2016 Chevrolet VOLT

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Avoid This Year

Quick Summary

The 2016 Chevrolet VOLT has 284 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 3.5x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is electrical problems (27% of all complaints), specifically: 2016 chevy volt wouldn't start, less than a year old, current on maintenance. towed it to dealer, they said there were some recalls - but couldn't tell me what was wrong. got it back after 2 days, was fine - then on 9/22/16 wouldn't start again - i was stranded in the dark, got it jump started. t. ⚠️ 1 fire report filed.

1 fire report 4 crash reports 2 injuries

284

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

3.5x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

ELECTRICAL

77 complaints

27%

• 2016 CHEVY VOLT WOULDN'T START, LESS THAN A YEAR OLD, CURRENT ON MAINTENANCE. TOWED IT TO DEALER, THEY SAID THERE WERE SOME RECALLS - BUT COULDN'T TELL ME WHAT WAS WRONG. GOT IT BACK AFTER 2 DAYS, WAS FINE - THEN ON 9/22/16 WOULDN'T START AGAIN - I WAS STRANDED IN THE DARK, GOT IT JUMP STARTED. T
• INTERMITTENT PROBLEM WHERE THE CENTER DISPLAY CONSOLE GOES BLANK ON STARTING THE CAR AND IS COMPLETELY UNRESPONSIVE. THIS DISPLAYS VITAL INFORMATION SUCH AS LOCATION, CHARGE CAPACITY, CLIMATE CONTROLS, ETC. COULD NOT FIND A WAY TO RESET THIS. IT CORRECTS ITSELF AFTER THE CAR IS OFF FOR A BIT. TH
• TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 CHEVROLET VOLT. WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH, THE VEHICLE LOST POWER WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER (F H DAILEY CHEVROLET, 900 MARINA BLVD, SAN LEANDRO, CA 94577), BUT THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE DUPLICATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NO

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

“2016 CHEVY VOLT WOULDN'T START, LESS THAN A YEAR OLD, CURRENT ON MAINTENANCE. TOWED IT TO DEALER, THEY SAID THERE WERE SOME RECALLS - BUT COULDN'T TELL ME WHAT WAS WRONG. GOT IT BACK AFTER 2 DAYS, WAS FINE - THEN ON 9/22/16 WOULDN'T START AGAIN - I WAS STRANDED IN THE DARK, GOT IT JUMP STARTED. T”

— NHTSA complaint filing

FUEL SYSTEM

63 complaints

22%

• IN REGARD TO RECALL 16055 REPROGRAM HYBRID POWERTRAIN CONTROL; MODULE 2. I HAD THIS RECALL DONE ON JANUARY 5, 2017. THIS SERVICE CHANGES SOME SETTINGS WITHOUT NOTIFICATION TO THE OWNER. CRITICALLY IMPORTANT IT CHANGES THE ENGINE RUN ON REMOTE START FROM OFF TO ON. IF THE OWNER STARTS THEIR CAR TO WA
• ENGINE BECAME DISABLED WHILE DRIVING, DISPLAYING A "POWER REDUCED" MESSAGE. THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION ON A BUSY STREET, AND I HAD TO TRY TO PULL OVER WITH TRAFFIC MOVING AT A FAST PACE. THIS HAPPENED TO ME TWICE. DEALERSHIP WAS UNABLE TO REPLICATE THE PROBLEM AND DID NOT DO ANYTHING TO FIX.
• THE VOLT CENTER DISPLAY HAS GONE BLANK, PROBABLY A BAD SCREEN. THE DISPLAY SERVES MULTIPLE PURPOSE: INFOTAINMENT, NAVIGATION, CHARGING CONTROL (BEING AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE), AND MOST IMPORTANTLY THE BACK UP CAMERA DISPLAY. THE REAR HATCHBACK VISIBILITY IS VERY POORLY DESIGNED, WITH GREAT DEPENDENT &

