Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade:
A
B
C
D
F
ungraded
What breaks on a 2015 Chevrolet Spark EV
Every complaint is filed against a part. Follow any row for the complaints about that part alone.
Brakes
550.0%
Median failure at 12,198 miles
Stability & Traction Control
330.0%
Median failure at 30,000 miles
Airbags
110.0%
Median failure at 35,000 miles
Transmission & Drivetrain
110.0%
Median failure at 13,000 miles
When it fails
Odometer readings owners gave when they filed. About half of all
complaints include one.
1,000 – 9,999 miles
220.0%
10,000 – 24,999 miles
440.0%
25,000 – 49,999 miles
440.0%
NHTSA investigations into the 2015 Chevrolet Spark EV
An investigation is the step before a recall: the agency has seen enough
complaints to look into a pattern itself. An open one means it thinks
something may be wrong and nothing has been fixed yet.
DP22005Opened 27 Jan 2023Closed 7 Aug 2023ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:PROPULSION SYSTEM
Pedestrian alert sounds
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after Marc...
Recalls on the 2015 Chevrolet Spark EV
A complaint is one owner's allegation. A recall is the point at which
the manufacturer or a regulator agreed the defect is real and dangerous
enough to fix for free — however old the car is.
Canada — Transport Canada
Canada runs its own recall programme, and its campaigns do not
always mirror the American ones.
Recall 20224776,275 units in Canada
Structure
Issue: Over time, corrosion could cause the secondary hood latch to stick in the open position. If this happens and the primary hood latch doesn't engage or is released, the hood can open suddenly while driving. Note: This recall replaces 14456 (Transport Canada recall 2014-422). Vehicles repaired under that recall also require this repair. Safety Risk: A hood that opens suddenly while driving can block the driver's view and increase the risk of a crash. Corrective Actions: General Motors will notify owners by mail and instruct you to take your vehicle to a dealership to replace the hood striker assembly and hood latch assembly.
Recall 2016439362,263 units in Canada
Airbag
On certain vehicles, the sensing and diagnostic module (SDM), which controls airbag and pretensioner deployment, contains a software defect which may prevent the deployment of frontal airbags and pretensioners in certain circumstances. Failure of frontal airbags and seatbelt pretensioners to deploy in a crash (when warranted) could increase the risk of injury. Correction: Dealers will reflash the SDM with new software. In vehicles with any previous deployment events recorded in the SDM, the dealers will replace the existing SDM with a new SDM containing the latest software. Note: This recall affects 2014-2017 model year Sierra LD/Silverado LD models and 2015-2016 model year Sierra HD/Silverado HD model vehicles.
In the owners' own words, exactly as filed with NHTSA.
at 13,000 milesPortland, OR
POWER TRAIN
