So far, this is the most extensive problem of one model in the new era of electromobility. The American giant General Motors has to solve a big problem of its Chevrolet Bolt model. There are more and more cases when a small car caught fire spontaneously. GM has launched a giant convening action and warns the driver, even though he does not yet know exactly what the problem is.
The Chevrolet Bolt, which has also been sold in some European markets such as the Opel Ampera-e, is a very popular electric car in America. Mainly thanks to the price, which, after taking into account discounts and tax relief, is around half a million crowns, but also thanks to the fairly successful design of a small electric car. In 2017, the Bolt EV was the best-selling car in the US and is still at the forefront.
However, he now has huge problems that could severely hamper the entire GM Group on its path to electrifying other models.
The US authorities record at least 13 cases in which the electric car ignited spontaneously. The last one happened a few days ago in Cherokee County near Atlanta, Georgia. Firefighters had to pull a burning electric car out of the garage of a family house. There wasn’t much left of the two-year-old car.
Zdroj:
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services
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According to the firefighters, the operation was difficult, but the car managed to get out on time, so fortunately nothing happened to anyone and the damage to other property was minimal. For GM, however, the losses are huge, especially in terms of confidence in their cars…
After previous cases, General Motors had warned that Chevrolet Bolt owners should park 15 meters from other cars and not drive into garages overnight. Already in the summer, he told the owners not to charge the batteries to more than 90 percent, not to let them discharge to a minimum and not to connect them to the charger without supervision.
GM has temporarily halted the production and sale of new Bolts and is expanding the call for action, which currently covers more than 140,000 vehicles sold. The carmaker has said that it is constantly working to solve the problem that it blames on batteries manufactured in South Korea and the USA by LG Energy Solution.
The batteries are to be gradually replaced as problem-free, but the carmaker does not yet know exactly what the problem is with the batteries and which Bolts will be affected. The mentioned factories have been supplying batteries from the beginning of the model’s production to the present day. GM tentatively estimates the damage at $ 1.8 billion and wants to recover it from LG. The Korean company is also to supply replacement batteries, and there are also reports that GM could buy back from dissatisfied owners.
Strange car fires in the socket. The VW Golf exploded, only two days old
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The Chevrolet Bolt EV has been on the market for over four years. In addition, for the new model year, the brand came up with a relatively extensive modernization, design change and introduced a more spacious variant of the Bolt EUV. However, it did not reach the Czech market and the modernized versions will probably not look at us either.
So far, General Motors has confirmed 10 fires related to a defective battery. The US National Road Safety Administration even reports 13 fires. Fortunately, no injuries are reported. According to available reports, the most problems should be related to vehicles manufactured in 2019. At the same time, the US authorities are investigating with LG whether the problem may not occur with electric cars of other brands to which the company supplies batteries.
But experts say there is no reason to panic or any extensive restrictions or even bans on electric cars. The numbers of cases are low and need to be put into context and the cause investigated, “Guidehouse Insights automotive analyst Sam Abuelsamid was quoted as saying by NBC News.
At the same time, weakening confidence in GM could affect its plan to launch a number of other electric cars over the next five years. For example, the GMC Hummer EV 2022 is to make its debut this autumn, and the electric Cadillac in the spring.
However, electric car fires are becoming a major problem worldwide, mainly due to the fact that firefighters are unable to control them. Recall some cases and see how difficult it is to extinguish an electric car in a TV Nova report:
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