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GM Halts Chevy Bolt Production

Aug. 31, 2021
General Motors temporarily halted output for two EV series, following two recalls to correct lithium-ion battery defects, and shortages of new batteries as well as silicon chips.

General Motors has called a halt to production for the 2022 Chevrolet Bolt passenger cars and Bolt EUV sport-utility vehicles in a new stage of GM’s response to a series of lithium-ion battery fires. The suspension reportedly will continue for at least two weeks, though the automaker did not identify when it expects to resume production.

The Chevy Bolt is a subcompact vehicle developed and manufactured together with LG Corp., which manufactures the battery and drivetrain, instrumentation, and HVAC systems. The vehicles are assembled at Chevrolet’s Lake Orion, Mich., plant.

The Bolt was introduced in 2016 (2017 model year), and the larger Bot EUV was introduced earlier this year.

Production of the vehicles had already been suspended (along with several other vehicle lines) due to the ongoing silicon chip shortage that is slowing manufacturing operations in various industries.

Starting last November, GM began a recall of 2017-2019 Chevy Bolts due to a number of battery fires. In May 2021, GM said it would install new software on those affected models (and all new models) to help prevent future fires. More fires were reported after the new software had been installed.

Almost two weeks ago GM expanded the recall to include 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 Bolts and Bolt EUVs, having identified two new possible defects to the vehicles’ batteries (a torn anode tab and folded separator), which it said increases the risk of fire. GM noted it issued the recall “out of an abundance of caution,” and projected an expected cost of approximately $1 billion to implement the changes.

It’s reported that the repair process related to the recall has been suspended too, due to difficulty securing a reliable supply of new batteries from the supplier, LG.

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