My 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV experienced a loss of propulsion that left the vehicle disabled in a parking lot. The vehicle initially displayed a motor-control system warning. It subsequently displayed "Drivetrain Power Lost" and refused to shift out of Park. After turning the vehicle off and waiting approximately five minutes, I restarted it. The READY indicator returned, and the vehicle shifted into Drive, but when I attempted to accelerate, it shuddered severely instead of moving normally. The service warning indicator remained illuminated. I stopped attempting to operate the vehicle because it was unsafe to drive. OnStar retrieved diagnostic trouble code P0A3F, associated with the drive motor position sensor circuit. Significantly, General Motors issued Technical Service Bulletin 19-NA-220 in May 2020, specifically covering loss of propulsion and DTC P0A3F in 2017–2020 Chevrolet Bolt EVs. Under the bulletin's "Cause" section, GM identifies a possible spread terminal in the X2 wiring harness connection on the transmission assembly. GM further states that the terminals may not have been properly aligned during installation at the vehicle assembly plant. The bulletin explains that this condition can cause loss of propulsion and prescribes replacement of the affected wiring harness. My vehicle's symptoms and diagnostic code closely match this documented condition. However, the precise cause has not yet been confirmed by a dealership inspection. I am reporting this incident because a potential factory-assembly defect that can cause unpredictable loss of propulsion presents a significant safety concern, particularly if it occurs while driving in traffic. I believe the connection between this incident and GM's previously documented condition warrants investigation into whether other Chevrolet Bolt EVs may be affected.
2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV electrical problems
96 complaints (54% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 35,000. 1 crash reported.
- owner complaints
- 96
- of this car's complaints
- 54%
- typical mileage
- 35,000
- crashes
- 1
- recalls
- 3
Which part fails
- Propulsion system: traction battery3
- 12v/24v/48v battery2
- Propulsion system: charging: cable/cord: accessory1
- 12v/24v/48v battery: cables1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Chevrolet Bolt EV electrical problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV electrical
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Related recalls
Electrical system: propulsion system: traction battery
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Chevrolet Bolt EV and 2022 Bolt EUV vehicles previously repaired under Recall 21V‑650. The installation of advanced diagnostic software may have failed. As such, the high voltage battery could catch fire when charged to full or nearly full capacity.
- Risk
- A battery fire increases the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- Owners are advised to take the following interim steps: Set the Target Charge Level feature in their vehicle to limit the charge level to 90%, charge their vehicle more frequently, avoid depleting the battery to 70 miles range remaining, park outside after charging, and do not charge the vehicle indoors overnight. Dealers will reinstall advanced diagnostic software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 3, 2024. Owners may contact the Bolt EV Concierge Team at 1‑833‑382‑4389. GM's number for this recall is N242470160.
Recall number 24V812000 · Recall details
Electrical system: propulsion system: traction battery
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Chevrolet Bolt EV and 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EUV vehicles that were previously remedied under recall number 21V‑650. The advanced diagnostic software may have been incorrectly installed and fail to detect defective battery modules, possibly resulting in a battery fire.
- Risk
- A battery fire increases the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- Owners are advised to take the following interim steps: Set the Target Charge Level feature in their vehicle to limit the charge level to 90%, charge their vehicle more frequently, avoid depleting the battery to 70 miles range remaining, park outside after charging, and do not charge the vehicle indoors overnight. Dealers will reinstall the advanced diagnostic software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on August 1, 2024. Owners may contact the Bolt EV Concierge Team at 1‑833‑382‑4389. GM's numbers for this recall are N242443000 and N242443002.
Recall number 24V481000 · Recall details
Electrical system: propulsion system: traction battery
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Chevrolet Bolt EV and 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EUV vehicles. The high voltage battery could catch fire when charged to full or nearly full capacity.
- Risk
- A battery fire increases the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- Owners are advised to take the following interim steps: Set the Target Charge Level feature in their vehicle to limit the charge level to 90%, charge their vehicle more frequently, avoid depleting the battery to 70 miles range remaining, park outside after charging, and do not charge the vehicle indoors overnight. Defective battery modules will be replaced by GM, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on October 1, 2021 and June 23, 2023. Owners may contact the Bolt EV Concierge Team at 1‑833‑382‑4389. This recall is an expansion of the federal safety agency recall 21V‑560. GM's number for this recall is N212345940.
