[Insight Refugee]

This may have been noted elsewhere, but I didn't see it on a search of the forum or the Owner's Manual. I returned from a road trip on Monday with the fuel tank reading "LOW". I had no other long trips planned, so I didn't prioritize filling up the tank. For the next couple of days, remote start preconditioning would not work regardless of whether the battery was well charged or if the car was plugged in (240V). As soon as I filled up the car, remote start worked fine.

Anyone else noticed this?

 

[obermd]

If I remember my owners manual correctly this situation is actually documented by Chevy. Preconditioning may require ICE so if you're on "LOW" or out of gas it won't run.

 

[2VoltFamily]

I have a Gen 1 and it has never happened to me and many others that run EV only keep very little gas in the tank. It is possible that in your personalization menus you have "Engine Assist Heat Plugged In" set to ON. Set it to OFF and see if that changes things for you.

 

[wordptom]

Just a page or two further in the Remote Start section of the 2017 Volt owner’s manual (p. 38), it points out that a Low Fuel condition will limit remote start capabilities:

Conditions in which a remote start may not occur include:
. An open hood.
. The RKE transmitter is in the vehicle.
. The vehicle is not in P (Park).
. Vehicle propulsion system fault conditions, including an emission control system malfunction.
. High voltage battery fault conditions.

A second remote start or extension will not occur if the fuel level is low.

During a remote start, conditions in which a remote start may be canceled include:
. Vehicle propulsion system or high voltage battery fault conditions.
. Low engine oil pressure.
. Engine coolant temperature that is too high.

Most of this is the same text that is in my 2012 Volt’s owner’s manual (as well as the 2015 manual), but the 2012/2015 manuals do not mention that a remote start may not occur if an RKE transmitter is in the vehicle or the vehicle is not in Park. Not sure if this is a difference between Gen 1 and Gen 2 Volts.

 

[jsmay311]

It is possible that in your personalization menus you have "Engine Assist Heat Plugged In" set to ON. Set it to OFF and see if that changes things for you.

I second this suggestion.

 

[jsmay311]

Just a page or two further in the Remote Start section of the 2017 Volt owner’s manual (p. 38), it points out that a Low Fuel condition will limit remote start capabilities:

"Conditions in which a remote start may not occur include:
. An open hood.
. The RKE transmitter is in the vehicle.
. The vehicle is not in P (Park).
. Vehicle propulsion system fault conditions, including an emission control system malfunction.
. High voltage battery fault conditions.

A second remote start or extension will not occur if the fuel level is low.

During a remote start, conditions in which a remote start may be canceled include:
. Vehicle propulsion system or high voltage battery fault conditions.
. Low engine oil pressure.
. Engine coolant temperature that is too high."

That's awfully strange.

It explicitly says that a low fuel level may prevent a second remote start, but it does not say it would/could prevent a first remote start.

And it also doesn't say anything about the "Engine Assisted Heating" setting. Weird.

 

[bro1999]

Yep, that happened to me. I noticed one day that remote start would not work with my '12 Volt no matter if I used the FOB or the Remotelink/Mychevy app. I took it into the dealer (as I was due for a tire rotation anyways). The dealer tech ran some tests, but could find nothing obviously wrong with the car. They even called the GM tech center, and even the GM tech was stumped.

Then, the GM tech finally asked "Uh....is the car low on gas by chance? Try filling it up and test it". My Volt was definitely LOW on gas. The dealership filled my Volt with gas, and remote start was operational again. Ended up getting a free tank of gas out of the ordeal.

So if the Volt is low enough on gas, remote start will be disabled.

 

[Insight Refugee]

FWIW, this is not a big deal to me as I generally keep fuel in the tank, but I thought it was odd behavior that was not really well-spelled out in the Manual and the error message on the App was not any help either.

I took "second remote start" reference to refer to an additional remote start within the same period between operating the vehicle:

A maximum of two remote starts, or a remote start with an extension, are allowed between vehicle operation.

I could not get any remote start to work while the fuel level was "LOW".

As quirks go, this is pretty minor. Just thought I'd point it out.

 

[Loboc]

Living with a Volt is like living with a cat. Just do what the cat wants and everyone is happy.