[jbapti01]

Hey all:
Contemplating the following:
• repair my 2011 - #2472 for between $3000 - $6000 depending on whether svc manager is able to approval for getting 50% discount on repair
• trade in for an ICE
• Trade in used Volt
• Trade in for a new Volt
- second opinion


This is after I had a second Initializing – Wait to Shift event since March 2018.The first time dealer replaced the 12V battery and things were fine until last Friday when I had to be towed in again. The first event happened after a 7 day overseas trip. It had to be towed into the dealer too. the vehicle just lost power and I had to coast to get off highway with no control.very unsafe....

I have contacted the Volt Advisor and am awaiting a call back. The service dept is telling me GM has refused to pay anything towards a replacement of the portion on affected Hybrid battery.

The thing is when this happened in March the vehicle was under warranty at 99K now I am over at 104K. I am trying to have them cover under that rule since they did not fix problem since them.

Please share your wisdom and how to best approach. Being without my beloved Volt is tough.

 

[kk07]

This happened under warranty. They should cover the cost 100% to replace that battery. GM needs to stand by their words, really. If they really don't, I'd look into trading it in. I am not sure if it is worth it to spend 3-6K though.

 

[Synovialbasher]

Like kk07 says, it should be covered by the warranty and GM should foot the bill on this one.

If, however, they don't, I think it's important to assess the rest of the vehicle as a whole. How well is the rest of the car holding up? Are there other wear items that would need to be replaced in the near future? I just had a wheel bearing go at a little over 100k, and I suspect I'll need new struts soon (thanks Michigan). How are the tires? How's the interior holding up? These are all things to consider. Yours is a 2011, so if you are considering upgrading, I'd go to a 2013+ with a slightly larger battery. For me, I've realized that I could get away without the gas engine, so if anything were to ever happen to my volt, I'd go straight to a full BEV (Volkswagen E-Golf or Spark EV, possibly a used Bolt but personally I'm not a huge fan of the looks). YMMV and without knowing your driving habits and charging situation it's hard to say.

As for going for an ICE, it really depends on your personal driving habits and preferences. If you're doing most of your miles electric, you're saving a ton on gas that would need to be factored into an ICE purchase. If you're mostly on gas, there are vehicles out there that beat the gen1 gas MPG figures, and you may save more on fuel with them (especially if you don't need premium).

While everyone I know loves the gen2 volt, I'm happier with my gen1 purchase. Their resale value is relatively low, and for the most part they're tough vehicles. Being a completely new powertrain, GM kind of overengineered the first gen, and for the second gen found out where stuff was overkill. From what I've heard, a new volt would have the same reliability as any new GM product.

 

[fotomoto1]

You need to determine if both incidents threw the same or related trouble codes. If not, then I can see how GM is automatically dismissing the warranty claim. It will probably need to be escalated to a person with at least some technical or troubleshooting background; not a tier 1 customer service rep.

Trade-in offers for non-op car will be pathetic and trying to sell a very hi-tech car privately in that condition won't be any better.

 

[Raymondjram]

I cannot recommend much since I have no Volt, but I do own GM vehicles sine 1976 (and driven them since 1969) and kept them for at least fifteen years of ownership. My personal recommendation is to fix and keep the Volt now. Then consider a new PHEV or pure EV in the next five or more years. I am waiting for a new Cadillac PHEV XT4 to replace my present Chevy Equinox which is only nine years old.