Powertrain, generic · Hybrid propulsion

P0B6E Hybrid/EV Battery Voltage Sense K Circuit Range/Performance

Check engine lightOn

EmissionsRelevant

Drive cycleNot required

Limp modePossible

In a nickel-metal hydride pack with 20 equal blocks, twenty times one block voltage should roughly equal the whole pack voltage. GM's 2012 two-mode hybrids use exactly this for P0B6E, assigned to block 11: the battery pack control module checks blocks 11 and 12, and if both scaled values deviate from the pack voltage sensor by more than 70 V in 160 of 170 samples, the code is set, Type B. The test only runs with the contactors closed for over 200 ms and no pack voltage fault active. GM's lithium-ion controllers judge channel K differently, as a frozen value that fails to follow the average cell voltage (35 of 40 samples, Type A, in the 2019 tables). No other manufacturer publishes it.

Likely causes

Block or cell voltage measurement of channel K out of calibration

Pack voltage sensor reading off, distorting the comparison

Measuring input stuck at one value

Symptoms

MIL after two trips
Less electric assist, more engine running

Repair estimate

DifficultyShop_onlyWorkshop job

Parts and labour€100–5,000

Time1–8 h

Typical range across vehicles; the real cost depends on what the testing finds.

Parts involved

hv battery voltage sense kwiring harnessbms

References: gsi.ext.gm.com, gsi.ext.gm.com, law.cornell.edu.