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2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV problems, recalls and owner complaints
What the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV has been recalled for and what owners report, from official government data. Updated October 25, 2026.
- 6safety recalls
- 178owner complaints
- 2crash reports
- 10fire reports
- 5injuries reported
The most complained-about Chevrolet Bolt EV year on file: 178 complaints, against an average of 59 for the other 7 model years.
Every Chevrolet Bolt EV model year with its number of owner complaints. Pick a year to compare.
What goes wrong with the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV?
The components named most often in the 178 owner complaints. One complaint can name several, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
What symptoms do 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV owners describe?
Found by reading the text of all 178 owner complaints. Tap a symptom for the answer, a real owner quote and any related recall.
Has the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV been recalled?
6 U.S. safety recalls. Repairs are free at a franchised dealer; some are done over the air.
Structure: Body: Roof And Pillars General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2017-2023 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles. This recall includes certain vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under NHTSA recall number 22V-930. After a crash with seat belt pretensioner deployment, the pretensioner exhaust may ignite carpet fibers near the B-pillar, causing a fire.
Risk: A fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: Dealers will inspect both front seat belt pretensioners and, if necessary, install metal foil at the carpet near the pretensioner exhaust. Certain vehicles will also need a pretensioner cover installed. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 24, 2024. These vehicles were previously recalled for this same issue under recall number 22V-930 and will need to have the new remedy performed. Owners may contact GM EV Concierge at 1-833-EVCHEVY (1-833-382-4389) (TTY 711 / 1-800-833-2438) or Customer Service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N232421970.
Structure: Body: Roof And Pillars General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2017-2023 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles. After a crash with seat belt pretensioner deployment, the pretensioner exhaust may ignite carpet fibers near the B-pillar, causing a fire.
Risk: A vehicle fire can increase the risk of injury.
Fix: Dealers will install metal foil at the carpet near the pretensioner exhaust, and install a pretensioner cover as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed between January 23, 2023 and April 25, 2023. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N222383790.
Electrical System: Propulsion System: Traction BatteryPark outside General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles previously recalled under NHTSA recall number 20V-701. The high voltage battery could catch fire when charged to full or nearly full capacity.
Risk: A battery fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to take the following interim steps: Activate either the Hill Top Reserve (2017 and 2018 models) or Target Charge Level (2019 models) feature in their vehicle to limit the charge level to 90%, charge their vehicle more frequently, avoid depleting the battery to 70 miles range remaining, park outside after charging, and do not charge the vehicle indoors overnight. Defective battery modules will be replaced by GM, free of charge. Interim notification letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on August 13, 2021. Owner notification letters were mailed on August 13, 2021. Owners may contact the Bolt EV Concierge Team at 1-833-382-4389. GM's number for this recall is N212343880.
Electrical System: Propulsion System: Traction BatteryPark outside General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling all 2017-2018 and certain 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles. The high voltage battery could catch fire when charged to full or nearly full capacity.
Risk: A battery fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: This recall has been superseded by recall number 21V-560. Vehicles previously repaired under 20V-701 will still need to have the new remedy under recall 21V-560. GM will notify owners, and as an interim repair, beginning on November 17, 2020, dealers will reprogram the hybrid propulsion control module 2 (HPCM2) to limit the full charge to 90%, free of charge. Owners are advised to activate either the Hill Top Reserve (2017 and 2018 models) or Target Charge Level (2019 models) feature in their vehicle to limit the charge level to 90%, or park outside, until the software update is completed. Owners were notified of the interim repair beginning November 17, 2020. The second notice was mailed on May 11, 2021. Owners may contact the Bolt EV Concierge Team at 1-833-382-4389. GM's number for this recall is N202311730.
Latches/Locks/Linkages: Doors: Latch General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles. The door-handle cable inside the rear doors may be too long, allowing contact with the window when it is opened, possibly damaging the cable. A damaged cable may cause the rear door to open unintentionally when the rear window is opened. Additionally, it may cause the rear inside door handle to not work.
Risk: If the rear door opens while driving, or the door handle fails to open the rear door, there is an increased risk of injury to the rear passengers.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear inside door-handle cables, free of charge. The recall began April 17, 2020. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is A202298320.
Service Brakes, Hydraulic: Foundation Components: Disc: Caliper General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Chevrolet Equinox, Impala, Cruze, Volt and Bolt EV vehicles, GMC Terrain vehicles, Buick Lacrosse and Regal vehicles, Cadillac XTS and XTS Professional vehicles and 2018 Chevrolet Malibu vehicles. The rear brake caliper pistons may have an insufficient coating causing gas pockets to form, potentially reducing rear brake performance.
