My Chevrolet App

[Infinion]

Current situation:

Onstar has followed up with me after I recently refreshed my case # and reconnected with the representative handling my case. She (Cheryl) let me know that the case for this particular issue affecting all Spark EV owners is in "Defect" status with no current end date or fix. They are dilligently working on it, but there is simply no solution at this point.

My representative disclosed to me that the issue is remaining in the defect status to allow more Spark EV owners to gather into the "funnel" / grouping so they (System Engineers / Level 3 team) have more examples that they can work with.

Asks:
For anyone reading this who has experienced a loss in functionality for the app, please contribute your experience and data into the issue funnel so we can get this defect resolved for everyone. More personal accounts are requested!

Some options to get connected to the team:

• 
  Press Onstar Button in car to talk to agent, or,
• Call the Toll free number: 888-4-ONSTAR -> after prompt press 3 for "Technical"

After getting through to technical, describe what you are experiencing. Some descriptive talking points are:
Vehicle status category is missing the following telemetry:

• EV range (distance and state of charge)
• charge status (unplugged or plugged in, estimated time until finished)
• and Efficiency (lifetime / since full charge)

Additional Information:

1. Provide phone model (In my case Ulefone Armor 9)
2. Operating system (Android 10 in my case), and,
3. Carrier (in my case Freedom Mobile).
   
   Providing this information in one session will save you from dealing with multiple callbacks to collect the necessary information.

 

[NORTON]

This is a side note to your subject.
I have not paid to have Onstar with my Spark EV for quite some time now.
I signed up for this free service (for my Bolt) that gives you a monthly report on you EV battery: https://www.recurrentauto.com/
I got the first report and it was nice and detailed.

So I asked about signing up the Spark EV and got this response:
Thanks for writing! We always like hearing the data was useful to you.

While the Spark EV is technically supported by our connectivity, it may cease to be supported as soon as February when 3G support is cut off. Meaning, without a full January worth of data for the Spark, we can't generate a report. Wish I had better news on that front!

Kind regards,
Andrew

 

[Infinion]

Great news everyone,

The My Chevrolet and My GMC apps have now both been fixed in the newest 5.10 release. I received a call this morning from OnStar informing me of the news and wanted to forward the message to everyone.

Below you can see the charge status in the new UI:

They moved away from the old V4 look and feel with white boxes and data fields in a gray background, and went with something that matched the style of the V5 app.

The old vehicle status is still there with its V4 appearance, but they've decided to move the EV-related information to a separate section accessible from the dashboard.

Without any close inspection, it seemed to update faster than it did in early version 4.

Thanks to Cheryl at OnStar for working with me across several case numbers and updating me as soon as the situation changed.
Glad to have functionality restored without relying on workarounds.

This is a side note to your subject.
I have not paid to have Onstar with my Spark EV for quite some time now.
I signed up for this free service (for my Bolt) that gives you a monthly report on you EV battery: https://www.recurrentauto.com/
I got the first report and it was nice and detailed.

So I asked about signing up the Spark EV and got this response:
Thanks for writing! We always like hearing the data was useful to you.

While the Spark EV is technically supported by our connectivity, it may cease to be supported as soon as February when 3G support is cut off. Meaning, without a full January worth of data for the Spark, we can't generate a report. Wish I had better news on that front!

Kind regards,
Andrew

They mentioned it may cease to be supported, but now that we're nearing the end of February, did this end up being the case?

 

[user 2385]

Very nice, thank you for the update. I just reinstalled the app and I can see battery and charge status again. Only reason for me to have the app plus I usually use scheduled charging but love the ability to change it to immediate with my phone if I need to.

 

[SherryYoung]

When I install it the message "app not installed" appears. I was doing something wrong?
I searched the result on google and found mod apk app of TechZApk. I was able to successfully install

 

[NORTON]

When I install it the message "app not installed" appears. I was doing something wrong?

Did you see above?
The Spark EV used 3G cellphone tech and that is not supported anymore. Sorry.
You'll have to be near the car and use the key fob to do a 'Precondition'.