CONTEXT: IT WAS A WET EVENING HERE IN PORTLAND, OR (8:15PM PDT, APRIL 13TH) AND I WAS GETTING NEW TIRES THE FOLLOWING WEEK, SO I DIDN'T CARE ABOUT THE LONGEVITY OF THE TIRES. ALSO, WHAT I EXPERIENCED WAS SOMETHING I READ ONLINE BEFORE BUYING THE SPARK. I MADE A LEGAL U-TURN TO GET TO THE ENTRANCE OF FRED MEYER (A KROGER STORE) AND HIT THE ACCELERATOR HARD ENOUGH (~60% THROTTLE) TO SPIN THE TIRES AND THE TRACTION CONTROL ACTIVATED. I THEN SAW THE SEMI-HIDDEN ENTRANCE AND HIT THE BRAKES HARD MAKE A RIGHTHAND TURN INTO FRED MEYER. THE BRAKES ENGAGED (W/ ABS) THEN DISENGAGED AFTER ~.3 SECONDS. IT FELT LIKE THE MOTOR WAS REGEN'ING SLIGHTLY BUT THE MECHANICAL BRAKES WERE NOT ENGAGED. I STARTED TO PUMP THE BRAKES. ABOUT 4 PUMPS AND ~60 FEET LATER, THE BRAKES ENGAGED. I DID NOT MAKE MY TURN AND NO ONE GOT HURT. HERE'S A NOTE I RECEIVED FROM A LADY ON A CHEVY SPARK EV FACEBOOK GROUP: MY HUSBAND (AND AUTOMOTIVE ELECTRICAL ENGINEER) EXPLAINS HOW THIS IS PISS-POOR SOFTWARE PROGRAMMING ON GM'S PART. THIS ALL HAS TO DO WITH WHAT THE SYSTEM DOES WHEN PRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL IF SOMETHING LIKE THE ABS MODULE OR OTHER HARDWARE ISN'T FUNCTIONING. WHAT HE EXPLAINS IS HAPPENING IS INSTEAD OF ALLOWING THE NORMAL BRAKING SYSTEM TO CONTINUE TO MODULATE AND FUNCTION, IT JUST SHUTS DOWN. NISSAN EVEN HAD ISSUES WITH BRAKING GOING INTO SOMETHING KNOWN AS 'ICE MODE' AND FAILING. (NOT WIDELY KNOWN OUTSIDE OF THE INDUSTRY) HE ALSO COMPARED THIS TO THE BOEING PLANE CRASH SOFTWARE ISSUE THERE (IN THAT CASE THE SOFTWARE KEPT THINKING THERE WAS ABOUT TO BE A STALL AND WOULD NOSE DIVE TO AVOID IT WHICH IN ITSELF ULTIMATELY CAUSING A CRASH). ESSENTIALLY ALL SPARK EVS HAVE THIS SAME POTENTIAL BUT ONLY SOME SEEM TO BE AFFECTED (ALL DEPENDS ON IF A COMPONENT IN THE SYSTEM FAILS OR NOT--- THAT'S WHEN THE TROUBLE STARTS BECAUSE WHOEVER DID THAT SOFTWARE CODING AND TESTING DID A CRAP JOB OF IT).
NHTSA complaint #11204223 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 13,000 milesPortland, OR
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)
CONTEXT: IT WAS A WET EVENING HERE IN PORTLAND, OR (8:15PM PDT, APRIL 13TH) AND I WAS GETTING NEW TIRES THE FOLLOWING WEEK, SO I DIDN'T CARE ABOUT THE LONGEVITY OF THE TIRES. ALSO, WHAT I EXPERIENCED WAS SOMETHING I READ ONLINE BEFORE BUYING THE SPARK. I MADE A LEGAL U-TURN TO GET TO THE ENTRANCE OF FRED MEYER (A KROGER STORE) AND HIT THE ACCELERATOR HARD ENOUGH (~60% THROTTLE) TO SPIN THE TIRES AND THE TRACTION CONTROL ACTIVATED. I THEN SAW THE SEMI-HIDDEN ENTRANCE AND HIT THE BRAKES HARD MAKE A RIGHTHAND TURN INTO FRED MEYER. THE BRAKES ENGAGED (W/ ABS) THEN DISENGAGED AFTER ~.3 SECONDS. IT FELT LIKE THE MOTOR WAS REGEN'ING SLIGHTLY BUT THE MECHANICAL BRAKES WERE NOT ENGAGED. I STARTED TO PUMP THE BRAKES. ABOUT 4 PUMPS AND ~60 FEET LATER, THE BRAKES ENGAGED. I DID NOT MAKE MY TURN AND NO ONE GOT HURT. HERE'S A NOTE I RECEIVED FROM A LADY ON A CHEVY SPARK EV FACEBOOK GROUP: MY HUSBAND (AND AUTOMOTIVE ELECTRICAL