[accelerus]

So today -- I warmed the car up (preheat), plugged into Level 2 like normal... went for an errand.

When trying to plug the car back in when I get home, I get the message "Service battery charging system".
Feck!

Car still turns on, and still operates under battery power (what I have left) so I'm not stranded or anything.

My volt (2017) was in the shop for almost 3 weeks about 2 months ago for what seems to be the very same issue. It was some super rare high voltage fuse that could only come from the engineers at GM.

Needless to say I'm pissed. Mostly because I'll probably get stuck with a gas sucking clunky Cruz again. Have to wait weeks for the part, and just overall in a crappy mood because this is the 2nd time in the 5 months I've owned the car something has happened like this.

I'd be less pissed if I knew I was going to get a Gen1 volt as a loaner, I drive about 70ish miles each day for work, and when you do that in a regular ICE car... it adds up. Not to mention, paying a car note for a car I don't actually get to use.

 

[Geohec]

So today -- I warmed the car up (preheat), plugged into Level 2 like normal... went for an errand.

When trying to plug the car back in when I get home, I get the message "Service battery charging system".
Feck!

Car still turns on, and still operates under battery power (what I have left) so I'm not stranded or anything.

My volt (2017) was in the shop for almost 3 weeks about 2 months ago for what seems to be the very same issue. It was some super rare high voltage fuse that could only come from the engineers at GM.

Needless to say I'm pissed. Mostly because I'll probably get stuck with a gas sucking clunky Cruz again. Have to wait weeks for the part, and just overall in a crappy mood because this is the 2nd time in the 5 months I've owned the car something has happened like this.

I'd be less pissed if I knew I was going to get a Gen1 volt as a loaner, I drive about 70ish miles each day for work, and when you do that in a regular ICE car... it adds up. Not to mention, paying a car note for a car I don't actually get to use.

Maybe you should try to see if a volt advisor can do something. It seems like you have been nice to this point, but like you ssid the gas price adds up over time eapecially if you had free chargers at your work. Talk to them maybe they throw you a bone. The dealers options to help maybe limited but maybe GM will help make it less of a sting to your wallet not to mention your time.

Volt advisor 1-877-486-5846.

Good luck.

 

[voganni]

Is the car showing a CEL? Ask Onstar what codes are being thrown. Then post them here. May not be the same problem. Lots of things can cause the message you're getting, some very minor.

 

[accelerus]

yes car is throwing a CEL - and I got an automated email from onstar saying it requires dealer service. Might go pull the code later myself and see... (i'm night shift so actually about to get some sleep)

Car refuses to charge at all -- so that in and of itself probably warrants a trip to the dealer no matter what. (plug in and the amber light stays solid and never starts charging)

 

[canehdian]

If it is the same fuse and they need to order one - just ask to get your own car back while you wait and use it on gas. If you have to use gas anyway, might as well be a volt vs a cruze!
If you're nice to a volt advisor they may cover some of your gas cost attributable to not being able to charge (or because you're in a rental gas guzzler). At least they have in the past.

But if it is that fuse, they need to find the root cause of the problem.
Failing once could be a fluke bad fuse, but failing twice sounds like something is overloading when it shouldn't - there's a problem elsewhere.

 

[DonC]

You have my sympathies on this. Agree that the same fuse blowing suggests something needs to be fixed. I'd like to be optimistic but unless it's a known problem which we haven't heard much about, electrical problems are always the worst. Hard to find and with intermittent failures little way of knowing if the fix has been successful. After completing your adjustments, I'd want a fuse and a show and tell about where the fuse was and how to change it.

I have to wonder about a different fuse. Seems weird to have a special fuse given that you have to believe the regular fuse should do the job.

Let us know how this works out for you.

 

[emv]

Don't let them just replace the fuse. A blown fuse is a symptom, not the problem.

 

[accelerus]

You have my sympathies on this. Agree that the same fuse blowing suggests something needs to be fixed. I'd like to be optimistic but unless it's a known problem which we haven't heard much about, electrical problems are always the worst. Hard to find and with intermittent failures little way of knowing if the fix has been successful. After completing your adjustments, I'd want a fuse and a show and tell about where the fuse was and how to change it.

