Why is Chevrolet making it harder to get Volt technical support?

We’ve owned our 2015 Volt for less than two months, but already, we are wistful for a time not so long ago. In this not-so-distant past, General Motors and Chevrolet had a specific team of customer support personnel devoted solely to all matters pertaining to electric cars. We know this to have been the case because just before we bought the car, our first electric vehicle, we had a very helpful conversation with just such a person.

He guided us through all aspects of Volt ownership. It was the single most helpful discussion we had before purchasing our car. Even after we did extensive research, spoke to about a dozen people, visited several dealers and spoke with many more.

Come this past Saturday, however when we needed to rely on exactly such an expert, we found no such person was available. Or will ever be. Our car had started acting funny. When it was turned off and all the lights were supposed to be off and the doors were closed, all of the exterior lights stayed on. And on and on. It was like the car had a mind of its own.

We thought trickle charging our car might help. This is when you plug the car into a regular power outlet. Maybe it would reset things. It did not. So we called an acquaintance who also owns a 2015 Volt and who like us is a member of the Electric Vehicle Association’s D.C.-area chapter. It was he who suggested we call Chevrolet. Good idea, right?

After being transferred around for some time, we found that no one at Chevrolet specializes in Volts. Instead, apparently, anyone at Chevrolet customer assistance should know Volts. We found out that was not the case.

We were not able to get any of our diagnostic questions answered. And when Chevrolet roadside assistance called for a tow truck, they requested the wrong type. So then roadside assistance called a different type of tow truck. Turned out this, too, was the wrong type.

Because the car has an electric emergency brake, when the electronics stop working, it is impossible to disengage the brake. So we needed a tow truck that had a dolly in the back that could put the car on its own wheels instead of relying on the car on wheels to tow it. Too bad the towing company was not notified of that. So we arranged with that second towing company that came to send a different type of tow truck that had a dolly to tow our car two days later.

Two days later came. We are optimistic that the third time would be the charm. No such luck.

The towing company was AWOL. When we called, they said that they had no truck that could help. So much for that provider.

Then we spent about 15 minutes on hold with Chevrolet roadside assistance. After some more checking by them, they told us that they could not get a tow truck at the time that was promised two days ago.

After several more calls with roadside assistance, and about an hour and a half after it was promised, a tow truck that worked for our situation arrived at last. The driver and his assistant quickly got the car put on wheels so they could tow it out of the garage where it was. With that, it was on its way to the closest Chevrolet dealer to our home.

Stay tuned to find out what exactly made the car malfunction. We are eager to learn why.