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

“IN REGARD TO RECALL 16055 REPROGRAM HYBRID POWERTRAIN CONTROL; MODULE 2. I HAD THIS RECALL DONE ON JANUARY 5, 2017. THIS SERVICE CHANGES SOME SETTINGS WITHOUT NOTIFICATION TO THE OWNER. CRITICALLY IMPORTANT IT CHANGES THE ENGINE RUN ON REMOTE START FROM OFF TO ON. IF THE OWNER STARTS THEIR CAR TO WA”

— NHTSA complaint filing

TRANSMISSION

51 complaints

18%

• MY VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY IN A LEFT TURN LANE AT AN INTERSECTION. I TOOK MY FOOT OFF THE GAS AND PRESSED THE GAS PEDAL TO ACCELERATE THE CAR THROUGH THE INTERSECTION. WHEN I PRESSED THE GAS, THE CAR DID NOT ACCELERATE. I REPEATEDLY TRIED TO ACCELERATE AND THE CAR SEEMED TO NOT EVEN IDLE BECAUSE
• WHEN VEHICLE IS SHIFTED INTO PARK POSITION AND ENGINE IN POWERED OFF, THE DASH READS OUT THAT VEHICLE MUST BE IN PARK POSITION. I HAVE TO JIGGLE THE SHIFTER OR DEPRESS THE BUTTON SEVERAL TIMES TO ENGAGE INTO PARK POSITION. IF THIS IS IGNORED THE VEHICLE DOES NOT REGISTER IN PARK AND CANNOT SAFELY BE
• ALL VEHICLE SYSTEMS ARE NOT REGISTERING THAT THE VEHICLE IS IN PARK WHEN THE SHIFTER IS IN THE PARK POSITION. THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER GEAR INDICATOR REGISTERS THE VEHICLE AS IN PARK, BUT WHEN ATTEMPTING TO POWER DOWN THE VEHICLE AN ERROR MESSAGE OCCURS DIRECTING THE DRIVER TO SHIFT THE VEHICLE INTO

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

“MY VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY IN A LEFT TURN LANE AT AN INTERSECTION. I TOOK MY FOOT OFF THE GAS AND PRESSED THE GAS PEDAL TO ACCELERATE THE CAR THROUGH THE INTERSECTION. WHEN I PRESSED THE GAS, THE CAR DID NOT ACCELERATE. I REPEATEDLY TRIED TO ACCELERATE AND THE CAR SEEMED TO NOT EVEN IDLE BECAUSE ”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ENGINE

49 complaints

17%

• 2016 CHEVY VOLT WOULDN'T START, LESS THAN A YEAR OLD, CURRENT ON MAINTENANCE. TOWED IT TO DEALER, THEY SAID THERE WERE SOME RECALLS - BUT COULDN'T TELL ME WHAT WAS WRONG. GOT IT BACK AFTER 2 DAYS, WAS FINE - THEN ON 9/22/16 WOULDN'T START AGAIN - I WAS STRANDED IN THE DARK, GOT IT JUMP STARTED. T
• IN REGARD TO RECALL 16055 REPROGRAM HYBRID POWERTRAIN CONTROL; MODULE 2. I HAD THIS RECALL DONE ON JANUARY 5, 2017. THIS SERVICE CHANGES SOME SETTINGS WITHOUT NOTIFICATION TO THE OWNER. CRITICALLY IMPORTANT IT CHANGES THE ENGINE RUN ON REMOTE START FROM OFF TO ON. IF THE OWNER STARTS THEIR CAR TO WA
• TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 CHEVROLET VOLT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE BACK-UP CAMERA WAS MALFUNCTIONING AND THE FRONT CONSOLE WOULD NOT WORK IF OTHER SERVICES WERE BEING USED. THE CONTACT HAD TO TURN OFF AND RESTART THE VEHICLE TO GET THE CONSOLE TO WORK AGAIN. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO RELIABLE CH

