2023 Chevrolet BOLT EV

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Average

Quick Summary

The 2023 Chevrolet BOLT EV has 87 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 1.1x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is electrical problems (20% of all complaints), specifically: i have purchased the autel energy evse for my vehicle and had it installed by certified electricians in my garage. the unit malfunctions frequently and requires it to be restarted. the unit is hard wired and and the only way to reset it is to turn the breaker off and back on, as instructed by the. ⚠️ 2 fire reports filed.

2 fire reports 10 crash reports 5 injuries

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

1.1x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

ELECTRICAL

17 complaints

20%

• I have purchased the Autel Energy EVSE for my vehicle and had it installed by certified electricians in my garage. The unit malfunctions frequently and requires it to be restarted. The unit is hard wired and and the only way to reset it is to turn the breaker off and back on, as instructed by the
• My wife had just parked the vehicle in our garage and had plugged it into the charger. She walked to the back of the vehicle to open the rear hatch and as she was raising the hatch she felt an electrical shock up her arm, it was strong enough that she immediately came into the house holding her elb
• Was sitting at a stop light when I accelerated on green I felt a lurch, it felt like someone had hit me from behind. Within 15 seconds of acceleration this light came on, a car with an exclamination point on it, and said to pull over ASAP. Car would not go any faster than 30mph and luckily I was n

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports💥 2 crashes

“I have purchased the Autel Energy EVSE for my vehicle and had it installed by certified electricians in my garage. The unit malfunctions frequently and requires it to be restarted. The unit is hard wired and and the only way to reset it is to turn the breaker off and back on, as instructed by the”

— NHTSA complaint filing

STEERING

16 complaints

18%

• There is a clicking, or a light clunk, sound that *I THINK* is coming from the front passenger side of the car. The sound only occurs when accelerating, most often from a stop but not always, and occasionally when breaking. It is not a repeated click. It happens once at the beginning of the accelera
• When the steering wheel is turned, it does not return back to the center on its own. It requires me (driver) to turn the steering wheel back to center. If it is not done manually, the vehicle continues turning, possibly causing an accident. This is at lower speeds.
• The car had weird noise (clunky) when I make the turn either left or right since beginning in Apri 2025. On April 17 in the morning, I drove to work while exit on freeway. When I try to turn into other street at speed of 20 mph, the car is not turning as normal as expected. It went beyond the oth

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“There is a clicking, or a light clunk, sound that *I THINK* is coming from the front passenger side of the car. The sound only occurs when accelerating, most often from a stop but not always, and occasionally when breaking. It is not a repeated click. It happens once at the beginning of the accelera”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

9 complaints

10%

• - The car did not start and we were left stranded in an unsafe place. When I turned the car on I immediately saw and error saying "Conditions not correct for shift" and then it wouldn't turn back off - safety was at risk because it was super hot and my 5 year old with autism could not make it home i
• The GM portable charger has two pigtails for using either 120V Level 1 or 240V Level 2 charging. My complaint is that the GM charging unit will default to 120V Level1 charging without any fault/warning indication if one phase of the 240V circuit fails. I had a 240V dedicated service installed so
• I had service on my vehicle and was told by Chevrolet Service Center that vehicle could not be released for safety reasons because my vehicle could not accept download installed in vehicle. After three weeks of certified Service Center and GM TACS engineers and techs communicating back and forth, I

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports

“- The car did not start and we were left stranded in an unsafe place. When I turned the car on I immediately saw and error saying "Conditions not correct for shift" and then it wouldn't turn back off - safety was at risk because it was super hot and my 5 year old with autism could not make it home i”

— NHTSA complaint filing

LIGHTING

6 complaints

• Been almost rear ended twice, both drivers said my brake lights were out, after checking, brake lights were working but are so low on car they did not see them
• The brake lighting only includes the upper light and the lower lights of the vehicle. The lights on the hatch do not light up when braking. Given that the upper light and lower lights are relatively small and hard to see from a close distance or in taller vehicles, this poses a significant risk for
• Rear brake lights that illuminate upon braking are embedded low in the bumper of the vehicle, NOT in a location "commonly expected" by motorists. Rear red taillights are in fact conventionally-located upon the vehicle, but they do not illuminate when brakes are applied. They only light up when the

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 1 crashes

“Been almost rear ended twice, both drivers said my brake lights were out, after checking, brake lights were working but are so low on car they did not see them”

— NHTSA complaint filing

BRAKES

6 complaints

• Yes I almost got rear-ended three times in the last 3 weeks because the brake lights on the Chevy Bolt are below the bumper and the tail lights do not go on when you step on the brakes only the Collision lights and the turn signal lights
• The contact rented a 2023 Chevrolet Bolt EV. The contact stated that while driving approximately 30 MPH the driver depressed the brake pedal but the vehicle did not stop and crashed into the rear of a second vehicle. The contact indicated that during the crash the vehicle was low on electrical charg
• 2023 Chevy bolt has a hand 'regenerative brake'. I was using it while driving in traffic. My speed was around 40 mph when the car in front of me abruptly stopped. The distance between us was approximately 30 ft. I immediately switched from hand brake to foot brake and the pedal felt soft and there w

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 3 crashes

“Yes I almost got rear-ended three times in the last 3 weeks because the brake lights on the Chevy Bolt are below the bumper and the tail lights do not go on when you step on the brakes only the Collision lights and the turn signal lights”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

STEERING(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

LIGHTING(~50K mi)

$500

BRAKES(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 87 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
ELECTRICAL: I have purchased the Autel Energy EVSE for my vehicle and had it installed by certified electricians in my garage. The unit malfunctions frequently and requires it to be restarted. The unit is hard wired and and the only way to reset it is to turn the breaker off and back on, as instructed by the
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
STEERING: There is a clicking, or a light clunk, sound that *I THINK* is coming from the front passenger side of the car. The sound only occurs when accelerating, most often from a stop but not always, and occasionally when breaking. It is not a repeated click. It happens once at the beginning of the accelera
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: - The car did not start and we were left stranded in an unsafe place. When I turned the car on I immediately saw and error saying "Conditions not correct for shift" and then it wouldn't turn back off - safety was at risk because it was super hot and my 5 year old with autism could not make it home i
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
LIGHTING: Been almost rear ended twice, both drivers said my brake lights were out, after checking, brake lights were working but are so low on car they did not see them
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)