Some Chevy Bolt Owners Told to Park Outside Due to Fire Risk
If you have an older Chevrolet Bolt, you may want to park it outside and not charge it overnight due to a risk of fire.
On Wednesday, General Motors issued that warning for owners of 2017 through 2019 Chevy Bolts that were part of a group that was recalled earlier due to fires in the batteries.
Since getting the recall repairs completed, two Bolts have caught fire -- one in Vermont and another in New Jersey.
GM says owners should take these precautions "out of an abundance of caution". Owners should continue parking outdoors after charging their Bolts and not charge their vehicles overnight until GM's engineers can investigate and develop some kind of repair.
The recall, issued by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that "Vehicles should be parked outside regardless of whether the interim or final recall remedies have been completed."
Each vehicle contains 288 battery cells. Last November, GM recalled these vehicles after reports of multiple battery fires. It was determined the fires were happening with batteries near a full charge. Dealers were told to make software changes to limit charging to 90%.
Owners who have not had the recall repairs completed should still take their Bolts in for these repairs.
GM engineers determined the fires happened in vehicles with battery cells that made at a LG Chem factory in South Korea from May 2016 to May 2019. Some 2019 Bolts and all 2020 and 2021 versions have cells made at an LG Chem plant located in Holland. Those batteries are not part of the recall.
Once the final recall repairs are made, the Bolts’ full range can be restored.
You can read more about the recall and fire risk at the NHTSA website.
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