Really wishing I had bought a different car.

[RScott]

It's just so completely stupid that the car can have such a stunning failure with three trouble codes stored (anyone know what those codes in the first post mean?) and the mothership has no idea what's wrong. It's up to the customer to drive around and "hope" to break down again.

Unfortunately, there is very little information here (except that it is normal to have multiple codes if something goes wrong).

The P0700 just means that the transmission control module (TCM) requested that the check engine light be turned on for something related to emissions (http://www.autocats.net/manual/chevr...482741.EN.html has the technical details).

I cannot find anything on the P2620, and P073B, either on the service manual at that site, or on this site. That suggests that these are both rare codes, and ones that weren't predicted to be common.

[ClarksonCote]

Sorry to hear.

Check into those codes and message WopOnTour. I had a transmission issue on a long trip that involved a solenoid that needed replacing. It was a known issue with some of the very early production Volts (I'm #186). I had the same Service Engine Soon and Reduced Propulsion messages, my battery came back on even though my engine had been running and let me pull into a safe area.

While the issue I had was corrected within the factory long before your Volt was produced, it may be a similar symptom and part replacement that is needed given the behavior you described. Don't hesitate to push the dealer for a fix once you have this information in hand.

[ewiggins]

I wonder if the mechanic just does not know what s/he is doing. Being early adopters, we have to deal with inexperienced mechanics. I was a little shocked when I spoke to a Volt mechanic who basically stated he did not drive the car except to pull it in and out of the garage. I don't think he fully understood the concept of how the Volt works. I would have though if I were a mechanic working on new technology, I would want to drive the new technology for at least a week before I start working on it.

It is more like the mechanic is just passing a certification and then following a script for fixing a problem.

I hope your car issues get fixed. I have had my Volt since February 2012 with 7,000 miles and several 700 mile trips and had no issues other than the radio freezes when playing from the HDD (3 times total)

[Bzzzt]

Well, then give the car to the mechanic, tell him to drive it around in CS mode until it breaks down.

No one knows why, but sometimes shtuff just happens. Error codes don't always tell the problem. They are just a start and bread crumbs on the trail to figure out the real problem. There's not a lot of dispersed practical working knowledge of these cars yet out in the wild, dispersed to all the Chevy mechanics. Every Volt owner should be mentally ready to accept, there may be a problem where the local mech cannot wave his magic ratchet and fix it, based on a couple computer codes. Parts may take a while to source. This is an incredibly complex vehicle, brand new tech, that has not been combined in this way before. There can always be a few ghosts or bugs in the machine.

[arveedee]

My Volt has more than 7,000 miles on it and, other than a rogue "Check Charging System" warning that went away with a re-start and never came back, it's been running great. Sorry to hear of your bad luck.

[tboult]

The Chevy dealer also suggested running around in CS mode (fake it through MM or skip a charge now and then) to try and reproduce it. It's just so completely stupid that the car can have such a stunning failure with three trouble codes stored (anyone know what those codes in the first post mean?) and the mothership has no idea what's wrong. It's up to the customer to drive around and "hope" to break down again.

To the dealer's credit they put 120 miles on the thing trying to reproduce the issue. To their demerit they burned up all of my remaining gas, didn't replace it, and didn't wash the damn car when they were done burning up all my gas.

I have a what I believe is a full service manual( http://www.autocats.net/manual/chevr...tart_Volt.html)
and the GM list of all trouble codes (which is a requirement they document them all), and the second two of your numbers don't show up at all. Is it possible there is a typo?

Maybe ask the dealer for a printed description of those codes.

[cynette]

I would be heartsick if my beautiful volt ended up with that much trouble! My first extended trip is planned for this weekend and I hope it goes off without a hitch.

I'm also disappointed in your dealer's service center, especially in not refueling and in not returning a clean car! It sounds like they think the issues are your fault and not the car's! It's one thing to not have all the answers on a car with new technology, but another to not give you the impression that they were doing everyting under their control to make it right! Those are little things that they could have done to tell you that you were an important customer, and they dropped the ball!

[volt11]

That's some very bad luck, Drew. I've had a couple of lemons in my days, so I really sympathize. And your feelings about not trusting the ICE now are exactly how I would feel. Hopefully the dealer made a phone call and consulted with the Volt engineers before turning it back loose to you.

Even my Volt (built the first week of production in 2010) has had its share of drivetrain electronics issues. Not surprisingly, when the car was broken, it wasn't high on my list of favorite things, but when it's working (and it's been working fine now for several months) there's simply no other car in the world even worth considering.

I hope you have better luck coming.

[Noel Park]

Wow. Very sorry to hear about this. My neighbor has had her Lexus in for three recalls and several repairs in the first year. So much for Toyota quality. Lexus did not take her car back BTW. I've never had a single issue with my Volt. Most problem free car I've ever had. I guess that's the other side of the fence but I can certainly understand how you feel.

That says it all. I have had no problems whatsoever.

[solar_dave]

So far both of ours have been flawless, they just keep clicking off electric miles with minimal gas engine intervention.