Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
380–25K
2925–50K
6050–75K
4775–100K
33100–150K
6150K+
213 reports with mileage · 95 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
Air Bags. Review the 161 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
Electrical System. Review the 63 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
Fuel/propulsion System. Review the 53 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
8 crash reports2 fire reports7 injury reports
What owners actually said
308 reports
Mileage unknown · Sep 18, 2021
Tires
Tire pressure dose not hold air to recommended tire pressure. Passenger tire seem to control pressure on all four tires. Once tire pressure is inflated to recommended pressure. All four tires deflate and inflated to uneven pressure after driving. Vehicle was seen by Terry Cullen Johnsboro, Ga. They said the passenger rim need to…
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Tire pressure dose not hold air to recommended tire pressure. Passenger tire seem to control pressure on all four tires. Once tire pressure is inflated to recommended pressure. All four tires deflate and inflated to uneven pressure after driving. Vehicle was seen by Terry Cullen Johnsboro, Ga. They said the passenger rim need to be replaced 800.00. But I ask about the rubber oring around the valve stem replace, they said no oring on the valve stem. I ask about a valve replaced they said no a new tire is the best they could do. My gas mileage dropped to 28 miles a gal from 40. This is a critical fix for a car that has no spare tire. In addition, oil change could not be done on the transmission because there is 126,000 miles on the car is what the technician had said.
NHTSA ODI #11433463
Mileage unknown · Sep 1, 2021
Air Bags
Seat airbag sensor malfunctioning: Looked up issue on forum and found reference to NHTSA Action Number PE19013.
NHTSA ODI #11431301
105,000 miles · Aug 24, 2021
Electrical System
The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Volt. The contact stated that the vehicle would not charge. The contact stated that the "service high voltage charging system" warning message was displayed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000…
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The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Volt. The contact stated that the vehicle would not charge. The contact stated that the "service high voltage charging system" warning message was displayed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000.
NHTSA ODI #11430338
Mileage unknown · Aug 20, 2021
Air Bags
If nobody is in the passenger seat it gives a warning to check the airbag. If someone is in the seat there is no issue. I’ve seen others report this online and it appears to be a $1,200 defect. People won’t pay to repair this so it becomes a safety issue.
NHTSA ODI #11429928
Mileage unknown · Aug 15, 2021
Fuel/propulsion System
Before battery ran out went to gas, I got the Propulsion Power Limited warning on the dash slowed gradually to a halt, next day car is dead, it won't start or change, nothing. Code P0AFA and P1E00. All recalls were done a year before
NHTSA ODI #11429162
90,388 miles · Aug 6, 2021
Service Brakes
The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Volt. The contact’s husband stated that while attempting to park the vehicle while driving approximately 1 mph, the brakes would not function. The contact stated that the stabilitrak warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the fa…
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The contact owns a 2013 Chevrolet Volt. The contact’s husband stated that while attempting to park the vehicle while driving approximately 1 mph, the brakes would not function. The contact stated that the stabilitrak warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not under a recall. The failure mileage was approximately 90,388.
NHTSA ODI #11428101
Mileage unknown · Jul 26, 2021
Air Bags
The dashboard airbag warning light comes on, car chimes, and front passenger air bag status changes between on/off intermittently when there is someone sitting in the front passenger seat. I'm afraid the airbag system is faulty and won't deploy when needed. This is an ongoing problem.
NHTSA ODI #11426520
Mileage unknown · Jul 1, 2021
Air Bags
Passenger Pressence Module Failure resulting in faulty passenger side airbag failure and a failed state inspection. Repair quoted as $1100 plus tax
NHTSA ODI #11423056
Mileage unknown · Jun 13, 2021
Air Bags
The air bag service light would come on if the passenger leave the car in parking mode, the light will clear itself after some time. Search online and found it's a very common problem in 2012/2013 chevy volt because of a faulty sensor under the seat, I think GM should do a recall for this since it's a design/manufacture fault.
NHTSA ODI #11420778
Mileage unknown · May 23, 2021
Electrical SystemUnknown Or OtherVehicle Speed Control
has had the blank screen display the vehicle is unsafe to drive. One can run out of electrical power and or gas and not know, stop on the highway and be in harms way. no turn signals, no speed indication at all, nothing. this is recall worthy! and needs to be addressed by chevy.