Risk: A reduction of braking performance can increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will bleed the vehicle's brake system, free of charge. The recall began October 11, 2018. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 18279.
Is the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV recalled in the UK or Europe?
Recalls issued by the UK's DVSA and through the EU's Safety Gate system that cover this model and build period. European models can differ from U.S. ones, and "years estimated" means the recall gave no build dates, so confirm your own car with your registration or VIN.
EU Safety GateThe high-voltage battery may be faulty at full charging capacity.This will increase the risk of fire.
Measures: Type of economic operator taking notified measure(s): Other; Category of measure(s): Recall of the product from end users; Date of entry into force: Unknown
What do 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV owners report?
12 of the 178 complaints, the most recent for the most-reported components, as the owners wrote them. NHTSA removes names and VINs; long reports are trimmed. CarHooq has not verified individual claims.
I am reporting a recurring safety defect with our 2019 Chevrolet Bolt (~80,000 miles). On multiple occasions the left front wheel has overheated severely while driving, accompanied by a rapid, severe side-to-side steering wheel wobble and a burning smell. On XXX after ~35 miles of driving (10+ miles at 50-63 mph), the steering wheel began shaking. We had to pull over and drive slowly along the shoulder, stopping twice to let the wheel cool. The left front wheel measured 627.9°F, while other wheels were under 200°F. On XXX, only three days after replacing the front brake pads and rotors, the…
The steering wheel on my 2019 Chevy bolt is feeling stiff and harder to turn when making a right and left turn.
Steering wheel does not return to center on turns when driving at low speeds.
Issue: Total failure of Frontview Camera ADAS sensor, disabling Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB), Front Pedestrian Braking, and Lane Keep Assist. Technical Evidence: GDS2 telemetry confirms a "No Communication" status for the camera hardware. Core safety modules including the Electronic Brake Control (EBCM) and the Inflatable Restraint (Airbag) Sensing Module report active communication failures (DTC U026A/U216A). These safety-critical modules are currently unable to receive the sensor data required for crash avoidance and occupant protection. Forensic Timeline: Vehicle NVRAM reveals a manual…
Water has infiltrated the lower trunk area and fried the sound amplifier. The result is no sounds can be heard from the speakers. This includes sounds and warnings from the safety systems. Seat belt, ADAS, BLIS, OnStar, Turn Signals, Radio. The rear hatch seals seem to be intact and it is unclear how water is entering this lower area as there is no evidence of water anywhere else in the rear cargo area. A google search reveals many other Bolt owners are experiencing the same issue
While driving on the freeway at 65 mph during morning rush-hour, the vehicle unexpectedly decelerated without warning and came to a stop. The vehicle was barely able to make it to the shoulder before losing all momentum. There is a high-risk of a fatal collision when a vehicle unexpectedly stops or drastically slows on a freeway with 65 - 70 mph traffic, which is compounded during peak travel times. This is a risk to not only the vehicle occupants, but other drivers and vehicles as well. Several error messages were displayed on the dashboard as the car was decelerating: Drivetrain malfunction…
After driving the car for roughly 60-75 minutes while at highway speeds and within the posted speed limits: 65mph-75mph, the car will chime and the driver information panel will flash "Propulsion Reduced." At that point, the vehicle's electrical propulsion will gradually reduce to a maximum output power of roughly 20KW. The propulsion will stay capped at 20KW for a bit of time (15-20 minutes) and then gradually the cap will increase. Unfortunately, on I-25 in southern Colorado where this usually occurs, the speed limit is 75mph and and 20KW of propulsion results in the vehicle traveling on the…
Vehicle without warning stopped moving while making a left turn in an intersection at night. Power to dashboard was on but no propulsion, brakes or steering. Was unable to put car into gear to move forward or in reverse. Message was displayed, "Unable to Initalize Propulsion System" Extremely dangerous situation, I turned on flashers and left car in intersection. Called tow truck. When tow truck arrived, we pushed car to curb and he hauled it away. Cheverolet dealer diagnosed the problem as a defective wiring harness. He said there was a GM alert regarding this as a known issue that led him to…
2019 CHEVROLET BOLT. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARD TO NHTSA SAFETY RECALL 21V-560. THE CONSUMER IS DISSATISFIED WITH THE AMOUNT OF TIME IT TAKES TO PERFORM THE RECALL ON THIS VEHICLE.
