2018 Chevrolet Volt: won't start

Filed Jul 24, 2026 · Electrical, Fuel system · FL

The Battery Energy Control Module (BECM) failed. Before repair, the check-engine light appeared intermittently, the vehicle sometimes had difficulty starting, and the indicated electric range could suddenly drop from about 30 miles to zero despite a charged high-voltage battery. When this occurred, the gasoline engine started unexpectedly. The air conditioning also intermittently blew warm air until the vehicle was restarted. These symptoms created a safety concern because propulsion mode and indicated range could change without warning, and the vehicle could fail to start in traffic or another unsafe location. An authorized Chevrolet dealer confirmed the problem. The dealer retrieved DTCs U2624 and U2629, performed circuit testing, and diagnosed an internal short in the BECM causing loss of communication with high-voltage battery modules. The dealer stated this failure caused the warning light, starting issue, sudden loss of indicated battery range, and air-conditioning symptoms. The BECM was replaced and programmed after removal of the high-voltage battery assembly. The warning light first appeared about one month before repair, with the other symptoms becoming more apparent in early July 2026. The vehicle had approximately 80,918 miles when inspected. The failed component was retained by the dealership as a core and is not available to me for inspection. To my knowledge, the vehicle was not separately inspected by police, insurance, or GM engineering personnel. My vehicle was excluded from GM Special Coverage N232432680 even though it is a 2018 Chevrolet Volt with the same confirmed BECM failure addressed by that program and the federal safety agency investigation PE23022. I paid $3,970.56 for the repair. I am filing this complaint because this defect can cause no-start, loss of indicated battery range, warning lights, unexpected propulsion changes, and potentially reduced propulsion, while some affected 2016–2018 vehicles appear excluded from the special coverage.

Filed Jan 6, 2025 · Engine · 69,000 miles · TX

The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Volt. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost automotive power. The check engine warning light illuminated. Shortly afterward, the message "Reduce Propulsion, Engine will not Start" was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer where it was diagnosed with a defective EGR valve. The contact was informed that the EGR valve needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired due to the cost and lack of parts availability. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The contact believed that the cause of the failure was related to high temperatures. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 69,000.

Filed Dec 19, 2024 · Acceleration, Electrical · FL

The issue started with a forward push while lowering my speed while coming to a stop. It then progressed to a trembling engine. Then it progressed to the car struggling to effectively switch from electric to gas and back. It then would only be usable on electric range and the engine would not start and would be greyed out. Now, it only works on engine mode, it uses fuel like a pick up truck, it loses power while driving due to trying to switch to electric mode and back, and it struggles to accelerate. It will do it while idle as well as while driving 45mph and up. It barely has any propulsion power and I have to turn my hazards on any time I am going to accelerate. If I brake hard the engine will shake violently and then shut off. I then have to switch gears from drive to park or neutral to park to drive to reengage the engine. Recently it has turned on all the accessories but the ev and the gas is greyed out and there is zero propulsion power. I replaced the 12v battery thinking it might have been dying and it still has the same issue. I read about the class action lawsuit for the BCEM and have made an appointment the dealership but when I told them what was wrong with it the said we need to wait for the diagnostics.

Filed Jun 21, 2024 · Electrical · 150,000 miles · RI

The contact owns a 2018 Chevrolet Volt. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the message "Engine Not Available" was displayed and the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was not able to be restarted and was towed to a local dealer where a reset of the engine code was performed. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred, and the vehicle hesitated while accelerating. The contact was able to pull the vehicle to the side of the road, and the vehicle was towed to the local dealer where it was advised that the battery of the engine control module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure with the Technical Service Bulletin: 18-NA-261 (Malfunction Indicator Lamp Illuminated and/or Intermittent No Start with Battery Circuit DTCs Set); however, the vehicle was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure; however, no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.

Filed Jan 26, 2024 · Electrical, Fuel system · CA

My 2018 Chevy Volt has experienced the GM knows BECM issue. There are several Volt Owners that have experienced this issue. I would like to bring this to the attention for GM to post a recall/mandatory service repair as my car stopped working, would not start, was displaying false information on the electrical module, etc. Issue: 1. Car would not start 2. Battery stated fully charged with solid green light but display showed only 1 electric mile available 3. Tried to shift car to Reverse press gas nothing happened 4. Tried to shift car to Drive press gas nothing happened. 5. Car engine light is on 6. Utter confusion as stress as I’m stranded with no way to get my car working 7. Chevy dealership has had my car for one week now with the only update of ordered BECM module. No ETA on when this will be fixed 8. No indication of what caused the issue

Filed Dec 8, 2023 · Electrical, Engine · VT

The Battery Energy Control Module needs to be replaced (BECM). The car is available to be inspected at Key Chevrolet in South Burlington, VT. The car was parked when it failed. The car wouldn't start (lights on the dashboard came on) and it wouldn't turn off. I got a "shift to park" error message, regardless of which gear I was in. The car wouldn't go into Drive to go forward with either the drive battery or the gas generator. I had the car was towed to the dealership. It was inspected and diagnosed by them. When they did the diagnosis, they said the BECM had failed and there were cells in the drive battery that needed to be replaced. The BECM failure is a common problem with Chevrolet Volts and is covered by the Voltec warranty. There were no warning lights or other warnings (e.g., reduced propulsion) whatsoever. The car had shut off like normal but would not start or turn completely off. I was fortunate to have had the BECM fail while the car was parked. My understanding is that BECMs can fail while the car is moving and the power will stop and you won't have any control.

Filed Mar 21, 2022 · Electrical · MA

Vehicle displays "shift to park" when it is already in park, and will not shut off. I had to leave it on, and despite nothing apparently on (electric vehicle, no motor running), it drained the12 volt battery and would not start up the next day.

Filed Oct 14, 2018 · Transmission · 1,491 miles · CA

I was driving my car on freeway at 65 MPH and suddenly car displayed warning on dash board to shift the car in park position. Car immediately lost power from engine. I had to immediately pull over car from left most lane to buffer lane between freeway and exit. My move until it had momentum. But them it stopped on freeway. After stopping car, it did not start or stop engine. It displayed check engine light. While restarting car, it keep displaying "initializing" and immediately system reboot by itself. Car did not start at all and eventually car had to be towed to dealership. Chevrolet dealer could not identify root cause and reported the issue is fixed. After five days, exactly same error occurred again on the freeway. At this time, with help from onstar, multiple error code were retrieved and they were related to failure in hybrid power train system. Above two incidents were quite riskier as car lost engine power on busy freeway. It could have serious collision. Also, incident occur on almost newly leased car.