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Buick Verano, Chevrolet Camero, Sonic, and Volt vehicles. The driver-side air bag inflator may explode during deployment due to a manufacturing defect.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the driver-side air bag module, free of charge. On some 2013 Volt vehicles, the steering wheel will be replaced as well, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed October 23, 2023. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300 and Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N232413120.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Chevrolet Volt vehicles. An update to the Hybrid Powertrain Control Module 2 (HPCM2) may have disabled the cell balancing function causing a low-voltage condition.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the voltage drops, the vehicle may lose propulsion, increasing the risk of crash.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the HPCM2, free of charge. The recall began July 24, 2018. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 18215.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2013 Volt vehicles manufactured August 25, 2010, to June 26, 2013. If the driver exits the vehicle without turning off the electrical system, the battery may drain low enough that the gasoline engine will automatically start itself to recharge the electric battery.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the engine runs for an extended period of time in an enclosed space, there may be a build up of carbon monoxide, increasing the risk of personal injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the engine management software to limit the time that the stationary vehicle can be left in the ON position, free of charge. The recall began April 15, 2015. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 14617.
Additional source detail variants (2)
Electrical System:ignition
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2013 Volt vehicles manufactured August 25, 2010, to June 26, 2013. If the driver exits the vehicle without turning off the electrical system, the battery may drain low enough that the gasoline engine will automatically start itself to recharge the electric battery.
Consequence: If the engine runs for an extended period of time in an enclosed space, there may be a build up of carbon monoxide, increasing the risk of personal injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the engine management software to limit the time that the stationary vehicle can be left in the ON position, free of charge. The recall began April 15, 2015. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 14617.
Engine And Engine Cooling:engine:gasoline
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2011-2013 Volt vehicles manufactured August 25, 2010, to June 26, 2013. If the driver exits the vehicle without turning off the electrical system, the battery may drain low enough that the gasoline engine will automatically start itself to recharge the electric battery.
Consequence: If the engine runs for an extended period of time in an enclosed space, there may be a build up of carbon monoxide, increasing the risk of personal injury.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the engine management software to limit the time that the stationary vehicle can be left in the ON position, free of charge. The recall began April 15, 2015. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is 14617.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
2
DP22005 · Pedestrian Alert Sounds
Opened Jan 27, 2023 · Closed Aug 7, 2023
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Electrical System:propulsion System
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.
PE19013 · Passenger Sensing System
Opened Sep 17, 2019 · Closed Jul 2, 2021
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification:front Passenger
In September 2019, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE19-013 to assess the potential safety related effects of a malfunction of the Passenger Sensing System (PSS) in 2012-2013 Model Year (MY) Chevrolet Volt vehicles. Consumers reported that due to a malfunction of the PSS, the air bag system malfunction indicator light (MIL) was activated. Many of the complaints noted the malfunction occurred after the warranty period expired and mentioned high repair costs as a major deterrent to the repair of the vehicle.The PSS sensor mat is embedded in the front passenger seat cushion and is intended to detect child seats and small statured occupants who could be harmed by deployment of the frontal passenger air bag. The PSS may develop a malfunction due to bunching of the sensor mat in the seat trench. The bunching of the sensor mat could cause the mat to repeatedly fold in the same location. Over time, the repeated folding can cause an increased resistance in the sensor mat. An increased resistance in the PSS sensor mat is detected as a fault in the air bag system diagnostic. If this fault is detected, a diagnostic trouble code will be stored in the air bag control unit and the air bag MIL will illuminate.Further, if the fault is detected, the passenger frontal and knee air bags will be suppressed in a crash of sufficient severity to warrant a commanded deployment regardless of the nature of size of the occupant of the front passenger seat.The report counts shown above include only those reports that specifically address the issue covered by this investigation, failure of the PSS sensor mat. Reports alleging only that the air bag light is on with no cause stated, or where a different cause was otherwise identified, were excluded as the air bag light could be illuminated for system faults other than a PSS malfunction.The subject vehicles have been in service for approximately ten (10) years. An analysis of General Motors (GM) warranty data for the subject vehicles, including a comparison with other agency and manufacturer data pertaining to similar occupant detection system failure investigations, indicates the subject vehicles experience a comparatively low complaint rate for this issue given the number of years the vehicles have been in service.GM has instituted a cost reduction program for the repair/replacement of the PSS in the subject vehicles. Based on this cost reduction program as well as:1) a comparatively low warranty rate; 2) no reported injuries, deaths or asymmetric deployments; and 3) the age of the vehicles; ODI is closing this Preliminary Evaluation. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety related defect does not exist. The agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by new circumstances.The ODI complaints cited above can be viewed at www.nhtsa.gov under the following ODI identification numbers in a separate attachment.
2013 Chevrolet Volt Problems, Complaints & Recalls | Skip That Year
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