2018 Chevrolet Volt Problems

What owners report

Owners of this model year most often describe a "Shift to Park" message appearing when the car is already in park, which prevents the vehicle from powering off, and a separate group of complaints about sudden loss of propulsion tied to the battery energy control module and, less often, the EGR valve. Many of these appear from the first few thousand miles up through well past 50,000 miles, and several owners report that dealer repairs (shifter assembly, harness jumper, module resets) did not permanently resolve the symptom.

1. 1
   Electrical system

   Shift to Park warning and car won't power off

   • 83 complaints (37%)
   • median 25,500 mi at 2.8 yrs old (26 state mileage)
   • filed 2019–2026

   Owners describe a message telling them to shift to park that appears even though the shifter is already in park and the dash shows P. The car then fails to fully shut down, sometimes leaving displays and lights on, and owners work around it by pressing the shifter button, jiggling the lever, or cycling out of park and back. Complaints mention dealers replacing the shifter assembly or the in-line shifter wire harness jumper, with the symptom returning in some cases. Reported from a few thousand miles up to about 76,000 miles, usually at shutdown after normal driving.

   What to check: With the car in park, press the power button and confirm it shuts down cleanly on the first try, repeating a few times. Ask whether the shifter assembly or shifter harness has been replaced and whether the symptom came back afterward.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “When I shut down power in park on my 2018 chevy VOLT (the car is stationary) the car will not completely shut down and the dashboard displays shift to park . Essentially, the car is not recognizing that the car is already in park. I can not walk away fro my car because it remains on. It takes multiple attempts until it ultimately will shut off. This has been a common issue as reported by other chevy owners.”

   NHTSA complaint #11306508, filed 2020-02, 20,000 miles

   “Whenever I put my vehicle in park and turn if off, the screen on the dash will say please shift to park. I will turn on my vehicle and then shift it to park again and turn it off. Sometimes it will stop notifying me after one time and other times I will have to turn it off and shift it to park, even though its in park, several times. The car will not turn off and I cannot leave the vehicle until it stops notifying me.”

   NHTSA complaint #11341008, filed 2020-07, 30,379 miles
2. 2
   Fuel system

   Reduced propulsion or loss of power while driving (BECM)

   • 98 complaints (43%)
   • median 51,000 mi at 6.8 yrs old (13 state mileage)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $2,550 (median of 10 quotes)
   • filed 2018–2026

   Owners describe reduced propulsion or power messages, a check engine light, and in some cases a complete loss of drive while moving, sometimes followed by the car failing to restart or to accept a charge. Complaints attribute this to the battery energy control module (BECM), with dealers resetting or replacing the module; some owners mention that coverage under a GM special coverage program did not apply to their vehicle. Appears across a wide mileage range, from a few thousand miles to well over 100,000, often during highway driving.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether the BECM has been replaced or updated and whether any battery-related special coverage applies to the VIN. Have a scan tool check for stored hybrid/battery codes before purchase.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My 2018 Chevy Volt has experienced the GM knows BECM issue. There are several Volt Owners that have experienced this issue. I would like to bring this to the attention for GM to post a recall/mandatory service repair as my car stopped working, would not start, was displaying false information on the electrical module, etc. Issue: 1. Car would not start 2. Battery stated fully charged with solid green light but display showed only 1 electric mile available 3. Tried to shift car to Reverse press gas nothing happened 4. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11568045, filed 2024-01

   “On 8/30/2024 I had driven my 2018 Volt (purchased new on 3/27/2019), with about 45,000 miles on it, on a normally 5 hour trip. About 3 hours into my trip on I-94 my car suddenly slowed down with a Reduced Propulsion message and a check engine light that came on. (The engine probably has run less than 25,000 miles of the total miles I have driven it, with the rest being purely on battery.) I was extremely fortunate to have been in the slow lane when the car suddenly stopped accelerating. This could have easily turned out very, very bad. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11614323, filed 2024-09
3. 3
   Brakes

   Brake pedal feel and rear caliper clunk

   • 21 complaints (9%)
   • median 1,845 mi at 1.2 yrs old (6 state mileage, few)
   • 3 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2018–2026

   A small group of owners describe a clunk from the rear as the car comes to a stop that worsened over time, and others describe the brake pedal feeling weak or fading in prolonged stop-and-go use. Complaints mention dealer replacement of rear brake calipers as a remedy. Reported at very low mileage in the sample, generally under about 7,000 miles.

   Recall 18V576000

   What to check: Listen for a clunk from the rear when stopping and ask whether the rear calipers were replaced under the related recall. Check pedal firmness during a stop-and-go test drive.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I ran into a vehicle in front of me during normal traffic on my way home from work, two months to the day of picking up my 2018 VOLT. The vehicle ahead of me may have stopped quickly, but it was not a stop the VOLT shouldn't have been able to handle. I was on a street in my neighborhood I drive every day in traffic. I had mentioned to friends and family that the VOLT's brakes just did not feel on par with the rest of the car and would be the only aspect of this EV experience I found lacking. I have the dated text messages to prove this. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11140756, filed 2018-10, 2,200 miles

   “Collision occurred on e denny way in seattle, approx 3:20 pm on a downhill slope in stop-and-go traffic after about 20 minutes of constant brake use to hold back the car. About 2/3 of the way downhill the brakes failed, no resistance whatsoever and the car rolled into the vehicle in front, a distance of about 15 feet. This was a one-off incident and did not recur so far. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11129119, filed 2018-09, 4,100 miles

Buying note. Check that the car powers off cleanly when shifted into park, and pull any stored battery and engine codes before buying. Confirm the status of open recalls and whether the BECM or EGR valve has already been serviced.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.