my 2017 Chevy Volt on the highway, a “Propulsion power is reduced” message appeared accompanied by the CEL. Prior to this there had been no indication that anything was wrong. The warning was quite vague and it wasn’t at all clear what it actually meant so I continued driving. Shortly after this, I began to notice a bit of a “chuggle” or lurching sensation (particularly on hills). This made the acceleration slightly unpredictable, and at one point even triggered the forward collision warning when the car accelerated a bit after I took my foot off the gas pedal (coming up behind another car at a traffic light). I pulled over and attempted to figure out what the issue was. I had a notice regarding the BECM recall in my glove box which listed a reduced power mode as a potential symptom, so I scheduled a service appointment (figuring it was that) and continued my trip. I stopped to get gas, then a mile or two down the road the engine overheated and shut off. By sheer luck I had a few miles of range left in electric mode which allowed me to pull over safely, but I was now stranded over 100 miles from home. I managed to get the vehicle to a dealership in Danvers, MA where they diagnosed the problem as a failed EGR valve. My understanding is this is related to a defect in the valve electronics.The valve failed and blew the F3 fuse, which also supplies power to the engine cooling system. It doesn’t take long for the engine to overheat and it seems this can lead to a complete loss of power while driving when the electric range is already depleted. The valve is currently unplugged while I await a replacement but there is no word on how long that might be. Other Volt owners have had to wait months or even years to get a new valve. The repair quote I received is also unreasonably expensive (> $4,000). I failed my state emissions inspection and am in the process of applying for a waiver. Given how common this is, I'm surprised this isn't already a recall.

SERVICE BRAKE BOOSTER EMITS A SEMI CONTINUOUS TAPPING/CLICKING NOISE. CHEVROLET STATE THAT IT IS NOT A SAFETY ISSUE AND DOES NOT REQUIRE REPAIR. HOWEVER, IT IS DIFFICULT TO HAVE CONFIDENCE IN THE BRAKING SYSTEM WHILE THIS SOUND PERSISTS AND IT IS A CONSTANT DISTRACTION WHILE DRIVING. PLUS, THE ABILITY TO SELL OR TRADE THE VEHICLE IN THIS CONDITION IS DIMINISHED. ELIMINATION OF THE NOISE INVOLVES COSTLY REMOVAL AND REPLACEMENT OF THE BRAKE BOOSTER ASSY. CHEVROLET FIXED AN APPARENTLY IDENTICAL ISSUE ON THE BOLT MODEL WITH A SOFTWARE UPDATE, BUT CURRENTLY HAVE NO INTENTION TO DO ANYTHING SIMILAR FOR THE VOLT MODEL.

Car had not properly charged for the last 2 nights despite saying it was charging the entire time. When leaving my residence the car suddenly stopped working and I had to pull off to the side of the road with no power. The car was then stuck in park and would not turn off.

While making a 90 mile drive on 7/20, after having depleted the primary battery charge and switched to hybrid mode, a "propulsion power is reduced" warning appeared on the console, along with the Check Engine Light. Other than somewhat reduced power (max displayed of ~40-50 kW), performance otherwise seemed unimpeded. Contacted local dealership to schedule service for earliest available date of 7/26. Car made return 90 mile trip on 7/21 without issue additional issue ("propulsion power is reduced" message remained.) Service identified "numerous codes", but replaced a fuse known to result in the above issue and observed no other issues. Car was driven purely on battery at that time, and for the intervening time until a 170 mile drive on 8/2, where the message and Check Engine Light reappeared, again after battery charge was consumed and car switched to hybrid power mode. Dealership was again contacted to schedule service, slated for the morning of 8/7 (tomorrow, as of this writing). Car reached its destination without further incident. During return 170 mile trip on 8/5, traveling on the highway, car abruptly alerted that the engine was no longer available and entered a severely reduced-power mode. Car had been operating in "mountain mode" (conserving some extra battery charge) as a precaution, so we were able safely exit the highway and pull into a local parking lot, at which point AAA was contacted to tow the car the remaining 120 miles home. Upon arriving home, the car was able to pull into the garage without the "engine not available" alert, but still displaying Check Engine Light and "propulsion power reduced" messages. We have come to understand this is a fairly common issue with Generation II Volts and have been advised by other owners to file this report.

