2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV problems & reliability
175 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV, alongside 6 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
2 complaints report injuries (5 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles were involved in 1 fatal crash with 1 occupant death. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical System | 85 | 49% |
| Steering | 45 | 26% |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 44 | 25% |
| Unknown OR Other | 20 | 11% |
| Power Train | 13 | 7% |
| Forward Collision Avoidance | 5 | 3% |
| Service Brakes | 4 | 2% |
| Visibility/wiper | 4 | 2% |
| Air Bags | 3 | 2% |
| Lane Departure | 3 | 2% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 13,658 miles (middle 50% between 4,414 and 24,750 miles), based on 32 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Steering wheel does not return to center after making a turn. Over time the steering rack fails leading to a steering wheel that will not return to center even when force is applied to wheel. The dealership is charging $3-4k to fix this safety issue.”
Steering · filed Jun 13, 2026
“when driving my car from the airport at Bradley International in CT (parked for a week), I experienced a terrible vibration in the steering wheel which has been intermittent. The vibration went away at lower speeds. I brought the car in to the shop on 5/18/2026 with 74,000 miles on the car. They told me I had to…”
Service Brakes · filed May 18, 2026
“The steering wheel takes more effort to turn than it should and does not return to center after making a turn. It has been like this since I bought the car used, and I did not realize until recently that it should not be like this. Comments on some online forums indicate that this is a common issue with Chevy Bolts…”
Steering · filed May 12, 2026
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- Pedestrian alert sounds
Defect Petition DP22005 · opened Jan 27, 2023 · closed Aug 7, 2023 · led to recall 22V063000
- Electric Vehicle Battery Fires
Preliminary Evaluation PE20016 · opened Oct 9, 2020 · closed Feb 7, 2022 · led to recall 21V650000
Technical service bulletins
627 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV. The 10 most recent:
PI to help diagnose A/C concern
PIT5099J · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 21, 2026
This preliminary information communicates information about how to determine if a wheel and tires size change is available.
PIT3271Q · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 1, 2026
This Preliminary information communicates the steps on how to save a GDS2 Session Log and upload to a Technical Assistance Case in CX Connect.
PIP6104 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 9, 2026
This preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email GDS2 session logs into Technical Assistance.
PIP4902V · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 9, 2026
Certain vehicles may have been sold with a GM NACS Level 2 EV charging adapter (NACS to J1772) in which a quality issue was identified. Dealers are to provide the customer with the latest design charging adapter.
N252541510 · Service Campaign · issued Mar 3, 2026
This Preliminary information communicates to the field on how to diagnosis a GPS issue with the Telematic module with no DTC'ss
PIT6425D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 2, 2026
This Preliminary information communicates to the field on how to diagnosis a GPS issue with the Telematic module with no DTC's
PIT6425C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 16, 2026
This preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email GDS2 session logs into Technical Assistance.
PIP4902U · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 8, 2026
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that have had multiple repair attempts that are being performed on customer’s vehicles that exhibit vibration conditions…
PIT5214G · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 20, 2025
This Preliminary information communicates to the field on how to diagnosis a GPS issue with the Telematic module with no DTC's
PIT6425B · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 18, 2025
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV has 6 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 13,658 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.