 

[sammer]

I now have to login to the Chevy website to check my charge status..

 

[Infinion]

When I install it the message "app not installed" appears. I was doing something wrong?
I searched the result on google and found mod apk app of TechZApk. I was able to successfully install

Yeah you could have done something wrong (like trying to install the wrong file type). What XAPK installer are you using, and what XAPK version of MyChevrolet (and it has to be XAPK and NOT APK) did you download to be installed?

The latest MyChevolet and MyGMC apps are functioning, so you can install the latest version straight from google play or other app stores.

When I install it the message "app not installed" appears. I was doing something wrong?

Did you see above?
The Spark EV used 3G cellphone tech and that is not supported anymore. Sorry.
You'll have to be near the car and use the key fob to do a 'Precondition'.

Mmmm :| hold on, Sherry isn't talking about RecurrentAuto or GM's 3G service, she's talking about installing an old app through an XAPK installer. It doesn't seem like you read her question closely, or perhaps you read too far into it and assumed she was doing this because her remote service wasn't working.

What you are suggesting with this 3G thing seems to relate to a regional issue and what seems to be speculation from Andrew, a 3rd party service agent from RecurrentAuto about how GM's cellular service is going to affect us. Let me dig into that.

3G was allegedly going to be cut off 8 months ago in February according to your source, but GM / Chevrolet didn't contact their customers that their subscriptions would no longer work and ensure they'd terminated their subscriptions since they'd be paying for nothing? If that's true it would be a scandal bigger than Bolt EV battery recalls. Yet nobody has started a thread about their issues or outrage here, on blogs, news outlets, social media, at least from any of my searches. If they messed around with customers like that, they would find out just how much it would cost them and their reputation.

I mentioned it was a regional issue, well it's stated that 3G was planned to be shut down by AT&T , Sprint , and T-mobile according to this website published in June of last year and updated in January of this year https://northernbi.com/3g-sunset-update-for-us-and-canadian-network-carriers/.

So carrier services in regions of the United States seem to be the only ones who are starting this. That being said, the 3rd parties aren't technically confirming anything, the language used is that they "expected" it, which to me requires some verification now. You haven't been using OnStar services for your car in a long time, right? Well then how can you verify MyChevrolet / MyGMC / Onstar is no longer supported? Push the onstar button when you're in the car next time and talk to an agent. For my country, that website alleges it won't be until the beginning of 2026 that Telus, Bell, and Rogers are expected to sunset 3G in Canada. I can confirm this as I have had no disruption of my OnStar and remote service that would point to 3G being the culprit. I use it daily, and on my drives, the green light above showing OnStar readiness is illuminated. Navigation also functions as expected.


On this website EMnify, Mexico has no date posted for decommissioning/sunsetting 3G. It also lists sunsetting times as far away as 2026/2027 for some South American countries, but many also have no date posted.



Another website, Car Bibles [Link] mentioned GM acknowledged the 3G sunsetting but didn't give any list of vehicles affected, but The Drive tracked down a service bulletin from 2020 called 20-NA-196 which details a planned OnStar Over the Air Update for 3G modems for various brands, models, and model years. Among them, only the 2019-2021 Spark (gas) was listed and only the 2020 Bolt EV. This could mean the spark EV and non-2020 Bolt EVs aren't using the same modems as in the bulletin, can't do over the air updates, or perhaps they aren't affected by these expected symptoms because they don't have the features (super cruise, stolen vehicle slowdown and ignition blocking among other admin-level remote commands). But curiously, no remote access features related to MyChevrolet / MyGMC are cited anywhere.


So after researching all this, 3G does seem like it will be discontinued eventually, but that is not a universal thing right now. So please be careful and don't outright state this, wait for more verification before alleging MyChev / myGMC / Onstar is unsupported due to 3G, as far as I'm seeing, there's no clear evidence.

For anyone in the USA, and your app isn't working, and you have an active subscription (its a paid service), please talk to OnStar (press the button in the car and find out if it works!) and consider sharing what you find out from them here. That's the evidence we're missing right now to definitively say if GM has f*cked up and needs to start refunding customers 8 months of subscription money.

