General Motors will start replacing all of the lithium ion battery modules in thousands of recalled Chevrolet Bolt EVs to mitigate the risk of the cars catching fire.
On Tuesday, GM said it has started mailing recall letters to the owners of the affected 68,600 Bolt EVs globally. The repairs could begin later this month, GM spokesman Dan Flores said.
“The recalled vehicles have battery packs that include five lithium ion modules,” Flores said. “We are replacing the vehicles’ lithium ion battery modules with new lithium ion battery modules.”
This is a more specific update than GM provided in July when it issued a second recall on the model year 2017-19 Bolt EVs after two EVs caught fire in July. At that time, GM had said it would replace defective battery modules. Now GM says it will replace all of the modules. But GM will not replace the full battery pack.
“A battery pack is made up of many individual components including the case, some electronics, wiring, battery modules among other things. We will be replacing the five lithium ion battery modules within the battery pack,” Flores said. “The battery pack case, wiring and other components are not defective and do not need replacing.”
GM said its engineers and LG Chem experts have identified the simultaneous presence of two rare manufacturing defects in the same battery cell as the root cause of battery fires in certain Bolts. The vehicles contain high-voltage batteries produced at LG Chem’s Ochang, South Korea, facility. The new batteries will also come from LG Chem, Flores said.
“We understand our customers’ frustration through this entire process and we appreciate patience,” Flores said. “We remain focused on doing what’s right for our customers and will keep that mindset going forward.”
In November, GM issued the first recall on the 2017-19 model year Bolts because the vehicles potentially posed a fire risk. GM said it found five vehicles in which the batteries caught fire without any impact, injuring two people with smoke inhalation. The five vehicles were at full charge or right below that when they caught fire.
Until Chevrolet dealers can fix the Bolts, owners of the recalled cars should not park them in garages, Flores said. Also, GM recommends owners do the following:
- Return the vehicle to the 90% state of charge limitation using Hilltop Reserve mode (for 2017-18 model years) or Target Charge Level mode (for 2019 model year), or visit a dealer to make that change.
- Charge the vehicle after each use and avoid depleting the battery below 70 miles of remaining range.
- Park the vehicle outside immediately after charging and do not leave the vehicle charging overnight.
Also, customers who have not received the advanced diagnostics software for their recalled Bolts should visit their dealer to get the update. After that, limit the state of charge to 90% and follow the advice above, Flores said.
Any Bolt owners with additional questions or concerns should go to www.chevy.com/boltevrecall. They can also call the Chevrolet EV Concierge 833-EVCHEVY, which is available 8 a.m. to midnight Monday to Friday; noon to 9 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Or call their dealer.
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Contact Jamie L. LaReau at 313-222-2149 or jlareau@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @jlareauan. Read more on General Motors and sign up for our autos newsletter. Become a subscriber.