2018 Chevrolet Bolt ev
The Verdict
The 2018 Chevrolet Bolt ev has 6 owner complaints filed with NHTSA. The most reported issue is body (6 complaints). With a Klunk Score of 99/100, it earns a "Smooth Ride" rating.
This is the cleanest year on record. Nice pick.
Klunk Score: Smooth Ride
This vehicle year has significantly fewer complaints than average. A reliable choice.
How is this calculated?
The Klunk Score ranks this vehicle year against all others in our database based on total owner complaints filed with NHTSA. 100 = fewest complaints (top tier), 0 = most complained-about. Scores above 60 are better than average; below 40 means more problems than most.
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Under the Hood
Each number is a complaint. Darker = bigger problem.
By Category
By Severity
Worst Problems
Complaints
Steering has resistance and will not to return to center/neutral position without driver manipulation. I've never experienced this probelm with another car and See many other Chevrolet Bolt owners have experienced the same problem. IT definitely seems to be a design and /or assembly flaw. Local GM dealer service department insists it's an isolated issue. Very costly repair required.
I purchased this car at 15,000 miles in October 2021. It’s my first electric car, and I just assumed that the stiffness in the steering wheel was part of the electric car experience. Big mistake! I took it into the dealer last week and they want $3500 to replace the steering mechanism, I’ve been looking online and I see lots of other people having this issue. This seems like a severe safety issue and Chevy needs to take responsibility for it.
This car has only 33,000 miles and has been driven gently, mostly on the highway. My wife took her car into the dealer to have the computer software updated (from the battery fiasco-it has never worked correctly since the batteries were changed) and the dealer advised that the car has a "stuck" steering gear, and it was unsafe to drive. The dealer produced an estimate for $2883.24 to change the steering gear, with the same presumably defective parts that were originally used. Now that it has been pointed out my wife said that the steering was getting harder and harder over time and that it probably was starting within the 3 year warranty period. Chevrolet does not consider the vehicles steering to be part of the "drivetrain", even though you cannot drive the car without steering and the dealer says that it is "unsafe to drive"
The steering binds up while turning and the steering wheel does not return to its center neutral position. This is a major safety issue because it takes significant effort to get the car to go straight again. I have nearly gone off the road because of the car’s unpredictable steering. The problem was reproduced and confirmed by my Chevy dealer. The technician attributes the problem to a defective steering gear. After some research online, I see that this problem is common with the Bolt. This is a major safety concern and there should be a recall to correct the problem and hold Chevrolet accountable. There were no warning lights or other signs of malfunction. The problem has made the wheels out of alignment, however.
Over the last month I have noticed that the steering fails to return to center once I turn the front wheels more than a few degrees to the right or left. I thought it could be a tire wear or miss-alignment issue so I got new tires and an alignment but the problem is still quite bad. While I noticed it starting at the end of July, it is an ongoing problem. It seems to be getting worse - the steering now ‘sticks’ consistently in both directions.
The steering wheel.does not turn back to the center once I make a turn. Mechanics say it is a steering gear that is out of order. My wife and I got into the accident multiple times due to this.