Buyer Research

2013 Chevrolet Volt — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $6,000–$10,500. There are 4 high-severity known issues you need to know before handing over a check.

Deciding between model years? Compare the 9 Chevrolet Volt years we've written up →

Kestrel Take

308 complaints and more than half of them — 161 filings — are the passenger seat presence sensor, with dealer quotes of $1,100 to $1,300 because the part is inside the seat. That is the defining fact of this year and it has never been recalled. The 2013 does carry three campaigns of its own, including a driver airbag inflator that can rupture and an update that killed battery cell balancing and left cars losing propulsion. All three are free. Check the VIN, sit a passenger in the right-hand seat and watch the dash, then run the battery flat and demand full throttle on an on-ramp. Do that and this is still one of the cheapest sensible commuters going.

What we checked

Reconciled against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 308 owner complaints for the 2013 Chevrolet Volt, and 3 recall campaigns.

A big number here usually means a lot of these were sold, not that it is a bad vehicle — popular models collect more complaints for the same rate of trouble. So the total on its own says little. What is worth reading is the shape of it. 52% of them are about one thing — airbags. That much concentration is a genuine pattern rather than background noise, and it is the first thing to check on any example you look at.

3 recall campaigns cover this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.

Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.

Known Issues for the 2013 Chevrolet Volt

Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.

Passenger presence sensor fails — service airbag warnings and a $1,000-plus seat repairHigh — wallet impact

161 filings, 52% of the record, and the most consistent single fault we have seen on this car. The passenger airbag flicks on and off every couple of minutes with someone sitting there, or the warning appears after a passenger gets out and stays. One owner failed a state safety inspection over it and was quoted $1,100 plus tax; a dealer told another the passenger presence system repair would be $1,300. There is no recall, so this is your bill after the sale. Have someone sit in the passenger seat for the whole test drive and watch the airbag status indicator and the dash the entire time.

Repair cost (estimate): $700–$1,800 for the passenger presence sensor and seat work at a dealer

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under airbags (161).

Driver airbag inflator may rupture and throw metal fragments (recall)High — wallet impact

Recall 23V516000 covers 2013 Volts alongside a few other GM models: a manufacturing defect means the driver-side inflator can explode when it deploys, sending sharp metal into the cabin. Dealers replace the driver airbag module free of charge and, on some Volts, the steering wheel as well. This is the single most important thing to check on a car of this age, because a 2023 campaign on a 2013 car is easy for two or three owners in a row to have missed. Run the VIN on NHTSA's lookup and do not accept 'I never got a letter' as an answer.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Loss of propulsion at speed — a software update disabled battery cell balancing (recall)High — wallet impact

53 fuel-system filings describe the car cutting power while moving: one driver limited to 25 mph in Hollywood traffic, another whose battery shut the car down in the middle of the road, another whose generator failed to start when the charge ran out on a freeway. Recall 18V397000 addresses one cause directly — an earlier update to the hybrid powertrain control module disabled cell balancing, letting cells drop low enough to cost you drive — and the reprogram is free. Note that one owner had the recall done in 2019 and kept having the fault, so treat the campaign as necessary rather than sufficient.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed; $3,000–$8,000 if a high-voltage battery module is behind it — around 97% of what this car is typically worth

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the fuel system (53); 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

High-voltage charging faults and an accidental touch of the power button can shut the car downHigh — wallet impact

63 electrical filings. Several are a 'high voltage charging system' error that survives replacing the coolant sensor and bypass valve, leaving the car unable to charge and unusable as an EV. One owner reached for the drive mode switch at 40 mph, caught the power button instead, and the car shut down with no way to restart in drive — he had to coast to a stop and reboot it. Others report the car abruptly halving its speed on the handover from battery to generator. Charge it in front of you and watch the dash warnings for the whole cycle.

Repair cost (estimate): $400–$2,500 for charging system sensors, a coolant valve or the onboard charger — about 30% of what this car is typically worth

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (63).

Engine can start itself while parked in a closed garage (recall)Medium

Recall 15V145000 runs across 2011-2013 Volts built from August 2010 to June 2013. Leave the car powered up and walk away, and the battery can fall far enough that the petrol engine starts on its own to top it up — which inside an attached garage means exhaust fumes with nobody there to notice. The remedy is a free engine management software update limiting how long a stationary car stays on. It is the oldest of the three campaigns on this car, so it is also the best single test of whether this Volt has ever been near a dealer.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: 3 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Passenger airbag indicator cycling on and off with someone sitting in the seat
✗Service airbag message appearing at any point during the drive
✗'Propulsion Power Reduced' or a speed limited message on the cluster
✗'Service High Voltage Charging System' warning, or a charge cycle that stops early
✗Seller who cannot produce recall paperwork on a car this old

Good Signs

✓All three recall campaigns shown closed on the NHTSA VIN lookup, the 2023 airbag one especially
✓Passenger airbag status indicator holding steady with someone in the seat for a full drive
✓A complete charge cycle watched end to end with the dash clear
✓35 miles or more of electric range showing on a full charge
✓Battery and charging system work documented at a Chevrolet dealer