NHTSA Complaint #11298838 — 2018 CHEVROLET BOLT EV

ON FRIDAY, DEC 27, 2019, AS I WAS PARKING IN FRONT OF MY HOUSE, USING "L" MODE, THE CAR SUDDENLY ACCELERATED. IF I HADN'T SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES, THE BOLT WOULD HAVE HIT THE CAR PARKED ABOUT 15 FT AHEAD OF ME. TWO OTHER PEOPLE WERE IN THE CAR AT THE TIME, AND WE ALL SHARED THE PERCEPTION THAT THE CAR HAD SUDDENLY ACCELERATED ON ITS OWN. WE WERE ALL SCARED, AND WE ALL BELIEVE THIS CAR IS UNSAFE. DETAILS: THE CAR WAS CHARGED TO ABOUT 50% CAPACITY, THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE WAS 50F, HUMIDITY AT 65%, THE WEATHER WAS CLEAR, AND THE PAVEMENT WAS DRY. AFTER A 10 MINUTE DRIVE, I PULLED UP ALONG THE CURB IN FRONT MY HOME, AS USUAL, AND HAD NEARLY STOPPED, WHEN SUDDENLY THE CAR LURCHED FORWARD ON ITS OWN. FORTUNATELY, I WAS ABLE TO SLAM ON THE BRAKES AND STOP THE CAR BEFORE IT PLOWED INTO ANOTHER CAR PARKED ABOUT 15 FEET IN FRONT OF WHERE I WAS. I HAD BEEN DRIVING OUR BOLT IN "L" MODE (AUTOMATIC REGENERATIVE-BRAKING), WHICH IS MY HABIT, SO I AM ACCUSTOMED TO THE CHARACTERISTICS OF STOPPING THE CAR IN "L" MODE. I HAVE TRIED TO REPLICATE THIS BEHAVIOR BY THE CAR SINCE, BUT SO FAR HAVE BEEN UNABLE. THIS WAS NOT A CASE OF MISTAKENLY PRESSING THE ACCELERATOR, BECAUSE IN "L" MODE (WHERE I PARKED), THE CAR WILL STOP BY ITSELF, JUST BY EASING MY FOOT OFF OF THE ACCELERATOR. AND NOTE THAT I QUICKLY STEPPED ON THE BRAKE. I TOOK THE CAR TO A GM DEALERSHIP, AND THEY DIDN'T FIND A PROBLEM IN THE OBD CODES. THEY SAID THEY WOULD SEND DETAILED LOGS TO GM. BUT IT HAS BEEN OVER A WEEK, AND GM HAS YET TO CONTACT ME. THIS CAR FREQUENTLY HAS OTHER PROBLEMS THAT APPEAR TO BE DUE TO COMPUTER SYSTEMS, INCLUDING: - PROBLEMS STARTING - PROBLEMS CHARGING - THE CENTER CONSOLE DISPLAY FREEZING, LEADING TO: CAMERAS REMAINING ON WHILE I DRIVE, OR LOSS OF HVAC CONTROLS SEE A SIMILAR REPORT AT: HTTPS://WWW.NHTSA.GOV/VEHICLE/2018/CHEVROLET/BOLT#COMPLAINTS ISSUE # 11270898