10 months ago, I took my vehicle in to the local chevy dealership because the check engine light was on and I had noticed the vehicle seemed to be running rough. I had also seen a message that said the vehicle was running at reduced propulsion. The dealership told me I had a shorted EGR valve which also cause fuse 3 to blow and ordered the part. Then I waited. My vehicle stopped running on the road once. Just died. I had no battery charge remaining either. That was a safety issue for me and anyone who might hit my car because it was on the road. I sat there for a while and then tried to start it. I wasn't far from home and was able to limp home. I waited for months, contacted the Chevy/GM manufacturer and kept in contact with the dealership. Over the next 10 months was told several different things: part not being made, strike affected part manufacture, part and install price was increasing to $3500, can install Chinese part without warranty, dealership had 2 other people waiting for the part like me, part was not covered under any warranty. I was called a couple days ago to hear that there was a GM manufactured part available for my car but it would be $3500. I asked for a reduction in cost since I had waited so long. I was told they could reduce the price by $500. I said I had been quoted $1200 in 2023 when I took the vehicle in. I was told to share anything I had in writing for that. I found my invoice which showed the purchase cost for the parts ($717.80) which I just sent. I received a call today telling me the dealership has the part and will give it to someone else unless I agree to get it done today for $3500; however, since I did not know the part was even here for me, they will wait one more day to hear if the manufacturer will honor the original quote. For the last 10 months, I had no car to drive or could drive it on battery and hope I didn't run out of charge (~50 miles of battery charge) and get stranded on the road again.

[XXX], while driving on [XXX], check engine light came on with reduced propulsion warning. Continued driving to destination without incidence. Did not drive again until [XXX]. [XXX] while driving using "hold" method of propulsion using internal combustion engine, check engine light remained on, after the engine warmed up, all of the sudden, there was a noticeable reduction of power, followed shortly by the internal combustion engine shutting off while I was entering onto an interstate highway ramp. Fortunately I was able to pull off to the side of the road and back down the ramp without incidence and return home under grossly reduced battery propulsion. July 8, took vehicle to Chevrolet dealership (Baierl Chevrolet, Wexford PA) under battery power. Was told ECM module was bad. ECM module was replaced, error codes cleared, vehicle ran as expected. after driving approximately 50 miles, check engine light with reduced propulsion warning returned. Turned vehicle around and returned to the same dealership. Was told EGR valve was bad while blowing fuse F03 (Non walk home circuit). The dealership did not have a replacement in stock and it would take 7-10 days to obtain a replacement. I had to rent a vehicle out of my own pocket to return home for employment purposes. July 11th, I emailed dealership's service advisor for status of replacement part. Never heard back from service advisor. July 15, 11:24 am, talked to dealership service advisor, was told part was in transit with no estimated delivery date. July 22 called service adviser and left a voice mail message for a return status call. Never received a return call. July 23, called dealership, talked to parts department for part status, was told part had not shipped from warehouse yet and there was no estimate on shipment. After having to return the rental vehicle, I am without a vehicle for my daily required activities. Not an acceptable situations. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

My BECM (battery energy control module) failed. Chevy recalled this for “some” Volts of my year, but not mine. It cost $3k to fix. How can they say my BECM was not defective if it failed? They knew it wasn’t working and recalled it for some, but not all. They need to recall all Volts becm. This feels very shady.

I was driving down the highway at normal speeds when I noticed the engine temperature began climbing out of the blue, and eventually the CEL light came on before the dashboard read "Propulsion Power Reduced" and eventually the engine stopped entirely and I had to coast to an area on the side of the highway where I could pull over. The battery-only part of the car was drained but there was plenty of gas in the tank, so my only way out was via the ICE. I turned the car off, waited for it to cool down, then turned it back on, only for the same issue to occur within another couple of miles of highway driving. I had to repeat this process until I was able to get to an exit and coast to a business that would let me recharge the battery enough to drive on battery-only where I could park it overnight, as I was not near my home. Eventually I had to get the car towed to a dealership, where I was told it was either an EGR valve or EGR cooler that needed replacing. After the dealership refused to provide any specifics regarding the diagnostics in writing, Chevrolet corporate informed me that it was an EGR valve that was requested and is on global backorder. This issue has not been resolved for a year now, and put me in the extremely dangerous position of losing power entirely on the highway with almost no warning, and no statements to date that would have prepared me to deal with this issue.

EGR Valve short circuit caused F3fuse to blow causing engine light to go on and Propulsion reduced power warning. The F3 fuse affects 4-5 other systems.

I had the BECM fail as part of many 2017 volts with this issue at around 40K miles. This failure has caused multiple near accidents with immediately losing power at highway speeds. The last time this happened (after the BECM was replaced) was a couple of weeks ago. They said the reason for the failure was a programming issue, and they have updated it. It is flabbergasting to me that a programming issue can result in such a dangerous result. The car reduced propulsion on the highway and got stuck on the offramp while trying to pull over on the busy highway. Not only were we left stranded on the highway with me being 8 and a half months pregnant, but my husband almost got into an accident twice while trying to make it over safely. Chevy needs to be accountable for these significant failures that seem to continuously happen to Chevy Volts. It's not just the BECM - they have multiple things that are causing extremely dangerous results. When they replaced the BECM they also replaced the 12V (with significant out of pocket cost to us) and leaving us with no vehicle for a long time. We bought a new car right after this incredibly scary incident.