I have to wonder about a different fuse. Seems weird to have a special fuse given that you have to believe the regular fuse should do the job.

Let us know how this works out for you.

The Service adviser at the dealership (Classic Chevy in Grapvine) is a fellow Volt guy... so I can't complain about the level of service, he called me and gave me updates almost daily. and explained everything about the last time this happened.

If this turns out to be the same fuse then they have to drop the battery to change it out... (some high voltage fuse) is what they did last time.

Trying not to think about it all because I won't really get to drop it off till monday morning probably.


the extra kicker that makes me sad, we have great weather finally here in TX, and I was going to spend this weekend detailing my volt inside and out so I could be shiny and stylin' come monday... no point in that now.

 

[DonM]

I cannot understand why some companies never learn the fundamental principal of customer service. You just do what ever it takes to make a customer happy. They don't understand how much damage these stories do. Waiting even 3 days for a part is not acceptable. They have cars in production with this part in line, or cars waiting to be shipped, or there's a car somewhere with this part. Someone should have been given the responsibility to get a part by any means, and overnight it to Grapevine TX. Perhaps Mary needs to create a new group at GM called something like the Customer Satisfaction Mafia that has the authority to do whatever it takes to quickly solve a customers problem, or resolve an unhappy case.

 

[arkar]

Did anyone else experience the issue?

 

[hellsop]

I cannot understand why some companies never learn the fundamental principal of customer service. You just do what ever it takes to make a customer happy. They don't understand how much damage these stories do. Waiting even 3 days for a part is not acceptable. They have cars in production with this part in line, or cars waiting to be shipped, or there's a car somewhere with this part. Someone should have been given the responsibility to get a part by any means, and overnight it to Grapevine TX. Perhaps Mary needs to create a new group at GM called something like the Customer Satisfaction Mafia that has the authority to do whatever it takes to quickly solve a customers problem, or resolve an unhappy case.

A) some people are just miserable sourpusses and they will never be satisfied. Sorting them out from people with a legitimate beef is a challenge from a thousand miles away when it's not even YOUR rep talking to them. Remember that Chevy is not the dealer, and the dealer is not Chevy.

B) Three days to get an unstocked part, staring when? Late afternoon Saturday? Sure, they may be just waiting in a bin on the assembly floor, but nobody at Chevy is going to know that the dealership even WANTS another fuse until Monday morning, and even if they overnight it out the same day, it won't be at the dealership before Tuesday afternoon, which means it won't be "we've got the part; bring in your car" until Wednesday morning and that's the fourth day. Maybe fifth by the time OP actually rolls in. Fast turnaround over weekend is for *stocked* parts. Like stuff that they've got a conceivable use for on more than one mysterious problem car or can resell to another dealership.

 

[DonM]

A) "Chevy is not the dealer, and the dealer is not Chevy". Could this be part of the problem?

B) "and it's Easter time too". No wait, that's from a Dylan song. What you have there is a perfect example of a straw man argument. Sorry I should have said 3 working days, maybe, unless your competing car company does better. Ask the US Postal Service about holding on to the "good old days".

 

[accelerus]

Will be taking it to the dealer in the morning -- despite the CEL being on, and there being a red battery icon on the dash, there are no actual ODBII codes to pull (hooked up my scanner)

Since it's with the charging system and not the actual battery system, I'm hoping that it's not a 3 week wait like last time. Will update after I get some word from the dealer, (probably Tuesday if I'm lucky)

 

[turboguy327]

I cannot understand why some companies never learn the fundamental principal of customer service. You just do what ever it takes to make a customer happy. They don't understand how much damage these stories do. Waiting even 3 days for a part is not acceptable. They have cars in production with this part in line, or cars waiting to be shipped, or there's a car somewhere with this part. Someone should have been given the responsibility to get a part by any means, and overnight it to Grapevine TX. Perhaps Mary needs to create a new group at GM called something like the Customer Satisfaction Mafia that has the authority to do whatever it takes to quickly solve a customers problem, or resolve an unhappy case.

