Anyone know of a good mechanic in the Seattle area who is knowledgeable enough to service the Volt? I’m out of warranty now and finding that all of the Chevrolet dealerships in my area are very expensive — even for routine maintenance like flushing the high voltage battery coolant (recommended at 5 years according to the manual), I’m getting quotes in the $500 range.
I tried calling several highly rated local mechanics and all of them said some version of, “Uhhhh… We don’t really know how to service electric cars.” Would greatly appreciate a recommendation!
$500 isn't out of the ordinary if done properly. It's not like you drain it then fill it like an ICE car. There are three separate systems. You have to suction it out, then allow the vacuum to suck in the new fluid. After that them have to go into the electronics to run the circulating pumps for three hours to get out all the little bubbles left behind so you don't have to check the level. They can skip/shorten steps to save costs (or increase profits) but if not done properly, as air escapes through normal operation, you have to keep checking levels. People have done it themselves with a vacuum system and relied on the daily operation to remove the little bubbles and topped up but a dealer can't rely on a customer to do this. A good mechanic wouldn't either. If a Chevy dealer can't keep a Volt specific mechanic (and some can't), not much hope for an independent all brands shop to.
'zactly. Even a simpler ICE coolant change is gonna be somewhere on the expensive side of $100 minimum with a coupon, and probably around $150 at the rack rate. Now do that for three separate cooling systems.
I have used Bellevue Chevrolet. They seem very knowledgeable on the Volt. I pay them dealer prices. When deciding to purchase a Volt, I knew that using a dealer for future maintenance was going to be part of the deal.
Bill Pierre Chevrolet is a good choice but, as others have said, if you're looking for cheap it's unlikely to happen.
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