Battery warranty advice for 2014 Spark

[MisturChips]

I am curious - where do you get the vehicle's current Ah value? I do not see it listed in the PIDs for TorquePro.

Lower-right gauge here on my screen w/ Bolt PIDs


https://photos.app.goo.gl/zrXzsrYTur3yEpoQA

 

[MrDRMorgan]

I am curious - where do you get the vehicle's current Ah value? I do not see it listed in the PIDs for TorquePro.

Lower-right gauge here on my screen w/ Bolt PIDs


https://photos.app.goo.gl/zrXzsrYTur3yEpoQA

You probably have a newer list of Bolt PIDs than I do. The list I use was provided years ago by Sean Graham and my list does not give a PID for battery capacity expressed in amp-hours but does give it as kWh (!Battery Capacity) and this is what I use to monitor my 2014 and 2016 Spark EVs.

Here are the battery capacities for 2014, 2015 and 2016 Spark EVs as specified in the Chevrolet Spark EV product information sheets for each model year:

Year..............Energy.....Battery Power...Amp-hrs
2014.............21 kWh........120 kW...............N/A
2015..........18.4 kWh........120 kW............54 Ahr
2016.............19 kWh........120 kW............54 Ahr

 

[saabnut880]

I can't remember exactly where I got the bolt PIDs.
In the version that I have there are 2 different BOLT AH choices. I am using the smaller value one. 60AH I think. The larger one returns ZERO.

RE: parts on order, I do not know if any of them have arrived. I picked up the car on Feb 28th, so it was in the shop for a month.
BUT at least I have confirmation that the correct repair is planned, and that GM is paying.

Here is one site for PIDs https://allev.info/boltpids/

 

[saabnut880]

UPDATE from chevy ev concierge.
Dominique at 10:15, Mar 4:
This issue will be escalated within General Motors in order to expedite as quickly as possible. We will be following up within 4 business days to give you an update. Is there anything else I can assist you with? If not, thank you again for contacting Chevrolet Customer Assistance. Feel free to reply here anytime. We're here to help.

 

[MisturChips]

UPDATE from chevy ev concierge.

I've had a couple calls, and one regurgitated the same boilerplate, but I explained I want someone to actually run the test on capacity, and they're supposed to be calling again soon to see what they can do...

Wish I could find my Kill-a-Watt, and just run the battery dry again / charge it up slowly and completely over a weekend and get a decent result.

 

[NORTON]

....Wish I could find my Kill-a-Watt, and just run the battery dry again / charge it up slowly and completely over a weekend and get a decent result.

I'm not sure if measuring what goes in is a good way to tell the capacity of the pack.

There are normal charging losses. (I've never seen a definitive answer on how much, could be 10%, could be 15%.)
There could be Thermal Management System running if it really cold or hot. The AC to DC Onboard Charger is liquid cooled also.
There could be BMS running at the end for balancing the cells.

But good luck fighting the good fight!
Why doesn't gm just do the testing so 'Legacy' gm EV owners have good things to say about them honoring the warranty.

 

[Bigbusdriver]

I have been following this entire thread with much interest.
I am still looking at potentially buying a little Spark, trying to
learn as much as I can. My question, can't the dealer simply run a
test on the HV battery and determine the capacity remaining?
Seems like a simple procedure that the manufacturer of EV's should be able to do.
Don't want to hijack, but just trying to keep up.

 

[sachan0101]

Here are the battery capacities for 2014, 2015 and 2016 Spark EVs as specified in the Chevrolet Spark EV product information sheets for each model year:

Year..............Energy.....Battery Power...Amp-hrs
2014.............21 kWh........120 kW...............N/A
2015..........18.4 kWh........120 kW............54 Ahr
2016.............19 kWh........120 kW............54 Ahr

Here is one site for PIDs https://allev.info/boltpids/

I used the above website's profile and Torque Pro with my 2015 Spark EV. It had almost 90k on the odometer. The numbers came back as 13.6 kWh (73.9% of the original) and 42.4 Ah (78.5% of the original). It seems that these numbers are still within the GM's 8 years 35% capacity reduction estimate. Let's see if it would drop down to pass the threshold before the battery warranty went out.

 

[niik]

I have been following this entire thread with much interest.
I am still looking at potentially buying a little Spark, trying to
learn as much as I can. My question, can't the dealer simply run a
test on the HV battery and determine the capacity remaining?
Seems like a simple procedure that the manufacturer of EV's should be able to do.
Don't want to hijack, but just trying to keep up.

That was my thought as well. However, my experience has been that the dealer knowledge on performing the tests is lacking, to the point where i was given the wrong test and almost denied warranty because of it. Also the test cost $200+ if it tests as "bad" the test cost is covered by warranty but if it tests "good" you are on the hook to pay it.

All that to say my advice at this point is to do your own tests and get as much data as you can before taking it to GM. Maybe you will find your battery is fine and can save the $200 or maybe you can compare test results to ensure they are performing the correct tests.


I like the car and I'm still glad I bought it. Even with the degraded battery I can still use it so its not the end of the world. It's just unfortunate that I went this way. Part of why I went with a GM EV is because i had a good opinion of their warranty support. In the end they have agreed the battery needed replacing but I did not expect it be be this much of a fight.


P.S. I started like 9 months ago and its still not done...