I'm experiencing the loss of propulsion covered in this bulletin. It's happened around 5 times. https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2020/MC-10176614-9999.pdf The malfunction indicator lamp comes on after each incident and then clears. The problem has been confirmed by a dealer and they are refusing to repair it under either the power train or emission control systems warranty. Losing propulsion is a safety issue, particularly in high speed traffic, and it needs to be fixed.
collided with a deer at 45mph. enough force for airbag deployment. airbag attempted to deploy. I can smell igniter fumes and have smoke in the vehicle however the actual steering wheel bag did not deploy.
The center touchscreen will intermittently freeze when started and not recover when driving. When this occurs the HVAC and radio hard buttons also stop responding which prevents control of the defrost, creating a visibility hazard that could result in a crash. Sometimes the freeze will result in the backup camera remaining on while driving forward. When in reverse the freeze results in the backup camera guidelines, parking collision warning and rear cross traffic warning being unavailable. Failure of these systems intended to prevent collisions is a safety hazard because unavailability of…
2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV: questions owners ask
Is the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV reliable?
NHTSA data alone cannot rate reliability, but it shows what owners reported. Owners filed 178 complaints with NHTSA about the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV; the most common categories were electrical system (85, 47.8%), steering (46, 25.8%), fuel/propulsion system (44, 24.7%). There are 6 safety recalls. 2 complaints mention a crash, 10 mention a fire, 5 injuries were reported.
What are the most common problems with the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV?
Across 178 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the categories mentioned most often are electrical system (47.8% of complaints), steering (25.8% of complaints), fuel/propulsion system (24.7% of complaints), power train (7.3% of complaints), forward collision avoidance (2.8% of complaints). One complaint can name several components.
Does the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV have any recalls?
Yes. NHTSA lists 6 recalls for the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV; the most recent (campaign 23V845000, 2023-12-14) concerns Structure: Body: Roof And Pillars. 2 recalls carry a "do not drive" or "park outside" warning from the manufacturer. Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer; check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Have any 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles caught fire?
24 of the 178 owner complaints NHTSA has on file for the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV (13.5%) describe the car catching fire or melting wiring. 4 related recalls exist: campaign 23V845000 (structure: body: roof and pillars). The fix: Dealers will inspect both front seat belt pretensioners and, if necessary, install metal foil at the carpet near the pretensioner exhaust. One owner wrote: "The car's AC, which cools the battery stopped working. The vehicle says to be serviced immidiately but Chevrolet has not found a local dealer or mechanic in Puerto Rico (where my car is currently situated) that can service it." (NHTSA complaint 11449521, January 2022). Recall repairs are free at a dealer; check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Why does my 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV smell of burning or smoke?
6 of the 178 owner complaints NHTSA has on file for the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV (3.4%) describe a burning smell or smoke. 4 related recalls exist: campaign 23V845000 (structure: body: roof and pillars). The fix: Dealers will inspect both front seat belt pretensioners and, if necessary, install metal foil at the carpet near the pretensioner exhaust. One owner wrote: "Chevy bolt finished changing and then started to smoke from under the car. the sound of popping noises were heard and then 10 minutes later the car was engulfed in flames. the cars battery pack starting popping then exploded in flames." (NHTSA complaint 11364692, October 2020). Recall repairs are free at a dealer; check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Why is the battery range dropping on my 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV?
6 of the 178 owner complaints NHTSA has on file for the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV (3.4%) describe electric range loss or high-voltage battery degradation. One owner wrote: "We have known that these cars have defective batteries for at least 8 months. GM has had plenty of time to fix the issue but they've waited around, endangering many and limiting the amount we can drive without being tethered to a charger." (NHTSA complaint 11426206, July 2021). If it happens to your car, check your VIN for open recalls at nhtsa.gov/recalls and report the problem to NHTSA; complaints are what trigger investigations.
Check your own Bolt EV
Counts are a starting point, not a verdict: popular models collect more complaints because more of them are on the road, and NHTSA does not verify individual reports. To see whether a recall is still open on your car, enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls (U.S.) or your registration at check-vehicle-recalls.service.gov.uk (UK). Had a safety problem? Report it to NHTSA; complaints are what trigger investigations and recalls.
Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation recall and complaint databases (public domain), EU Safety Gate alerts (© European Union), retrieved October 25, 2026. Model year 2019 only.