If only GM cared about its customers.... dealers or corporate

 

[TSquare]

Will be taking it to the dealer in the morning -- despite the CEL being on, and there being a red battery icon on the dash, there are no actual ODBII codes to pull (hooked up my scanner)

Since it's with the charging system and not the actual battery system, I'm hoping that it's not a 3 week wait like last time. Will update after I get some word from the dealer, (probably Tuesday if I'm lucky)

Just to be clear, the message you have and the red battery icon indeed indicate that there is a problem with the 12 volt battery charging system. This is from the manual page 133:

SERVICE BATTERY CHARGING SYSTEM
This message displays when there
is a fault in the 12-volt battery
charging system. See your dealer
for service.

Before you take off to the dealer you might want to check the 12 volt system with a meter while the car turned on just to make sure that the APM is making 12.5 - 15 volts. If the APM is not working, then you would be driving with only on the 12 volt battery supplying power to the 12 volt system and you could run out of 12 volt power on the way to the dealer. Hopefully it is just the 12 volt charging system while plugged in that has failed.

 

[accelerus]

Just to be clear, the message you have and the red battery icon indeed indicate that there is a problem with the 12 volt battery charging system. This is from the manual page 133:

SERVICE BATTERY CHARGING SYSTEM
This message displays when there
is a fault in the 12-volt battery
charging system. See your dealer
for service.

Before you take off to the dealer you might want to check the 12 volt system with a meter while the car turned on just to make sure that the APM is making 12.5 - 15 volts. If the APM is not working, then you would be driving with only on the 12 volt battery supplying power to the 12 volt system and you could run out of 12 volt power on the way to the dealer. Hopefully it is just the 12 volt charging system while plugged in that has failed.

Thanks for the extra tidbit of info about that particular error message... kinda glad I took the motorcycle to work tonight then! Will be dropping the car off in the morning, will also have them do the brake pedal sqeak fix (#16-NA-147) since that's the only other issue I have with the car. Need to get the tires rotated, but I don't feel like blowing 1 of 2 free service visits on something I can do in my own garage in 30 minutes. (still have 78% oil life left after 8K miles)

 

[Norton]

...My volt (2017) was in the shop for almost 3 weeks about 2 months ago for what seems to be the very same issue....
...because this is the 2nd time in the 5 months I've owned the car something has happened like this...

Buddy,

Lemon Law.
BBB Autoline.
They work for guys like you.
Look them up.
You qualify.
Press the 'Start Over' button.

 

[accelerus]

Buddy,

Lemon Law.
BBB Autoline.
They work for guys like you.
Look them up.
You qualify.
Press the 'Start Over' button.

I've looked up this sort of thing for TX -- they did provide a loaner at no charge so that nixes the ususal "30 day test" right there... if this is indeed the same fuse... (i don't think it is because the car still works under battery power) then the dealer/GM would still have another chance after this repair before I could start taking action... per their PDF:

• two times for the same problem or defect within the first 12 months or 12,000 miles, whichever comes first, and
• twice more during the 12 months or 12,000 miles following the first repair attempt and
• the problem is still not repaired

from what I can see right now -- I maybe only about 1/3rd qualify for lemon law. Heading to the dealership in an hour or so here (just got home from night shift job) I'm going in with an open mind... going to use one of my 1st free services to get tires rotated and oil changed, and also have them perform a TSB for the squeaky brake pedal.

Will update.

 

[accelerus]

Well apparently since there's some big recall going on with Tahoes and Silverardos... the dealership has zero loaners available till the 22nd. So I could do nothing but put my name on a list and take my half crippled volt and go home, there's 1+ week of using 100% gas engine... before it even gets looked at.

 

[Norton]

... per their PDF:

• two times for the same problem or defect within the first 12 months or 12,000 miles, whichever comes first, and
• twice more during the 12 months or 12,000 miles following the first repair attempt and
• the problem is still not repaired

-- I maybe only about 1/3rd qualify for lemon law....

What about "In the shop more than 30 days during the first year of ownership."
Is that not part of the rules in Tx? Or is everything bigger in Texas?