I've had plenty of Chevrolet in the bay over the years, and the electrical-system complaints on these don't surprise me. 14,815 on the NHTSA record across 283 model-year entries (2005–2025) is not a fluke. The complaints are spread across the lineup — no single model is doing all the work. That tells you it's an engineering or supplier pattern, not a one-off bad year. 17 fatality reports on file with NHTSA tied to this category on Chevrolet vehicles. That elevates this from nuisance to safety-critical. Average shop fix runs about $850 — not catastrophic, but it adds up over time. Across the 8,722 complaints reporting odometer mileage, the median failure lands at about 69,019 miles. Read the specific complaints before assuming the worst — the category covers everything from a forty-dollar switch to a twenty-five-hundred-dollar module.
ProblemsByVin CHEVROLET / ELECTRICAL
283 model-year entries · 2005–2025
Chevrolet electrical problems
14,815 owner complaints filed with NHTSA against Chevrolet vehicles for electrical issues. 151 active recall campaigns. See electrical across all makes →
Complaints
14,815
Recalls
151
Year-models
283
Avg fix
$850
288crashes
653fires
289injuries
17fatalities
Worst-affected Chevrolet model-years for electrical Top 25 by complaint volume
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer
590 complaints · ~$850 moderate
2005 Chevrolet Silverado
336 complaints · ~$850 critical
2005 Chevrolet Impala
293 complaints · 1 recall · ~$850 moderate
2013 Chevrolet Malibu
284 complaints · 3 recalls · ~$850 severe
2009 Chevrolet Malibu
250 complaints · 1 recall · ~$850 moderate
2012 Chevrolet Malibu
237 complaints · 1 recall · ~$850 severe
2006 Chevrolet Trailblazer
236 complaints · 2 recalls · ~$850 critical
2006 Chevrolet Cobalt
229 complaints · 2 recalls · ~$850 critical
2017 Chevrolet Volt
224 complaints · ~$850 severe
2010 Chevrolet Malibu
215 complaints · 1 recall · ~$850 moderate
2005 Chevrolet Cavalier
198 complaints · ~$850 moderate
2009 Chevrolet Impala
194 complaints · 1 recall · ~$850 severe
2011 Chevrolet Malibu
189 complaints · 1 recall · ~$850 severe
2008 Chevrolet Impala
189 complaints · 1 recall · ~$850 severe
2007 Chevrolet Cobalt
185 complaints · 2 recalls · ~$850 critical
2014 Chevrolet Impala
184 complaints · 3 recalls · ~$850 moderate
2005 Chevrolet Cobalt
180 complaints · 2 recalls · ~$850 severe
2007 Chevrolet Trailblazer
179 complaints · 2 recalls · ~$850 severe
2005 Chevrolet Malibu
173 complaints · 1 recall · ~$850 critical
2014 Chevrolet Silverado
168 complaints · 4 recalls · ~$850 severe
2008 Chevrolet Malibu
168 complaints · 1 recall · ~$850 moderate
2016 Chevrolet Malibu
166 complaints · 2 recalls · ~$850 critical
2006 Chevrolet HHR
142 complaints · 2 recalls · ~$850 critical
2019 Chevrolet Silverado
139 complaints · ~$850 moderate
2017 Chevrolet Malibu
137 complaints · ~$850 moderate
Active recalls — Chevrolet electrical 12 on file
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Chevrolet Bolt EV and 2022 Bolt EUV vehicles previously repaired under Recall 21V-650
A battery fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to take the following interim steps: Set the Target Charge Level feature in their vehicle to limit the charge level to 90%, charge their vehicle more frequently, avoid depleting the battery to 70 miles range remaining, park outside after charging, and do not charge the vehicle indoors overnight. Dealers will reinstall advanced diagnostic software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 3, 2024. Owners may contact the Bolt EV Concierge Team at 1-833-382-4389. GM's number for this recall is N242470160.
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Chevrolet Bolt EV and 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EUV vehicles that were previously remedied under recall number 21V-650
A battery fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to take the following interim steps: Set the Target Charge Level feature in their vehicle to limit the charge level to 90%, charge their vehicle more frequently, avoid depleting the battery to 70 miles range remaining, park outside after charging, and do not charge the vehicle indoors overnight. Dealers will reinstall the advanced diagnostic software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on August 1, 2024. Owners may contact the Bolt EV Concierge Team at 1-833-382-4389. GM's numbers for this recall are N242443000 and N242443002.
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2023 Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon vehicles
Unexpected automatic emergency braking can cause the vehicle to abruptly stop or slow down, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will update the front camera module (FCM) software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 5, 2024. Owners may contact GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is A232424660.
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2024 Buick Encore GX, Envista, and Chevrolet Trax vehicles
A blank instrument panel will not show critical information, such as vehicle speed and warning lights, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: The VCU software will be updated by a dealer or through an over-the-air (OTA) update, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 4, 2023. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is A232424320.