ENGINEER) EXPLAINS HOW THIS IS PISS-POOR SOFTWARE PROGRAMMING ON GM'S PART. THIS ALL HAS TO DO WITH WHAT THE SYSTEM DOES WHEN PRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL IF SOMETHING LIKE THE ABS MODULE OR OTHER HARDWARE ISN'T FUNCTIONING. WHAT HE EXPLAINS IS HAPPENING IS INSTEAD OF ALLOWING THE NORMAL BRAKING SYSTEM TO CONTINUE TO MODULATE AND FUNCTION, IT JUST SHUTS DOWN. NISSAN EVEN HAD ISSUES WITH BRAKING GOING INTO SOMETHING KNOWN AS 'ICE MODE' AND FAILING. (NOT WIDELY KNOWN OUTSIDE OF THE INDUSTRY) HE ALSO COMPARED THIS TO THE BOEING PLANE CRASH SOFTWARE ISSUE THERE (IN THAT CASE THE SOFTWARE KEPT THINKING THERE WAS ABOUT TO BE A STALL AND WOULD NOSE DIVE TO AVOID IT WHICH IN ITSELF ULTIMATELY CAUSING A CRASH). ESSENTIALLY ALL SPARK EVS HAVE THIS SAME POTENTIAL BUT ONLY SOME SEEM TO BE AFFECTED (ALL DEPENDS ON IF A COMPONENT IN THE SYSTEM FAILS OR NOT--- THAT'S WHEN THE TROUBLE STARTS BECAUSE WHOEVER DID THAT SOFTWARE CODING AND TESTING DID A CRAP JOB OF IT).
NHTSA complaint #11204223 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 35,000 milesDavenport, FL
AIR BAGS
ON STATIONARY CAR START, SIMULTANEOUSLY RECEIVED A SERVICE AIRBAG WARNING AND SERVICE STABILITRAK WARNING.
NHTSA complaint #11194322 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 35,000 milesDavenport, FL
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)
ON STATIONARY CAR START, SIMULTANEOUSLY RECEIVED A SERVICE AIRBAG WARNING AND SERVICE STABILITRAK WARNING.
NHTSA complaint #11194322 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 30,000 milesSoquel, CA
SERVICE BRAKES
WHILE DRIVING NORMALLY, THE "SERVICE STABILITRAC" WARNING APPEARS FOLLOWED IMMEDIATELY BY A "SERVICE BRAKE ASSIST" WARNING. THEN THE BRAKE PEDAL REQUIRES EXTREME EFFORT TO SLOW OR STOP THE CAR. THE REGENERATIVE BRAKING IS ALSO DISABLED. AFTER STOPPING THE CAR, THE CAR CAN BE TURNED OFF AND THEN BACK ON WHEREUPON THE BRAKES WILL BE WORKING NORMALLY. THE WARNINGS AND LOSS OF BRAKING ASSIST MAY STAY AWAY FOR A PERIOD OF 1 MINUTE OR UP TO 1 WEEK OR MORE. IT APPEARS TO BE VERY RANDOM. FORTUNATELY, NONE OF THE OCCURRENCES HAVE RESULTED IN A CRASH, BUT THERE HAVE BEEN SCARED DRIVERS AND PASSENGERS. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THIS PART (THE DEALER BLAMES THE BPMV AND IS NOW PUTTING THE FOURTH ONE ON MY CAR) HAS BEEN AT THE DEALER. THE SECOND ONE WAS APPARENTLY LEAKING WHEN INSTALLED. THIS WORK WAS PERFORMED AT MOMENTUM CHEVROLET IN SAN JOSE, CA. THE PROBLEM OCCURS WHEN THE CAR IS IN MOTION, TYPICALLY AT 20-50 MPH, AS THAT IS WHAT MOST OF MY DRIVING CONSISTS OF. THERE IS A FORUM THREAD ON THIS SUBJECT AT CHEVY SPARK EV FORUM. OTHER DRIVERS HAVE DESCRIBED MULTIPLE EVENTS IDENTICAL TO MINE. [XXX] PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
NHTSA complaint #11076657 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 30,000 milesSoquel, CA
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)