I now have to login to the Chevy website to check my charge status.

Can you elaborate on your issue? It could be a bunch of things, where do you live, what app are you using, are you paying for a subscription? What have you done to troubleshoot the issue?

 

[SparkE]

T-mobile has announced (months and months ago) that 3G is no longer supported. I had to change my phone (which was almost 10 years old, granted). So some carriers ARE dropping support. It depends on who/how OnStar communicates to the car(s).

 

[Infinion]

T-mobile has announced (months and months ago) that 3G is no longer supported. I had to change my phone (which was almost 10 years old, granted). So some carriers ARE dropping support. It depends on who/how OnStar communicates to the car(s).

Thanks for verifying that.

Over the weekend I sent an email to [email protected] asking them directly about the MyChevrolet app and OnStar.
they got back to me this morning

Thank you for taking the time to e-mail OnStar regarding the 3G sunset.

I understand the importance of knowing if the sunset will affect your vehicle.

Certain vehicle models of 2015 and older will be affected by this sunset.

We ask that you contact our Connection Team who would be able to assist you with your inquiry.

They are available Sunday through Saturday 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST at 877.558.8352. An advisor will be more than happy to assist you.

If you have any other questions, please feel free to reply to this message, call us at 1.888.4.ONSTAR (1.888.466.7827) or press your blue OnStar button.

Thank you for being a valued OnStar and Connected Services Member.

We look forward to helping you now and in the years ahead.


Sincerely,

Your OnStar and Connected Services Information Specialist

So no reveal on whether my vin or the 2014-2016 years are affected, but they look forward to continued service? It wasn't clear enough so I called the number and spoke to OnStar.

OnStar said over the phone "I don't have an [signal cut out] to show that your vehicle is part of the end of life (sunset) so you're good to go!"

What about other VIN's and model years of Spark EV?

"if their [Spark EV forum owners] vehicles were affected in any way they would be contacted. If your [2015] vehicle was affected in any way you would have received a letter in the mail last week. so we have communications going out to let our members know if their vehicles are part of it, and if they are they will receive some proper communications in the mail. "

So it sounds like they're saying we can only get verification on an owner by owner basis, but it would be directly addressed to them if they were affected. My 2025 Spark RV is not affected according to OnStar and no communications received by me last week.

Has anyone reading this received a letter from OnStar? If they did it would tell us if it's a VIN specific issue that could happen to anyone or if it's a simple model year association.

 

[Porsche]

For anyone in the USA, and your app isn't working, and you have an active subscription (its a paid service), please talk to OnStar (press the button in the car and find out if it works!)

Actually, you don't need a subscription at all. Even if you don't have any services, the OnStar button will still connect you to an OnStar representative. So, it is a simple test for anyone to see if the connection works.

My 2025 Spark RV is not affected...

Wow, is that an extra early release of the new "stretch" Spark camper?

 

[Infinion]

My 2025 Spark RV is not affected...

Wow, is that an extra early release of the new "stretch" Spark camper?

Yeah so... yeah... I missed that one, LOL! I Did that post on a smartphone. Probably button-mashed it and didn't look close enough before going ahead. An electric RV Spark does sound cool though. Hopefully with more than an 18 kWh pack, unless it had supplemental solar or took the generator from the Volt for a range extension.

 

[Porsche]

... unless it ... took the generator from the Volt for a range extension ...

How about this? We could put a small APU in the hatch. This one is only 2 x 1 x 1 ft (and still overkill):

https://aerospace.honeywell.com/us/en/about-us/press-release/2019/10/innovative-micro-power-unit-for-business-jet

There'd be plenty of room for a few gallons of jet A or maybe kerosene back there too. If we can trick the car to run while charging, we could make a plug-in serial hybrid with 250+ miles of range. I'm pretty sure turbines are considerably more efficient that ICEs for constant RPM applications. I think I remember reading somewhere about people putting kerosene space heaters in their EVs in extreme northern climes, so why not this?