[borik.chv]

My wife was driving on a busy freeway. As soon as the battery depleted she heard loud grinding noise, she almost completely lost handling and miraculously was able to pull to the shoulder. "Engine is not available" message appeared. Car was completely dead. OnStar were not even able to perform troubleshooting. She was stuck in the car on a narrow shoulder for 2 hours waiting for the tow truck.

Apparently something happened when the vehicle was supposed to switch from electrical to gas engine. The dealer told me that the "Drive Unit" (looks like a glorified name for transmission) malfunctioned.

Does not seem like the manufacturer is investing enough in testing their products. The coupling that can switch between two propulsion sources is most likely not such a trivial technology and they have not mastered it properly, IMHO.

I can't believe my wife came so close to being seriously injured or even worse than that. Can't trust this vehicle anymore. Will look for ways out of this lease deal.

 

[Stockholm Volt]

I understand your concerns and am not in any way trivializing the incident, but this could happen to any vehicle. If I had a dollar for every time a vehicle has let me down somehow... (I'd probably have about $20). It would be be interesting to know if this is a common occurrence, however.

 

[quirkySquirt]

Thank goodness the worst thing is the Volt failed. If you want to help others avoid the Volt, please add your account to databases like TrueDelta or Consumer Reports. Those are the first places new shoppers go to for reviews and where your story can have the greatest impact.

 

[jupitermoon]

My wife was driving on a busy freeway. As soon as the battery depleted she heard loud grinding noise, she almost completely lost handling and miraculously was able to pull to the shoulder. "Engine is not available" message appeared. Car was completely dead. OnStar were not even able to perform troubleshooting. She was stuck in the car on a narrow shoulder for 2 hours waiting for the tow truck.

Apparently something happened when the vehicle was supposed to switch from electrical to gas engine. The dealer told me that the "Drive Unit" (looks like a glorified name for transmission) malfunctioned.

Does not seem like the manufacturer is investing enough in testing their products. The coupling that can switch between two propulsion sources is most likely not such a trivial technology and they have not mastered it properly, IMHO.

I can't believe my wife came so close to being seriously injured or even worse than that. Can't trust this vehicle anymore. Will look for ways out of this lease deal.

From what I'm reading here in these forums and elsewhere, the Gen II Volt may have a serious design flaw or manufacturing flaw within the drivetrain. I'm quite sure GM is well aware of this but has their lips sealed as it'd spell utter disaster for GM and the Volt.

This is quite unheard-of that a hybrid/electric system has so many faults and behaves this way in transition.

It's a good thing your wife is OK but this sounds eerily like GM's ignition switch fiasco where a few people are going to have to die before these idiots get off their asses and admit there is something wrong.

 

[jupitermoon]

I understand your concerns and am not in any way trivializing the incident, but this could happen to any vehicle. If I had a dollar for every time a vehicle has let me down somehow... (I'd probably have about $20). It would be be interesting to know if this is a common occurrence, however.

Breaking down can happen to any vehicle correct...but not at the frequency we are seeing on forums and also not in a component that is at the heart of the car. It seems to be a common occurrence and "shift to park" issue many are having seems to be related except that they are fortunate enough not to experience it on the freeway.

 

[Stockholm Volt]

Breaking down can happen to any vehicle correct...but not at the frequency we are seeing on forums and also not in a component that is at the heart of the car. It seems to be a common occurrence and "shift to park" issue many are having seems to be related except that they are fortunate enough not to experience it on the freeway.

Yes, of course this is a concern, especially if it happens in heavy traffic. I wonder how many incidents are needed for GM to react. I'm sure they will be fighting this tooth and nail since recalls are costly endeavors.

 

[firehawk72]

Anything can break. Cars quit and have to be towed. If this is a true account, then I am glad no one was injured. Having said all of this, this being your first post is suspicious as we have had many of these start out exactly like this. It is always the wife...

 

[Qinsp]

I've accidentally turned a Volt off while driving. The steering and brakes work fine.

So far, no issues significant issues with our Volts.

 

[Qinsp]

Anything can break. Cars quit and have to be towed. If this is a true account, then I am glad no one was injured. Having said all of this, this being your first post is suspicious as we have had many of these start out exactly like this. It is always the wife...

Yes, quite few of the exact same story. Always the wife, always on the highway, always towed, always a Gen2, always a first post.

Not saying it's suspicious, but if were going to build a case, I'd want a bunch of internet complaints that I'd use as 'proof'.

 

[Edward Tyer]

Seems very suspect....always the wife, always a busy freeway!

 

[Random]

Maybe it could be a moderated thing. Something like an OP of a malfunction report like this has to follow up within a few days, or the thread is deleted, or at least marked as unverified and/or suspicious. Agree, suspicious, but maybe we discourage a new OP from following up because if it was real, they feel insulted. Or, an angry first poster just wanted to make an angry TROLL post and never planned to follow up ...

The OPs certainly complicate the responses by dumping on the car we love.

On the other hand, if it is real, we certainly want more information and feedback. Some often ask for at least a redacted scan of the service report showing what work was done, not so much as proof of an incident, but to better understand what happened.

 

[caronjeff]

"Borik" ?? Russian fake news troll?

 

[Random]

I thought the instant dealer diagnosis and the weird "technical analysis" was odd too, considering it "just happened". Seems most OPs of actual failures report days of dealer diagnostics and troubleshooting before they later report a transmission replacement.

 

[BAZINGA]

Appreciate you taking time to share tour experience with us fellow Volt owners, but I have to ask if you found the time to report this to the NHTSA?

 

[TheBlueFlash]

pics or it didn't happen

 

[NickHark]

From what I'm reading here in these forums and elsewhere, the Gen II Volt may have a serious design flaw or manufacturing flaw within the drivetrain. I'm quite sure GM is well aware of this but has their lips sealed as it'd spell utter disaster for GM and the Volt.

This is quite unheard-of that a hybrid/electric system has so many faults and behaves this way in transition.

It's a good thing your wife is OK but this sounds eerily like GM's ignition switch fiasco where a few people are going to have to die before these idiots get off their asses and admit there is something wrong.

Thanks for the heads-up.

 

[Belgin]

I own a Gen 1 -2014. I bought it used after I researched the Volt. I read the development history and was amazed at the design philosophy used to produce the Gen 1- cost was no object and everything was over engineered to insure a reliable product. My friend has a 2016 Volt and has had problems with the center-stack screen going dark multiple times. To date it has not been fixed. We have to keep in mind the Gen 2 was completely redesigned with 2 objectives- reduce the price and make it more mainstream. The Volt is highly complex. I think the Gen 2 has just not been vetted as much as the Gen 1 was before release. They will get there probably with the 2018 model year.

 

[borik.chv]

Should I bother replying to this?

 

[borik.chv]

I hope you are not insinuating I am lying. I could attach a copy of papers I got from the dealer after they fixed it by replacing the "Drive Unit".

 

[borik.chv]

well, I guess some manufacturers invest more in testing and safety than others. Never had any serious trouble with Japanese or German made vehicles.