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

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

20 complaints

• WHILE I WAS DRIVING EAST ON HWY 80 IN VACAVILLE, CA, AT APPROXIMATELY 1:15 PM, I WAS LITERALLY BLINDED BY SUN FROM THE CHROME REFLECTION ON THE DASH BOARD. BECAUSE OF THIS, I ALMOST REAR ENDED THE VEHICLE IN FRON OF ME AS I HAD DARK SPOTS IN MY VISION FROM THE REFLECTION.
• I WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY WHEN I SMELLED SMOKE, THEN SAW SMOKE, AND THEN SAW FLAMES ON THE REAR PASSENGER FLOOR. I PULLED TO THE SIDE OF THE FREEWAY AND PULLED MY CHILDREN FROM THE VEHICLE. WITHIN 2-3 MINUTES, THE CAR WAS ENGULFED IN FLAMES.
• WHEN TRYING TO TURN THE CAR OFF A "SHIFT TO PARK" LIGHT COMES ON AND THE CAR WILL NOT TURN OFF. WHEN LOOKING FOR AN EXPLANATION I FOUND THAT THIS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE 2ND GEN VOLT. WHEN I TOOK THIS CAR TO THE DEALER THEY WERE WELL AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM. THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM THAT IS A DESIGN

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

“WHILE I WAS DRIVING EAST ON HWY 80 IN VACAVILLE, CA, AT APPROXIMATELY 1:15 PM, I WAS LITERALLY BLINDED BY SUN FROM THE CHROME REFLECTION ON THE DASH BOARD. BECAUSE OF THIS, I ALMOST REAR ENDED THE VEHICLE IN FRON OF ME AS I HAD DARK SPOTS IN MY VISION FROM THE REFLECTION.”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

FUEL SYSTEM(~50K mi)

$500

TRANSMISSION(~50K mi)

$500

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

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

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 284 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
ELECTRICAL: 2016 CHEVY VOLT WOULDN'T START, LESS THAN A YEAR OLD, CURRENT ON MAINTENANCE. TOWED IT TO DEALER, THEY SAID THERE WERE SOME RECALLS - BUT COULDN'T TELL ME WHAT WAS WRONG. GOT IT BACK AFTER 2 DAYS, WAS FINE - THEN ON 9/22/16 WOULDN'T START AGAIN - I WAS STRANDED IN THE DARK, GOT IT JUMP STARTED. T
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
FUEL SYSTEM: IN REGARD TO RECALL 16055 REPROGRAM HYBRID POWERTRAIN CONTROL; MODULE 2. I HAD THIS RECALL DONE ON JANUARY 5, 2017. THIS SERVICE CHANGES SOME SETTINGS WITHOUT NOTIFICATION TO THE OWNER. CRITICALLY IMPORTANT IT CHANGES THE ENGINE RUN ON REMOTE START FROM OFF TO ON. IF THE OWNER STARTS THEIR CAR TO WA
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
TRANSMISSION: MY VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY IN A LEFT TURN LANE AT AN INTERSECTION. I TOOK MY FOOT OFF THE GAS AND PRESSED THE GAS PEDAL TO ACCELERATE THE CAR THROUGH THE INTERSECTION. WHEN I PRESSED THE GAS, THE CAR DID NOT ACCELERATE. I REPEATEDLY TRIED TO ACCELERATE AND THE CAR SEEMED TO NOT EVEN IDLE BECAUSE
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ENGINE: 2016 CHEVY VOLT WOULDN'T START, LESS THAN A YEAR OLD, CURRENT ON MAINTENANCE. TOWED IT TO DEALER, THEY SAID THERE WERE SOME RECALLS - BUT COULDN'T TELL ME WHAT WAS WRONG. GOT IT BACK AFTER 2 DAYS, WAS FINE - THEN ON 9/22/16 WOULDN'T START AGAIN - I WAS STRANDED IN THE DARK, GOT IT JUMP STARTED. T
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)