Recall number 21V650000 · Recall details
Related investigations
Pedestrian alert sounds
the federal safety agency received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, the federal safety agency opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified the federal safety agency he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by the federal safety agency regarding the subject matter of the petition.
DP22005
Electric Vehicle Battery Fires
In October 2020, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened a Preliminary Evaluation (PE) on 2017-2020 Model Year (MY) Chevrolet Bolt vehicles based on complaints received alleging that the vehicles caught fire under the seating area while parked and unattended. At the time, ODI had received 2 Vehicle Owner Questionnaires (VOQs) and several field reports. All complaints alleged vehicles caught fire during or after electrical charging.ODI's review found vehicle thermal events occurred during and/or at the end of the battery module charging cycle. The information learned from the federal safety agency and General Motors joint vehicle inspections prompted General Motors to file Recall 20V‑701 on April 29, 2021. The remedy for this recall included 1) performing diagnostic procedures to identify and replace potentially defective battery cell-module assemblies and 2) installing onboard diagnostic software, designed to detect and warn owners regarding potential issues related to changes in battery module performance over time. Until this interim remedy became available for all affected vehicles, General Motors instructed their customers to enable ?Hilltop Reserve or ?Target Charge Level, based on the vehicle-equipped technology. Enabling these technologies would limit charging capacity of the battery module to a maximum of 90 percent. General Motors then continued to investigate the root cause of these battery cell module thermal events, which would lead them to their long-term recall remedy solution. Utilizing the information obtained from the Recall 20V‑701 software update, General Motors and LG Energy Solutions,the supplier of the battery cell module pack along with LG Electronics,determined the root cause of the thermal events to be the result of two simultaneous manufacturing defects occurring in the same battery cell. The defect condition appears to be aggravated by routinely charging the battery to a full or nearly full state of charge after it has been substantially depleted. The two defects, located within the same battery cell module, would cause an internal short within the battery pack, resulting in the thermal events. The manufacturing process was changed to prevent the occurrence of these two defect conditions.On July 24, 2021, General Motors filed a defect information report recalling all 2017-2018 Chevrolet Bolt and certain 2019 Chevrolet Bolt vehicles with design level N2.1 battery cell produced at the LG Ochang, Korea plant. This remedy replaces defective battery cell-modules and will prevent potential thermal events from occurring during and/or at the end of the charge cycle. The recall (21V‑560) includes vehicles that were remedied under 20V‑701.General Motors continued to review new data after Recall 21V‑560 and learned of an incident that occurred outside of the scope of the recall population. Additional analysis led General Motors and LGES to determine that the manufacturing defects defined by Recall 21V‑560 were not isolated to one battery manufacturing plant. On August 21, 2021, General Motors filed a defect information report to expand the scope of recall 21V‑560. The recall (21V‑650) includes all 2019-2022 Chevrolet Bolt EV and 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EUV vehicles. In view of the recall actions being taken by General Motors, ODI is closing this Preliminary Evaluation. the federal safety agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances.The ODI reports cited above can be reviewed online at under the following identification numbers:11230072, 11425524, 11339878, 11365622, 11364692, 11427180, 11429891, 11374956, 11407212, 11372429, 11425225, 11415800
PE20016
What 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Recall 21V650 (GM N212345944) remedy not provided. The advanced diagnostic software (Software Final Remedy) was installed XXX. I bought the car used on XXX at 16,187 miles. While charging was still limited to 80% by the recall software, the software flagged the battery (DTC U362C-09) and propulsion power was reduced. Ron Tonkin Chevrolet ([XXX]) replaced the high-voltage battery pack on XXX at 21,409 miles (RO [XXX], GM TAC case XXX), which is within the 6,214-mile diagnostic period and before GM's XXX and XXX deadlines. GM's own owner letter filed with the federal safety agency (RMISC-21V650-9675) says such a replacement includes an extended 8-year/100,000-mile battery warranty from the replacement date. GM instead coded the repair as an ordinary warranty repair (labor op XXX), and the recall replacement-battery warranty was never added to my VIN. I am asking that GM provide the full recall remedy, including the Bolt Battery Limited Part Warranty. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Camera(s) stopped working altogether after intermittent issues. The vehicle has no functioning backup camera.
