Chevrolet
Bolt

Steering has been become stiff at lower speeds and does not return to center. There is also a knocking noise when making turns. Chevrolet dealer has indicated that the steering rack/gear needs to be replaced. Vehicle is at 115,000 miles, and the problem started happening around 112,000 miles. Although the vehicle does have a lot of miles, I've owned vehicles way past 200,000 miles and have never had to replace a steering rack at a cost of over $3,000.

On Thursday, August 14th, while pulling into a parking space my car accellerated speed by itself and the engine sounded like it was reving up loud. I had to slam the brakes to get the car to stop. i narrowly missed hitting two other vehicles.

On Wednesday, July 30, 2025, while driving home from routine shopping errands, I suddenly heard a loud “pop” from above the vehicle. Importantly, there was no collision, no debris, no road hazard, and no indication that anything had struck the vehicle. I was not involved in any incident that could have caused external damage. When I pulled into my garage and inspected the vehicle, I immediately noticed severe damage to the sunroof: Multiple large cracks radiating across the glass Shattered and fractured areas near the center A small hole in the glass with loose shards visibly protruding outward, suggesting that the force originated from inside the panel Loose glass pieces resting above the interior fabric sunroof shade, which fortunately prevented debris from falling into the cabin The outward-facing damage pattern is critical: it clearly indicates the sunroof did not break due to an object hitting it from the outside, but rather due to internal pressure, stress, or a structural failure in the glass—likely a manufacturing defect or flaw in materials. I documented the damage with both photos and video from above the sunroof, capturing the direction of the glass break and the area affected. This was an unprovoked, spontaneous failure under normal driving conditions and poses a serious safety concern. Given these facts—lack of impact, direction of the force, supporting evidence, and the coverage of my extended warranty—this should reasonably be considered a warranty-covered issue due to product defect or failure. I brought my vehicle to my nearest Chevrolet dealership on Saturday 8/1 for their inspection. No action on their part was taken. Follow-up with the service manager confirmed they would not fix / non warranty issue. Driving home from the service appointment, shards of glass broke loose from the sunroof. This created an immediate and serious driving hazard—not only to me and my passengers, but to other drivers and potentially even pedestrians.

Three times while using the Adaptive Cruise Control, the car applied the brakes without cause (“phantom braking”.) Two of the times there were cars behind me that could have rear ended me given the unexpected, rapid deceleration. The problem has not been reviewed by the car dealer (because they won’t return my calls.). No other parties have inspected. No warning lamps or messages. Incident dates: 5/9/2025, 6/22/2025, and 7/19/2025.

Steering wheel would bind up when returning to center after turning, requiring sudden additional force to go in the intended direction. Occurred on a regular basis, verified by the dealer and required steering gear replacement. Steering was also generally stiffer than normal.

steering wheel does not return to center after a turn. I have to force center the wheel after a turn. This is a common issue known to bolt euv owners online and should be a recall by the manufacturer due to poor steering rack build.

Steering does not return to center after making turns at slower speeds. Upon reviewing complaints from numerous other Chevrolet Bolt owners it appears to be a faulty steering rack that needs to be replaced.

The steering does not return to center at lower speeds. This appears to be a very common problem affecting these cars after about 40k miles due to faulty part. Repair can cost $3k. Worried that the steering could lock up and cause an accident. My wife didn't even notice until I drove her car and brought it up. Some people could be driving for years without knowing.