Battery Energy Control Module (BECM) on 2017 Chevrolet Volt failed. Resulting in reduced propulsion power, no charging. Check engine light comes on. Dealer has confirmed this is a BECM issue.

- Saint Paul, MN, USA

EGR valve failed on [XXX] southbound near Cartersville, GA. Initially, the engine showed a Check Engine light, and showed a message that "Propulsion power had been reduced". Approxmately 60 seconds later before we could reach an exit, the engine shut off while driving at 60 MPH. Had to coast/navigate over two lanes while the car was slowing to make it to the shoulder, and was stuck on the shoulder while the engine cooled down enough to leave the shoulder. Jim Ellis Chevrolet confirmed the failed EGR valve, but have so far been able to reproduce the overheating in the shop. Replacing the EGR valve is estimated at $1100, with GM providing a $250 warranty assistance. I have confirmed with other Volt owners that this is a very common issue which affects all GM Volt 2 cars manufactured between 2016 and 2019. Enough of the EGR valves have failed that the part is in short supply with possible wait times of over 6 months. The EGR Valve is part of the emissions system. However, the problem appears to be (unconfirmed) a manufacturing defect in the control board for the valve. This fails, causing the engine block F3 fuse to blow. This fuse also powers the engine coolant pump, which is what takes this from an emissions problem to a safety problem--which can cause the car to shut down suddenly. References to the issue online: [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] The issue has been confirmed the issue with this service bulletin: [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Peachtree Corners, GA, USA

My 2017 Chevrolet Volt has had issues with failing to start for years. Many times when the car did start I would receive an error message saying -??propulsion power reduced, -?? resulting in the vehicle being less responsive to the accelerator. I have taken it to get serviced many times only for the issue to persist. Now the car has completely broken down and will no longer turn on at all. The car is currently at a Chevrolet Dealership where a service technician has diagnosed the problem as being related to a faulty BECM (battery energy control module) and that I need to spend thousands of dollars to replace this part. A simple google search showed me that this problem is incredibly common with other Volt drivers, so much so that there is even a class action lawsuit against GM now for this issue (which I received no notice of). I feel like I was sold a faulty car and I now have to pay a price for GM-??s negligence.

- Carlsbad, CA, USA

Loss of Motive Power due to EGR Valve. I was driving down the highway when I experienced a loss of motive power and the Volt entered a reduced power state while in moving traffic. After the EV battery ran out and the ICE turned on, the following message showed up on the instrument panel "Propulsion Power Is Reduced" and the check engine light turned on. The Volt slowed down and would not accelerate to the speed of the moving traffic. I was able to get off the highway and drive home under reduced power which was still not safe. The engine ran very rough on the way home and was not able to maintain speed high enough for the flow of traffic on the roads. The dealer diagnosed the issues as a failed EGR Valve. The part was on backorder for about a month. In that time, a GM trained technician deemed the car operable (according to GM standards) and said that I could take it back and drive it on electricity only. Unfortunately, that meant that the EV range is about 40 miles in winter after a full charge and running out of electricity would again result in a hazardous loss of power. The behavior of the car under this reduced propulsion is Identical to the one in investigation PE23022 - Loss of Motive Power due to the Battery Energy Control Module. The Chevy Volt EGR Valve issue is a common problem reported in other NHTSA complaints and Volt forum posts and I am surprised that there has not been a recall. I hope that this issue is investigated same as the BECM issue. Some examples: NHTSA ID Number: 11558668 NHTSA ID Number: 11557845 NHTSA ID Number: 11557876 NHTSA ID Number: 11557995 NHTSA ID Number: 11483673 [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Chapel Hill, NC, USA

so we inspected your vehicle and it needs a battery module, that part is on back order and we have no ETA when it will come in. That is what the dealership sent me. There are people on Chevy Volt forums saying it's the EGR valve and they've been waiting months with non-working cars. Is anyone doing their job around here?

