The electronic steering gear (steering rack) on my 2021 Chevrolet Bolt has malfunctioned, causing the steering to feel rough, stiff, and sticky. Crucially, the steering wheel fails to naturally return to the center position after completing a turn, forcing me to manually pull the wheel back straight. This poses a severe safety hazard, as the vehicle will continue turning off the road or into oncoming traffic unless actively corrected, and the increased physical resistance makes precise lane adjustments difficult at highway speeds. There were no warning lights, error codes, or diagnostic messages on the dashboard prior to or during this failure, as the issue is strictly mechanical
The worst 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV problems
Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.
- Electrical33
- Fuel system15
- Transmission10
- Steering9
- Engine4
Problems by type
Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.
- Electrical33
- Fuel system15
- Transmission10
- Steering9
- Engine4
- Acceleration3
- Brakes3
- Airbags2
- Suspension2
- Body1
- Driver assistance1
- Seat belts1
- Tires1
Recalls 5
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
Seat belts: pretensioner
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2017-2023 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles. This recall includes certain vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under the federal safety agency recall number 22V‑930. After a crash with seat belt pretensioner deployment, the pretensioner exhaust may ignite carpet fibers near the B-pillar, causing a fire.
- Risk
- A fire increases the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect both front seat belt pretensioners and, if necessary, install metal foil at the carpet near the pretensioner exhaust. Certain vehicles will also need a pretensioner cover installed. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 24, 2024. These vehicles were previously recalled for this same issue under recall number 22V‑930 and will need to have the new remedy performed. Owners may contact GM EV Concierge at 1-833-EVCHEVY (1‑833‑382‑4389) (TTY 711 / 1‑800‑833‑2438) or Customer Service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is N232421970.
Recall number 23V845000 · Recall details
Seat belts: pretensioner
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2017-2023 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles. After a crash with seat belt pretensioner deployment, the pretensioner exhaust may ignite carpet fibers near the B-pillar, causing a fire.
- Risk
- A vehicle fire can increase the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install metal foil at the carpet near the pretensioner exhaust, and install a pretensioner cover as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed between January 23, 2023 and April 25, 2023. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is N222383790.
Recall number 22V930000 · 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
See all 5 recalls for the 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV
Defect 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
Technical service bulletins for the 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV 507
Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.
- This service bulletin provides information about GM Accessories
- Unknown or other
- This PI provides Diagnostics tips on how the LIN bus works and how to diagnosis it.
- Unknown or other
- Unknown or other
- Condition where a false diagnostic trouble code (DTC) is set
- PI to help diagnose A/C concern
- Unknown or other
- Pi created to provide GM dealers with information on gathering information for projection issue
- Unknown or other
2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV fuel economy
Official EPA estimates in miles per gallon (MPGe for electric). Ranges cover trims that share the same engine.
| Engine | Drive | City | Highway | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electric motor Electric 259 mi range | FWD | 127 | 108 | 118 MPGe |
What 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
My 2021 Chevy Bolt keeps showing a battery or power-Propulsion warning light related to the high-voltage system. The warning keeps coming back even after multiple repairs. The first repair was on April 28, 2025, the second was on December 17, 2025, and it is scheduled again for another repair on March 3, 2026. The light is the same every time and affects the car’s performance and reliability. I’m concerned this could be a safety issue involving the battery or propulsion system. The dealer repairs it temporarily, but the warning keeps returning, and the problem has never been fully resolved.
I was in a car accident on February 9th, in which my airbags did not deploy, however, I did receive an error in my Chevy app that my Air Bag system requires attention. I sustained facial injuries due to impact with the steering wheel. I believe the airbags should have deployed, but did not.
Steering rack binding. Becoming progressively harder to turn over time. Steering wheel doesn't return to center. Clunking in front end occasionally heard when hitting bumps.
The steering wheel will not return to center and feels like its binding on something, sometimes its tough to steer other times not. Does not feel safe. No warning lamps and nobody has inspected or worked on it yet.
Steering gear is bound up due to a documented manufacturing error. Steering is increasingly stiff at speed, and will not return to center without significant driver input. This is a widespread issue that has been documented and causes a major safety concern to Chevy Bolt owners and should be addressed and repaired by the manufacturer.
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Steering rack. Steering wont return to center at 38,000 miles. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Car handles unpredictably posing safety risk to others and myself. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes. Quoted $2,700 to replace rack and pinion. I refused service as vehicle has less than 40k miles. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? No Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No
Video available and was given to USAA insurance company. This 2021 GM Chevrolet Bolt EV Premier trim vehicle experienced a sudden uncommanded extreme acceleration when I selected "D" (drive) mode on the transmission selector after using "R" (reverse) to back out of a parking lot parking space. The vehicle, despite my stomping and holding the brake pedal down and repeatedly selecting a different mode on the transmission selector, could not be stopped and still wanted to accelerate. The vehicle traveled an estimated 250 feet through a parking lot, crossing a street, hitting the curbs at high speed and through a field. The vehicle stopped against some concrete debris in the field pushing in the bumper slightly but with no airbag deployment. The mishap incident was video recorded and thankfully, there were no passengers or public / private property damages / injuries.
12v battery warning light and ion Lucian battery light came on manufacture does not want to buy back and apple car play keeps breaking.
Steering geer having issues of the steering wheel coming back to center after the turn. Now need to replace steering geer
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Other model years
Questions about the 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV
Is the 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV reliable?
Owners have filed 67 complaints about the 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV, fewer than a typical Bolt EV model year.
What is the 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV year score?
The 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV scores 77 out of 100 (average). The score compares it with the other model years of the Chevrolet Bolt EV: 75 is a typical year, 50 means twice the usual complaints, and serious complaints and recalls lower it.
What is the most common problem with the 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV?
Electrical system, with 33 complaints. Next is fuel system (15).
How many recalls does the 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV have?
5 recalls, covering electrical system and seat belts.
Was there a recall on the 2021 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).
What gas mileage does the 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV get?
The 2021 Chevrolet Bolt EV is rated at 118 MPGe combined, with up to 259 miles of range.
VIN decoder
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