NHTSA Complaint #11456830 — 2018 CHEVROLET BOLT EV

It appears the steering rack is binding up. On sweeping corners at moderate speed (30-50mph) the steering wheel must forcefully be returned to center, regardless of direction and wants to turn a little further into the corner, the driver must always forcefully maintain control of the wheel at moderate speeds. The car has recently had a 4 wheel alignment, and steers straight otherwise. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. The failure may put drivers at risk if they are not able to overcome the force required to straighten the wheel (which is far beyond the typical force required to drive a car with power steering) or are inattentive to the behavior. The vehicle has not yet been diagnosed by an independent service center. I have diagnosed it myself by putting the vehicle up on jack stands. With the front wheels off the ground, and the steering column disconnected from the steering rack, you can feel that the steering rack has bound up. While gripping the sides of the wheels, with them off the ground, and the steering column disconnected, the wheels are very difficult to steer, and you can feel the rack skips and jumps discontinuously. I will have the failure inspected by a GM dealer within the next few weeks as time allows. There are no warning lamps or messages. The primary symptom is that the steering wheel does no return to center upon exiting turns. This is a discussed failure on the Bolt EV forums & internet here: https://www.chevybolt.org/threads/steering-wheel-not-centering-after-a-turn.33873/ https://www.carproblemzoo.com/chevrolet/boltev/2017/steering-problems.php https://www.carproblemzoo.com/chevrolet/boltev/steering-problems.php https://www.chevybolt.org/threads/2018-chevy-bolt-46k-miles-needs-steering-rack-3k-dollar-repair.37332/page-2#post-701932 https://www.chevybolt.org/threads/steering-rack-oil-leak.28129/