About two years ago, General Motors faced a major crisis when it had to recall over 142,000 Bolts due to a serious fire hazard issue. Despite this, only a limited selection of Bolts is being recalled, comprising just 107 units. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the risk of fires is considered disproportionately high when electric vehicles are charged to a full or nearly full capacity.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has issued a recall for certain Chevrolet Bolt EV models, specifically those manufactured between 2020 and 2022, which were previously recalled and subsequently repaired to address a similar risk. The previously installed advanced diagnostic software, intended to identify faulty batteries and prevent potential fires, has ironically revealed itself as defective, posing a risk of ignition due to its own malfunction.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conceded that the setup of advanced diagnostic software may have been flawed. “As a result, an overvoltage battery risks catching fire when fully or nearly charged.”
General Motors sellers will re-install the software programme at no additional cost once the issue is identified and confirmed, as a gesture of goodwill and to ensure customer satisfaction. Meanwhile, the NHTSA recommends that homeowners of recalled vehicles take precautions to mitigate fire risks by configuring the vehicle’s “target charge level” to 90%, parking outdoors after recharging, and refraining from depleting the battery to within 70 miles of its remaining range.
A General Motors spokesman, Kevin Kelly, stated the company is not aware of any Bolts experiencing fires as a result of this issue, and described it as a voluntary recall to install superior diagnostic software from “an earlier field action involving these vehicles.” He emphasized: “The software may fail to detect faulty battery modules that require replacement, increasing the risk of a potential vehicle fire.”
General Motors Bolt owners faced relentless frustration after three consecutive recalls of the vehicles, initiated in late 2020 and ultimately affecting a total of 142,000 Bolt EVs by year’s end? What models are concerned over a period of 12 months from 2017 to 2022? In stark contrast to the latest recall, previous recalls were triggered by battery flaws that had the potential to ignite a blaze, with 18 Bolts spontaneously combusting while parked. General Motors has confirmed that 13 of the recent fires in their vehicles have been linked to defects in the lithium-ion battery packs.
The manufacturer of the Bolt’s battery, LG Vitality Resolution, replaced the original power units with upgraded battery packs, subsequently offering owners a limited warranty of either eight years or 100,000 miles, whichever comes first. LG reimbursed General Motors with $1.9 billion to compensate for pricing and cost burdens arising from the recall.
In late December, General Motors announced the elimination of approximately 945 jobs at its Lake Orion assembly plant following the company’s decision to discontinue production of the Bolt EV and EUV. A newly constructed manufacturing facility, with an investment of $4 billion, will produce the Chevrolet Silverado EV and GMC Sierra EV, both built on General Motors’ cutting-edge Ultium electric vehicle platform. The initial plan had the vehicles hitting the market in 2024, but the launch has been rescheduled for late 2025.
In reality, General Motors is reviving its popular Chevrolet Bolt EV, at least the EUV variant, which will be reborn as a next-generation model on the Ultium platform by 2025.
While the Ford Mustang Mach-E’s popularity has been hard to predict due to limited visibility at dealerships, we expect its sales to rebound in the next year.
