Cars.com reports lengthy Volt repair, but reasonable cost

July 13, 2011

July 13, 2011 — A 2011 Chevy Volt involved in a heavy front-end hit in May took a week longer and cost roughly $2,000 more to repair than a comparable repair on its Malibu sibling would have, according to a new Cars.com blog post.

The Chicago-based online car shopping and information company owns the Volt, which was sent to West Loop Auto Body for repairs after a crash that wrecked the hood and deployed the driver airbags, according to Cars.com. The company reported that the repair took seven weeks from the insurer’s go-ahead to completion and the total cost was $14,187.

The shop said a regular Malibu with similar damage would have been fixed a week to a week and a half faster and for nearly $2,200 less, according to the blog post. But the fact that the Volt is an electric car was not to blame.

The initial written estimate was $11,588, but it increased because of an error in the parts-ordering system, the post said. A parts package did not include everything the system said it would, requiring additional parts orders.

“Though it cost more than the initial estimate, we were pleased to determine that the cost to repair a plug-in car wasn't as high as we had feared,” read the Cars.com post.

Cooling system complexities and computer reprogramming added to the expense, the post said, while the parts ordering issue and a defective replacement coolant pump contributed to the length of the repair.

Find the full Cars.com Volt-repair write-up here.
 

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