General Motors is using the arbitrary 6,213-mile tracking window of Recall 944 to deny coverage for a diagnosed Cell Section 3 hardware failure at 123,582 miles. However, this vehicle is directly impacted by the failure parameters outlined in the expanded GM Safety Recall N242470160 / N242470162, where GM openly acknowledges to federal regulators that the advanced diagnostic software has failed to properly detect defective battery modules. By denying a physical battery replacement when a manufacturing defect is caught during a mandatory corporate software reconfiguration, GM is violating the spirit and legal intent of their ongoing federal safety recall campaigns.
When driving the car through a busy intersection there was a sudden, brief surge of acceleration, followed by deceleration and the vehicle cutting all motor power and becoming inoperable. The MIL lamp illuminated and the "Ready" light went out. I was unable to move the vehicle out of traffic until I got out and disconnected / reconnected the 12v battery to reset the car systems. The problem is difficult to reproduce, happening randomly, sometimes with multiple months between incidents. The incidents happen with no warning, and there are no other symptoms associated with the issue. The dealer mechanic indicated it is likely the issue indicated in Chevrolet TSB 19-NA-220, indicating the root cause is the resolver feedback connector on the electric drive unit damaged during vehicle assembly.
VEHICLE FAILS TO CHARGE. Receiving error message that the vehicle fails to accept a charge. I've attempted charging using 3 separate chargers and all fail. This issue has been in service at numerous dealerships with no resolve. I was able to charge previously at a reduced rate but now the battery will no longer accept a charge and gives me an error message.
The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV. The contact stated that the vehicle's charge was designed to last for 259 miles, but failed to exceed 100 miles. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and was repaired under the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 24V812000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM); however, the failure persisted. The vehicle recently failed to charge, with an error message that the vehicle was unable to charge displayed. The contact stated that the recall repair failed to correct the issue. The dealer was contacted, and a service appointment was scheduled. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 36,000.
This is the second time since owning car this has happened the recall battery is not working again this time me and my sister were at the gas station were I work and this is all on camara at Chevron gas station were I work I went inside sister stayed in car it started making a buzzing sound under my dash car shut off windows wouldn't go down locked doors could not get car to turn on trapped us in car this is scary and smelled a wire burning smell started to get scared pounded on window couldn't get out ! Couldn't unlock doors this is very scary tried hitting window and it would not break we were stuck this has happened once before car just needed plug in to dealership computer to reset car it was fine for 2weeks and bam a month later I'm again having to take it back to have it reset because of this battery recall it's not fixed I still owe 14k for car I totally have been ripped off it's scary that these cars catch fire and u can not get out! Can't unlock doors windows nothing and u just get stuck I don't feel safe whatsoever in this car
While waiting to turn left at a light and driving in "L" (one pedal) mode, I started to release the break in anticipation of oncoming lanes clearing, as I lifted the pedal the car lurched into the intersection. The Bolt normally accelerates very gently in L mode when no break is applied, but does not lurch forwards like this under normal conditions. The breaks did work, and I was able to stop, but I was now in the middle of the intersection and slightly encroaching into oncoming lanes. I tried to accelerate to pull through, but the car did not respond. After several second of frantically pushing the accelerator, the car slowly and jerkily moved forward and cleared the intersection. My Chevy dealer says this is a known problem with service bulletin "Chevrolet TSB 19-NA-220". In my opinion this is incredibly dangerous and should have been recalled. However, there is no recall that I can find and outrageously Chevy will not cover this manufacturing defect under warranty as they specifically exclude wiring harnesses due to past issues with rodent damage, and they are hiding behind that rule.
See attached document for complaint.
Questions about the 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV electrical
Does the 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV have electrical problems?
Owners have filed 96 complaints about the electrical of the 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV, 54% of all its complaints, more than any other problem.
At what mileage do 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV electrical problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 35,000 miles.
Was there a recall on the 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV electrical?
Yes, 3 recalls: 24V812000, 24V481000, 21V650000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.
What year does the Chevrolet Bolt EV have the most electrical problems?
The Chevrolet Bolt EV model years with the most electrical complaints are 2017 (114 complaints), 2020 (96 complaints) and 2019 (85 complaints).
Other 2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV problems
Fuel system 33Steering 23Transmission 11Driver assistance 10Acceleration 8Engine 8Airbags 6Seat belts 6Body 5Lights 5Brakes 3Suspension 2Visibility 2Tires 1Wheels 1
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