WHILE DRIVING NORMALLY, THE "SERVICE STABILITRAC" WARNING APPEARS FOLLOWED IMMEDIATELY BY A "SERVICE BRAKE ASSIST" WARNING. THEN THE BRAKE PEDAL REQUIRES EXTREME EFFORT TO SLOW OR STOP THE CAR. THE REGENERATIVE BRAKING IS ALSO DISABLED. AFTER STOPPING THE CAR, THE CAR CAN BE TURNED OFF AND THEN BACK ON WHEREUPON THE BRAKES WILL BE WORKING NORMALLY. THE WARNINGS AND LOSS OF BRAKING ASSIST MAY STAY AWAY FOR A PERIOD OF 1 MINUTE OR UP TO 1 WEEK OR MORE. IT APPEARS TO BE VERY RANDOM. FORTUNATELY, NONE OF THE OCCURRENCES HAVE RESULTED IN A CRASH, BUT THERE HAVE BEEN SCARED DRIVERS AND PASSENGERS. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THIS PART (THE DEALER BLAMES THE BPMV AND IS NOW PUTTING THE FOURTH ONE ON MY CAR) HAS BEEN AT THE DEALER. THE SECOND ONE WAS APPARENTLY LEAKING WHEN INSTALLED. THIS WORK WAS PERFORMED AT MOMENTUM CHEVROLET IN SAN JOSE, CA. THE PROBLEM OCCURS WHEN THE CAR IS IN MOTION, TYPICALLY AT 20-50 MPH, AS THAT IS WHAT MOST OF MY DRIVING CONSISTS OF. THERE IS A FORUM THREAD ON THIS SUBJECT AT CHEVY SPARK EV FORUM. OTHER DRIVERS HAVE DESCRIBED MULTIPLE EVENTS IDENTICAL TO MINE. [XXX] PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
NHTSA complaint #11076657 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 6,200 milesPortland, OR
SERVICE BRAKES
COMPLETE BRAKE FAILURE WITH MY 17 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER DRIVING. SHE NEEDED TO SWERVE INTO A CURVE TO SLOW DOWN BEFORE APPROACHING BUSY INTERSECTION. WE KNOW OF AT LEAST 4 OTHER IDENTICAL ISSUES WITH BRAKE FAILURE AT OUR DEALERSHIP ALONE WITH ONE OWNER HAVING BRAKE FAILURE 3 SEPARATE TIMES ON THE SAME 2015 CHEVY SPARK. THEY REPLACED HER 2015 WITH A 2016 AND HAD THE SAME BRAKE FAILURE IN HER NEW CAR.
NHTSA complaint #10947950 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 12,198 milesPortland, OR
SERVICE BRAKES
THERE WAS A "SERVICE STABILTRAC" WARNING FOLLOWED IMMEDIATELY BY A "SERVICE BRAKE ASSIST" WARNING MESSAGE. IMMEDIATELY AFTERWARDS THERE WAS A TOTAL BRAKE FAILURE WHILE IN MOTION ON A HIGHWAY (APPROX. 50-60 MPH).
NHTSA complaint #10945276 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 15,977 milesPortland, OR
SERVICE BRAKES
TWO WARNINGS FLASHED: "SERVICE STABILITRAC" FOLLOWED BY "SERVICE BRAKE ASSIST." IMMEDIATELY AFTERWARDS THERE WAS A COMPLETE BRAKE FAILURE WHILE IN MOTION ON A CITY STREET. LUCKILY WE WERE ON A SLIGHT INCLINE AND THERE WASN'T MUCH TRAFFIC SO WE WERE ABLE TO SAFELY NAVIGATE THE CAR INTO A PARKING LOT AND STOP BY HITTING A CURB. OTHERWISE, I DON'T WANT TO SPECULATE ON WHAT MIGHT HAVE HAPPENED.
NHTSA complaint #10945277 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
at 5,770 milesPortland, OR
SERVICE BRAKES
THERE WAS A "SERVICE BRAKE ASSIST" WARNING THAT FLASHED AND IMMEDIATELY AFTERWARDS THERE WAS A BRAKE FAILURE WHILE IN MOTION. THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT DOWN TO THE FLOOR AND WE WERE UNABLE TO STOP ON A CITY STREET.
NHTSA complaint #10945275 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.