2016 Chevrolet Volt: owner complaints and recalls
Analysis of 169 owner complaints filed with NHTSA and 1 recall campaigns. Updated 2026-07-25.
169
Complaints
1
Recalls
2
Crash reports
1
Fire reports
1
Injuries
13.0
Severity index
Severity index 13.0 - Low. This weights crashes, fires, injuries and fatalities per 100 complaints; see methodology.
Among the 140 2016 vehicles we track with at least 40 complaints on file, the 2016 Chevrolet Volt ranks 139 of 140 by severity, where 1 is the worst. Its severity is higher than 1% of its model-year peers. See the full 2016 ranking.
What actually fails
| Component | Complaints | Share of complaints citing it |
|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 77 | 45.6% |
| FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 63 | 37.3% |
| POWER TRAIN | 51 | 30.2% |
| ENGINE | 48 | 28.4% |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 20 | 11.8% |
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 6 | 3.6% |
| SERVICE BRAKES | 4 | 2.4% |
| ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) | 3 | 1.8% |
The single most-reported system is ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, cited in 77 of 169 complaints (45.6%). One complaint can name several systems, so these shares overlap and do not total 100%.
Complaints filed per year
| Year | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 |
| 2017 | 2 |
| 2018 | 3 |
| 2019 | 13 |
| 2020 | 29 |
| 2021 | 15 |
| 2022 | 12 |
| 2023 | 16 |
| 2024 | 51 |
| 2025 | 11 |
| 2026 (year to date) | 13 |
Complaint volume is rising - the last three years carry 1.4x the filings of the three before them, which usually signals a wear-related defect surfacing with age.
Recall campaigns
| Campaign | Reported | Component | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17V621000 | 05/10/2017 | AIR BAGS:FRONTAL | General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2016 GMC Canyon and Chevrolet Colorado, and 2016 Chevrolet Volt vehicles. The driver's frontal air bag may improperly inflate during second-stage deployment in the event of a high speed crash. |
Source. US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration public complaint and recall APIs (api.nhtsa.gov), retrieved 2026-07-25. Complaints are unverified consumer reports; volume is influenced by how many units were sold and how long the vehicle has been on the road. Not affiliated with NHTSA or any manufacturer.