2015 Chevrolet Volt

A "service brakes" warning came up when I was parked in a parking lot and immediately afterwards the brakes stopped working when I was reversing in the parking lot and I almost backed up into another car. I had my car towed to Paradise Chevrolet and they diagnosed the problem as a faulty "brake pressure modulator valve" (BPMV) that needs to be replaced. I saw that there is a recall for the 2012 Chevy Volt for the same issue, faulty BPMV.

Driving 75mph with cruise control during moderate traffic on freeway about 30 minutes after starting the car, my Volt shut off. There was a jolt of the car that felt like strong breaking and my dash along with everything electrical shut off for about 2 seconds then kicked back on with "Service Theft Deterent" on dash. I could not break or steer the vehicle. I had to come to a rolling stop on shoulder of freeway. Luckily I was in toll lane #1 next to the shoulder or I might have been in a wreck with other cars. I have a check engine light on now and a scheduled appointment at Chevy dealer made prior to today for tomorrow. I have had an issue with my Volt not charging at home/work for a few weeks. No breakers pop, the vehicle just wont complete the charge. The battery was replaced a week ago, driven over 250 miles with new battery, and it is still not charging properly. I have no messages on my vehicle regarding battery, engine, etc. Just the check engine light lit up.

THIS VEHICLE HAS 84,500 MILES ON IT AS OF JUNE 2020. I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER. DURING A STATE MANDATED SAFETY INSPECTION IN JUNE 2020, BOTH OEM OUTBOARD REAR BRAKE SHOES WERE FOUND TO HAVE SEPARATED INTO 2 PIECES AND FAILED INSPECTION. THE SEMI-METALLIC BRAKE PAD HAD SEPARATED FROM ITS METAL BACKING PLATE. I BELIEVE THE TWO PARTS OF THE BRAKE PAD ASSEMBLY ARE HELD TOGETHER WITH AN ADHESIVE, AND THE ADHESIVE FAILED ON BOTH PADS IN SIMILAR FASHION. AN INTERNET SEARCH REVEALED THAT THIS BRAKE PAD SEPARATION HAS OCCURRED TO A NUMBER OF CHEVY VOLT VEHICLES. REGENERATIVE ELECTRIC BRAKING MEANS THAT THE HYDRAULIC BRAKES (AND THUS THE BRAKE PADS) ARE RARELY USED ON THIS VEHICLE. THE BRAKES HAD NEVER BEEN SERVICED ON THIS VEHICLE, SO THE PADS WERE OEM. I HAVE RETAINED THE BRAKE PADS FOR REVIEW OR ANALYSIS.

WE BOUGHT A USED CERTIFIED CALIFORNIA LEMON FROM A CHEVY DEALER IN WISCONSIN 2 YEARS AGO. THEY CLAIMED THE CAR CAME FROM CALIFORNIA AND RESULT OF ITS 3 STRIKE LEMON LAW. THEY CLAIMED THE BRAKE SYSTEM HAD BEEN TOTALLY REPLACED. AS OF TODAY WE HAVE HAD TOTAL BRAKE FAILURE TWICE, FIRST TIME THEY AGAIN REPLACED THE COMPLETE BRAKE SYSTEM. RIGHT NOT THE CAR IS AT THE DEALER, WAITING TO HERE BACK. THE DEALER CLAIMS THIS IS THE SECOND VOLT THIS WEEK WITH THE SAME ISSUE. TO OUR KNOWLEDGE THIS HAS NOW HAPPENED 5 TIMES WITH OUR CAR, TWICE WITH US AND THREE TIMES PRIOR IN CALIFORNIA.

ON MAY 13TH, APPROX. 11:10AM, CLEAR AND SUNNY 75F REDONDO BEACH, CA. I ENTERED THE VOLT TO BACK OUT DOWN A DOWNWARD SLOPING DRIVEWAY. I POWERED MY VOLT UP WITH FOOT ON BRAKE PROCEEDED TO SHIFT THE VOLT IN 'R'. AS SOON AS I RELEASED PRESSURE ON THE BRAKE PEDAL I STARTED TO MOVE DOWN THE DRIVEWAY AND PICKING UP SPEED. I APPLIED PRESSURE TO THE BRAKE PEDAL,WHICH FELT MUSHY. AND MY VOLT CONTINUED PICKING UP SPEED AND WOULD NOT STOP. I CONTINUED TO APPLY THE BRAKES, WHICH FELT VERY MUSHY, AND THE VOLT CONTINUED AND CROSSED THE STREET AND IMPACTED THE RESIDENCE DIRECTLY ACROSS TO FINALLY STOP MY VOLT. THE BRAKES FELT EXTREMELY MUSHY EXTENDING ABOUT TO THE FLOOR BUT NOT COMPLETELY TO THE FLOOR. WHEN THIS OCCURRED, I WAS IN BATTERY MODE BUT THE ENGINE WAS ENGAGED AND RUNNING AT HIGH RPM AND HEARD BY ME AND A PASSERBY WHILE THE VOLT WAS MOVING. I CALLED AAA TO PULL ME OUT. I WAS STUCK ON THE TREE AND FRONT STEPS. I CALLED IN THE INCIDENT TO MY INSURANCE COMPANY SO I COULD START THE CLAIM AND HAVE A CLAIM #. POLICE ARRIVED 40 MINUTES LATER TO TAKE A REPORT AND GIVE ME A FIELD SOBRIETY TEST. THAT WAS A LITTLE EMBARRASSING BUT GLAD IT WAS DONE. NOW IT'S DOCUMENTED THAT I WAS TOTALLY SOBER. I'VE READ 1-OR 2 THREADS REGARDING NON-OPERATING MUSHY BRAKES BUT NOTHING ABOUT A VOLT IN R COMING DOWN A SLOPE AND NOT BEING ABLE TO STOP. I CALLED ON-STAR TO SEE IF THEY HAVE A LOG OF CODES GENERATED FROM MY VOLT WITHIN THE LAST 24 HRS AND WAS TOLD NO. I AM VERY GRATEFUL THAT I DID NOT HIT ANOTHER PERSON, ANIMAL OR VEHICLE WHILE NOT BEING IN CONTROL OF A FAST MOVING VOLT CROSSING SIDEWALKS AND A RESIDENTIAL STREET. I HAVE CONTACTED GM ALLEGATIONS AND HAVE A CLAIM #. I AM SUPPOSEDLY TO RECEIVE A CALL BY MONDAY THE 19 TO DISCUSS NEXT STEPS. ANOTHER THING THE 2015 DOES NOT HAVE A EMERGENCY BRAKE BUT A PARKING BRAKE WHICH WILL NOT SLOW THE VEHICLE DOWN IN AN EMERGENCY SITUATION.