- Los Angeles, CA, USA

The latest episode with my 2017 Chevy Volt is a culmination of years of issues with the low clearance on the vehicle causing continual damage and unsafe driving conditions that require expensive repairs due to the design flaw (note - I had a 2014 Chevy Volt that had NONE of these problems). My son was driving the car a week ago and the Engine Control Module (GM part # 12700116) fell OUT of the car. This led to the car to stop driving instantly - if he had been anywhere other than a quiet residential street it could have been catastrophic. Upon having towed the vehicle to the dealership, I was informed that the wiring harness failed which led to the ECM falling onto the street. I drive this car strictly in city limits and on major highways, and despite this the bottom undercarriage is constantly damaged because it is simply to low to the ground. In addition to the repair bill of $3K+ (my 4th repair required due to this defect), the harness isn't even available and GM cannot provide an ETA for when it will be. I experienced a similar issue 6 months ago when a part was backordered for 3+ months and this is compounded by the fact that their dealerships no longer have loan car inventory. Note that there was no warning before this happened. I have tried escalating to GM but their response is essentially that I am SOL. Again - this is a design flaw of the vehicle that should have been addressed but never was. Note that this doesn't include the other continual issues (well documented) that continue to plague the car after other recall service (loss of propulsion, shifter issues that frequently make it impossible to actually turn the car off, etc.)

- Dallas, TX, USA

EGR valve failed. Dealer supplied part has been on back order for more than five months.

- E. Freetown, MA, USA

All of a sudden while braking on a freeway offramp, the check engine light came on and a reduced propulsion warning came on my screen. The car ran weird for about a day, then it wouldn't start. I had it towed to a dealer, they diagnosed the BECM went bad, now my car has been there 2.5 weeks and there's no estimated ship date for the part, much less repair date. If they said they had enough parts for BECM failures, they're either lying to you or they're lying to me.

- Bartlett, TN, USA

I was driving and then the car turned off and was unable to restart. There was no warning. The car was fine and then it wasn't. The power steering also stops working. Fortunately I was at a red light and not in the intersection yet. The check engine light wasn't on. The BECM (battery control module) failed. I had to get the car towed to the dealership for the repair. The dealership repaired the issue for free since I was still under warranty.

- Raleigh, NC, USA

The BECM located in the battery compartment failed The vehicle was completely immobilized and would turn on but would not "start" leaving me stranded. Away from home. The local Chevrolet dealership confirmed the BECM was at fault The vehicle gave no clear indication of a pending BECM failure before the failure

- Redford , MI, USA

Consistent BCEM failure with volt. Power Reduced even if battery has full charge and gas is in tank. Forward Collision made unavailable without reason whilst driving. I rely on the forward collision system while driving at night in my area because of drivers cutting each other off constantly, so losing this feature without knowing why it failed feels unsafe to me. Forward collision would also activate when no vehicle is infront of me causing the car to suddenly stop and jerk on the road. Propulsion power is reduced is an extremely common occurrence in my volt. It happens randomly while driving and even while charging. When I'm on the highway the car would slow down when the warning came on; even with cars right behind me. I'm scared one day the car's system will cause an accident because of it's unpredictability. Regular maintenance has been performed and no issues have been found. The problem continues to persist.

- Centerville, GA, USA

Vehicle malfunctioned and was unable to be driven. Had to tow to dealership where they diagnosed the problem to be a BECM board, and new HV battery. It has been at dealership for 6 weeks at this point, with no ETA on new battery to arrive.

- Saint Helens, OR, USA

On 3/11/2023, I was heading home when my vehicle lost power in the middle of the freeway. Luckily, I was able to safely pull over to the side of the freeway. Since this is a plug-in hybrid, there are two gauges showing how much electric and gas is in the car. When I checked, both showed were empty; however, although I knew that I did not have much electricity in the battery, I had nearly a full tank of gas. The vehicle should have had automatically switched over to the gas but did not. After a few minutes of leaving the car off, I was able to restart the vehicle in gas mode and drive home safely. I brought in the vehicle to my local Chevy dealership to have it diagnosed. It was determine that the computer had registerd multiple faults p0030, 31, 54, 135, 403, 405, 443, 458 and 537. They also found TSB 21-NA-116. They had found that the 15 AMP fuse was blown. They had to replace the EGR valve assembly. Total time was 2 weeks to repair as they had to wait for the parts from Chevy. Per WO, parts 12346290 (Coolant) and 12691147 (Valve) were replaced. After replacement, vehicle have been running fine for the past 9 months. Prior to the engine shutting off, there was a message on the screen while driving which says "Propulsion Power is Reduced". The electric gauge was empty but the gas tank show nearly a full tank.

