[trainorders]

I don’t know if I will ever buy another GM car again after my experience.

I have a Generation 1 Volt that I bought in December 2012 that I have 39,000 miles on. During the first 15,000 miles I experienced a creaking noise coming from the rear when passing over driveways, speed bumps, and rough roads. I took the car to my local AutoNation dealer in Santa Clarita, California that diagnosed the problem to a known axle bushing problem that many Volts have experienced. They replaced the axle and all was fine for a while.

At about 27,000 miles the problem came back again. I took it back to the dealer and they told me the noise was not too bad and they claimed they could not hear it and sent me away. I took it back to them last March with about 31,000 miles, after the warranty was expired and they heard it loud and clear. They told me it was a bushing problem and GM knows about it and was the same issue that they fixed on my car previously. They said the solution was GM redesigned the assembly and I should be good to go. They told me because I reported the problem before the warranty expired they fixed it under warranty. I think their fix consisted of injecting some grease into the bushing because here I am six months later and the noise is beginning to return again.

Here I am with my Volt with 39,000 mile and a problem that has dogged this vehicle since it was nearly new. I don’t know if my dealer is really replacing the part, or if they are kicking the can down the road so I have to put a thousand into repairing a problem that should have been fixed under warranty.

It seems this is a common issue with the Volt and this earlier thread shows a heck of a lot of people are experiencing this Generation One problem: http://gm-volt.com/forum/showthread...-and-or-bumps.-Dealer-can-t-seem-to-repair-it.

Todd Clark

 

[khalfyard]

Curious if this problem was addressed and fixed by the design and build of the Gen 2 Volt? I'm coming up on 5K miles on my 2017. The last GM vehicle I owned was a 1998 Pontiac Grand Am, and it also had these problems, I did 2 $750 replacements over the lifetime of that car (200,000km) before I sold the vehicle.

 

[Barry]

If it has been less than a year since the last repair, maybe that repair is still covered by a 1 year warranty which may be present on the replacement parts. Not sure about that, but it may be worth looking into. Also look into it being covered as a continuation of the issue that came up during the 36 month warranty period. Maybe it still qualifies as the same issue and is still covered (maybe considered an unsuccessful repair, or whatever).

You may have to go above the dealership on this, like to a Volt Adviser or a Chevrolet zone manager.

 

[DonC]

Not every dealer is great, not every technician is great, and no car is perfect. Try calling a Volt advisor before taking it back. FYI the number of reported problems is likely quite small. Would be better if the incidence were higher. In that case we generally get an authoritative answer and the dealer doesn't have to figure things out as much.

 

[Steverino]

Frustrating for sure. 80k+ and 5+ years on mine, no issue.

I count 13 having the issue in the linked thread. Not saying it's not an issue for some, nor would I be happy if it happened to my car. But 13 cars is not what I would call a "common issue" or a "heck of a lot". Just my perspective.

I'd say get a Volt Advisor involved with your dealer, given this seems to be a recurring issue in your car.

 

[garyg]

I have had 4 Gen I Volts (2012, 2013, 2015, 2015) with a combined total of over 100k miles and this is the first I have heard of these rear axle bushings but....

on other threads though I saw something about the rear deck spoiler creaking or rattling noise. Are you sure they have correctly identified the problem?

Ok, I read that other thread and now I seem to remember some sort of rattle/creak noise on the recent 2015 but it disappeared in the spring after it got warmer and I have forgotten all about it. Reading that other thread sort of jogged my memory.

On the other thread it said "Bushing in the axle assy is the root cause of the noise"

Is the problem with the bolt inside the rubbing busing (sloppy)? or the outside of the rubber bushing where it presses into the axle? lube might help either. From the drawing, the bushing is part of the axle and not separately replaceable:

http://www.gmpartsdirect.co/auto-pa...gas-engine/rear-suspension-cat/rear-axle-scat

If it is the bolt being sloppy, they do make bolts that are oversized by a few thousands. Maybe run a reamer and an oversize bolt (-x or -y) (same thread). I assume the bushing itself has an outer metal shell and an inner bushing? it the metal shell is walking in the axle, then that is a tough one. Maybe one could stake the shell somehow. but without a replacement bushing, that is tough. If it is just the rubber creaking, lube it up until it finally gets over it.

 

[trainorders]

13 issues on a Volt forum that has perhaps a few hundred active members is actually quite high. Only a small minority of Volt owners are on this web site and a smaller minority participate. As for diagnosing the problem. There is a service bulletin concerning the problem. They have addressed my issue twice, and the fix was not permanent. After fixing it the first time the mechanic told me his dealership had repaired more than a dozen cars with this issue.

 

[BAZINGA]

I too had a creaking noise in my 2013 and my dealer found the right rear shock had a rubber bushing that needed to be lubed and then torqued properly. That solved my issue.

And as other have said contact a Volt Advisor and then consider finding another dealer.

Good luck.

 

[Ztirffritz]

It's important to remember when looking for information about consumer issues that people who are happy with their purchases rarely go online to post about the positive experience...but people who are unhappy don't seem to be able to shut up. My point is that what you read online is a biased dataset. I'm not saying that there isn't a problem, but if everyone without creaking bushings chimed in the people with creaking bushings would disappear as mere background noise.

 

[garyg]

I found this for a 2016 Volt:

http://gm.oemdtc.com/6218/squeak-sq...riginating-from-rear-axle-2016-chevrolet-volt

but nothing on anything older.

 

[VoltenRock]

I've got a '13 and I don't have this issue--but agree that the weakest link in the GM product experience is the local dealership. If they're great--you get white-glove service, lots of free extras, and avoidance of the "nitpicking" I've seen in many service departments. You also get COMPETENT mechanics--this is a big one.

I'm VERY lucky with my local dealership. I didn't even buy the car from them and they always throw in freebies like wipers, loaners, tire rotations, etc. In fact, I've never paid a thing to them--EVER. Of course they've also sometimes messed things up and had to re-do. I sympathize if you're not so lucky with your local dealership as this would sour my feelings on an otherwise great car.

Nevertheless, I appreciate the support from other Volt owners for the issues we have and I've never had a car with a dedicated "advisor" (who is really just another person to help move your concerns to the front of the line).

Knowing that dealing with any business in America these days on customer service-related problems is a complete hassle, I would definitely get another GM product since I am familiar with how to navigate their system and (eventually) get to my satisfaction. I can't say I've had the same luck with other products I own.

 

[ampera_jed]

I settled down with a hot drink expecting a good read of a litany of problems and excuses to take you to the point of despair.

Disappointed! That makes two of us!

So there's a creaky suspension and they fixed it but the fix didn't last long and they have to do it again.

.... Is that it? Did you miss something, like the car fell apart in the middle of the highway, or a salesman threw abusive language at you, or there are big spanner-shaped dents and scratches all over the car but the workshop claims it was like that before?

Unlike every other make of vehicle that you will go to instead, others never ever fail to fix something the first time around. You should pick any make other than GM because only GM make cars with faults, and sometimes they don't even get the servicing perfectly right first time! Shock! I think this makes a national story, doesn't it;- "CATASTROPHE for the car making industry - after 100 years of making perfect cars, GM has made a car WITH A FAULT and didn't realise the part they replaced it with was a bit rubbish so had to do it again!"