 

[Synthax]

I cleared the memory and codes

As in you cleared DTCs and reset driving efficiency in the electric info menu? Or is there something I'm missing? I'm down to about max range of 60 on a warm day fully charged now so I'm pretty sure mine's ready for a warranty claim, but I'm getting the same Ah reading from Torque Pro that you did.

 

[MisturChips]

UPDATE from chevy ev concierge.

I've had a couple calls, and one regurgitated the same boilerplate, but I explained I want someone to actually run the test on capacity, and they're supposed to be calling again soon to see what they can do...

Wish I could find my Kill-a-Watt, and just run the battery dry again / charge it up slowly and completely over a weekend and get a decent result.

A little update:

Concierge desk was quite useless. Told me it's between me and the dealership to get the battery tested. Offered no help getting that started, and just kept mentioning the "needs to be below 39.0Ah" etc...

Well, luckily for me, I've been taking screenshots at random times, and they include the capacity!


11/12 40.5
11/19 40.4 7Days
11/25 40.3 6Days
1/5 40.2 41Days
1/7 40.1 2Days
1/16 40.0 9Days
1/23 39.9 7Days
2/10 39.8 18Days
3/4 39.7 22Days
3/15 39.5 11Days ---\
3/24 39.4 9Days |_____Average of 9.125 days per tenth
4/7 39.3 14Days |
4/15 39.2 8Days ---/
EST4/25 39.1?
EST5/5 39.0?
EST5/15 38.9?


It is interesting how non-linear the degradation runs. I suppose a lot of it has to do with temps, how deeply it's been cycled etc.
Question marks will be filled in as I can get the data... Hopefully, it hits 38.9 before 05/21 so I can get the process started! Averaging the last 4 data points as far as days-per-tenth of degradation, it's 9.125 days per. Rounding up to 10 and needing 3, that's 30 days, meaning on 05/15 or 05/16 I'd expect it to be there.

Since I won't be driving it much tomorrow, I'm letting it sit over night at 29% SOC. Plan drive it around a little for basic errands in the AM, then let it sit all day before giving it a 55KW Rapid charge. Curious as to whether that will speed the process.

 

[ElDobro]

On Facebook, someone brought up that the Spark battery has been discontinued and Chevy will be offering buybacks. I was at the Chevy dealer the other day, picking up a part for the Bolt and I happened to ask about the Spark battery. It seems that all the part numbers and substitutions are listed as discontinued. Hmmmm.....

 

[niik]

Can you find a source on that? Cause I have been waiting for like 5 months for parts and they denied my buyback request previously.

I would like to ask again if I can show them some reason to change their mind.

 

[niik]

I talked to my service adviser today and they provided me with the service bulletin stating that GM is no longer providing replacements for 2014 Spark EV batteries.

Now I need to call GM and see what they plan to do to resolve this issue.

 

[ElDobro]

Yep, if you can't get a '16 battery you can't fix a '14.

 

[NORTON]

Wow ...
This is really big news.
So the theory that cars have to be supported by the manufacturer for 10 years is a myth?
What is a '14 Spark EV owner supposed to do? Scrap it at the first HV battery problem?
Did someone mention a buyback program for these effected cars?

 

[MisturChips]

On Facebook, someone brought up that the Spark battery has been discontinued and Chevy will be offering buybacks. I was at the Chevy dealer the other day, picking up a part for the Bolt and I happened to ask about the Spark battery. It seems that all the part numbers and substitutions are listed as discontinued. Hmmmm.....

Which group on FB? I REALLY LIKE the little fellah, but the only thing it really 'needs' is the traction battery replaced. I wonder if there will be any third-party kits available to plop Tesla cells in...

 

[niik]

I received a call back from GM and they said their system shows that my parts are in transit.

So we are going to wait a few more days to see if they actually arrive. It's already been 9 months so I figure what's a few more days.

Wow ...
This is really big news.
So the theory that cars have to be supported by the manufacturer for 10 years is a myth?
What is a '14 Spark EV owner supposed to do? Scrap it at the first HV battery problem?
Did someone mention a buyback program for these affected cars?

Ya, it's a bit frustrating that the battery, which is a wear item, has been discontinued. especially since the batteries and controllers are proprietary and not easily replicated by aftermarket manufacturers.
This is a bad look for EV's IMO since one of my concerns with EVs is that they will be like other consumer electronics and just get thrown out and replaced at the first issue.
I like my Spark and I like EVs (how they drive, running costs, etc...) but if there are no parts available to repair them and they need to be scrapped at the first issue I might switch back to ICE until the industry can figure out a better solution.
Like I can still get parts for my 22-year-old Isuzu the same day from AutoZone and Isuzu doesn't even sell consumer vehicles in the US anymore, but my 8-year-old spark is trash at the first sign of trouble?

 

[ElDobro]

On Facebook, someone brought up that the Spark battery has been discontinued and Chevy will be offering buybacks. I was at the Chevy dealer the other day, picking up a part for the Bolt and I happened to ask about the Spark battery. It seems that all the part numbers and substitutions are listed as discontinued. Hmmmm.....

Which group on FB? I REALLY LIKE the little fellah, but the only thing it really 'needs' is the traction battery replaced. I wonder if there will be any third-party kits available to plop Tesla cells in...

It was in the Spark EV group.

 

[ElDobro]

https://insideevs.com/news/581522/gm-chevrolet-spark-ev-battery-replacement-unavailable/