- Fremont, CA, USA

BECM starting to fail. Will work and then won-??t work. Having issues intermittently.

- Chicago , IL, USA

The car regularly reports it is healthy and functioning correctly. It is regularly serviced and there was no advance warning of this problem. While driving the car displayed a message to the driver, something such as "reduced propulsion" and the speed of the car was reduced while the internal combustion engine intermittently raced in an uncharacteristic manner. The amber Check Engine light was displayed. A review of error codes later found a communication fault developed with the Battery Energy Control Module (BECM). As soon as it was possible, we got the car to the side of the road and shut it off. We then attempted to start the car and it displayed a warning that no key fob was present (but there was a key fob in the car). A few minutes later the car started and we were able to drive it to a service center where error codes were captured. Afterwards, the car drove as normal, and later even the amber Check Engine light was extinguished. The service center explained this could be an intermittent problem where the car will suddenly throw the error message ("low propulsion") and the car will have to be pulled to the side of the road. It will be a few weeks before the service center can do any work on the car. Since the car may start and drive, but suddenly find its speed reduced to far below the speed limit, the car can no longer be safely operated.

- Olympia, WA, USA

The battery energy control module failed mid drive causing my car to come to a stop in the middle of traffic. The car was towed to a dealership mechanic shop where the BECM had indeed failed. There was no signal that is was going to fail it just simply stopped and as it stopped the check engine light came

- Wichita, KS, USA

While driving to work, the vehicle shook a bit and entered into "reduced propulsion mode". The vehicle had a significant reduction in engine power on the road (the propulsion became very jerky), which became dangerous on the highway. There were no previous indicators of any type of issue. After brining the vehicle to the dealership, I was told it would be okay to drive until my appointment (which was scheduled for the subsequent week). Two days later, the vehicle would not start. When attempting to start the car, the "Shift to Park" message displayed. I had to get the vehicle towed to the dealership at that point. The dealership mentioned it is likely an issue with the Battery Energy Control Module (BECM). However, I'm still waiting for a resolution.

- Sparta, NJ, USA

On 2 separate time periods, "propulsion power reduced" message appears on dash: - 1st incident in November 2022, car would not move after powering off the vehicle. After sitting idle for a week, decided to retry, and car seemed to work normally. Took it in to Chevy service, they replaced the BECM. Car worked fine after this - 2nd incident in November 2023, again 'propulsion power reduced' message appeared. This time, however, car would suddenly cut off gas engine (even at highway speed), switching to 100% battery mode, and displaying 'Engine not available' on dashboard. Fuel level indicator would immediately display 'LOW' (even though gas tank was full). Reduced acceleration on battery mode. Car is now in same service center awaiting fix for the past month. Was quite an unsafe situation, especially at highway speeds, and especially given the fact that the battery also may have been at a low state of charge, risking complete vehicle breakdown. Coupled with both of these incidents, the cruise control intermittently shuts off, displaying 'Cruise control unavailable'. Car is lightly utilized, with just over 30k miles on the odometer to date. Additionally, the car is kept in a mild climate (coastal southern california) and parked in a covered spot shielded from sun and temperature extremes.

- Venice, CA, USA

Battery Energy Control Module failed resulting in significantly reduced and unreliable propulsion power available reducing maneuverability and increasing risk of collision at speeds over 45 mph. Check Engine Light illuminated as well as a -??propulsion power reduced-?? message on the dashboard. The problem was confirmed by a dealer and repaired under 8 year / 100000 mile voltec warranty.

- Kailua, HI, USA

The gm repair started the "vehicle power control module" - gm (24296765) is bad. Cause the car to stop, and not restart, 12v won't charge. dealership states the part on back order over 60 days, not expecting it any time soon.

- Texas City, TX, USA