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Chevrolet Bolt EV and 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EUV vehicles
A battery fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to take the following interim steps: Set the Target Charge Level feature in their vehicle to limit the charge level to 90%, charge their vehicle more frequently, avoid depleting the battery to 70 miles range remaining, park outside after charging, and do not charge the vehicle indoors overnight. Defective battery modules will be replaced by GM, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on October 1, 2021 and June 23, 2023. Owners may contact the Bolt EV Concierge Team at 1-833-382-4389. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall 21V-560. GM's number for this recall is N212345940.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles previously recalled under NHTSA recall number 20V-701
A battery fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: Owners are advised to take the following interim steps: Activate either the Hill Top Reserve (2017 and 2018 models) or Target Charge Level (2019 models) feature in their vehicle to limit the charge level to 90%, charge their vehicle more frequently, avoid depleting the battery to 70 miles range remaining, park outside after charging, and do not charge the vehicle indoors overnight. Defective battery modules will be replaced by GM, free of charge. Interim notification letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on August 13, 2021. Owner notification letters were mailed on August 13, 2021. Owners may contact the Bolt EV Concierge Team at 1-833-382-4389. GM's number for this recall is N212343880.
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2021 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana vehicles equipped with 6
A short-circuit can increase the risk of a fire.
Fix: Owners are advised to park their vehicles outside and away from structures until the repair is complete. GM will notify owners, and dealers will remove a portion of the anti-rotation tab on both positive battery cable terminals near the fuse block assembly attachments, free of charge. If too much of the tab had been removed during prior servicing, the battery cable will be replaced, free of charge. The recall began April 16, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N202325160.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling all 2017-2018 and certain 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV vehicles
A battery fire increases the risk of injury.
Fix: This recall has been superseded by recall number 21V-560. Vehicles previously repaired under 20V-701 will still need to have the new remedy under recall 21V-560. GM will notify owners, and as an interim repair, beginning on November 17, 2020, dealers will reprogram the hybrid propulsion control module 2 (HPCM2) to limit the full charge to 90%, free of charge. Owners are advised to activate either the Hill Top Reserve (2017 and 2018 models) or Target Charge Level (2019 models) feature in their vehicle to limit the charge level to 90%, or park outside, until the software update is completed. Owners were notified of the interim repair beginning November 17, 2020. The second notice was mailed on May 11, 2021. Owners may contact the Bolt EV Concierge Team at 1-833-382-4389. GM's number for this recall is N202311730.
Isuzu Technical Center of America, Inc
If the cable is broken and repeated attempts are made to start the vehicle, the starter may ground through the steel braiding of the power steering hose, allowing it to heat up and possibly rupture, increasing the risk of a fire.
Fix: Isuzu and Chevrolet will notify their respective owners and dealers to replace the ground cable and to inspect and replace the power steering hose is damage exists, free of charge. The recall began October 9, 2020. Isuzu owners may contact the Isuzu Customer Relations at 1-866-441-9638 and Chevrolet owners may contact the GM Medium Duty Truck assistance line at 1-800-862-4389. Isuzu's number for this recall is V2004.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Chevrolet Corvette vehicles
An unlatched hood can open when driving above a certain speed, obstructing the driver's forward view and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the software in the vehicle's Body Control Module to limit the vehicle speed to 26 mph when the hood is not completely closed and latched, free of charge. In addition, the operation of the hood release on the key fob will be modified to reduce the likelihood of inadvertent hood release actuations. Owners also may allow the vehicle to be remedied via an Over-The-Air (OTA) software update. The recall began September 24, 2020. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-866-522-9559. GM's number for this recall is N202311160.
General Motors is recalling certain 2019-2020 Chevrolet 4500HD, 5500HD, and 6500HD Medium Duty trucks
If a driver is unaware that the ABS system is malfunctioning, there may be an increased risk of a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the software calibration for the body control module (BCM). The recall began June 29, 2020. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N202305070.
Isuzu Technical Center of America, Inc
Depending on which wires get damaged, the vehicle can experience stalling and/or reduced functionality of the ABS, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Isuzu will notify owners, and dealers will repair or replace the existing wire harness, as necessary, and install additional clamps to ensure the wire harness is secured away from the hanger bracket, free of charge. The recall began May 15, 2020. Owners may contact Isuzu customer service at 1-866-441-9638. Isuzu's number for this recall is V2003.
Common questions
How many Chevrolet electrical complaints are on file with NHTSA?
14,815 complaints across 283 model-year entries from 2005 to 2025. 151 active recall campaigns cover electrical issues across the Chevrolet lineup.
Which Chevrolet model has the most electrical complaints?
The 2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer leads with 590 complaints in this category. Next: 2005 Silverado (336) and 2005 Impala (293).
What does it cost to fix Chevrolet electrical problems?
Independent shops average $850 for electrical repairs across the Chevrolet lineup. Dealer pricing tends to run twenty to forty percent higher. Specific cost depends on the failure mode and parts availability.
Are there Chevrolet electrical recalls?
Yes — 12 active recall campaigns cover electrical on Chevrolet vehicles. Recall fixes are free regardless of mileage or warranty status. The list below shows current campaigns with their NHTSA numbers.
Related
Complaint and recall data sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) public records database.
Editorial commentary written by Mark Driver, an independent contributor to ProblemsByVin
and not affiliated with Chevrolet.
Severity ratings derive from reported crashes, fires, injuries, and fatalities on the NHTSA complaint and recall record.
Repair cost averages reflect independent-shop pricing and may differ in your area.