After numerous recalls and the ensuing bad press that comes with them, it looks like General Motors could be set to literally "pull the plug" on its Chevy Bolt EV.
"GM announced a $35 billion investment in EVs by 2025, including $4 billion to build electric versions of its best-selling pickups," CNN reported this week. Worth noting is that GM is planning to build those models at its plant in Orion Township, Michigan, the report says.
That plant is currently the home to the GM Bolt and its cousin, the Bolt EUV. The company didn't make any new announcement as to where, if anywhere, Bolt production would continue.
GM spokesperson Dan Flores gave a statement this week that didn't drip with optimism about the Bolt, either: "Production of the Chevrolet Bolt EV and EUV will continue during the plant's conversion activities to prepare the facility for production of the Silverado EV and Sierra EV pickups. We are not disclosing any additional information at this time about Bolt EV or Bolt EUV production."
Recall, in September, we noted that after two recalls about fires, GM had finally resorted to telling Bolt owner just not to park their car within 50 feet of another car.
Flores, who we we're sure wasn't getting paid enough to deliver this line with a straight face, said in Fall 2021: "In an effort to reduce potential damage to structures and nearby vehicles in the rare event of a potential fire, we recommend parking on the top floor or on an open-air deck and park 50 feet or more away from another vehicle. Additionally, we still request you do not leave your vehicle charging unattended, even if you are using a charging station in a parking deck."
"We are aware of 12 GM confirmed battery fires that have been investigated involving Bolt EVs vehicles in the previous and new recall population," he continued, telling The Detroit News. "We're still working with LG around the clock to resolve the issue. Both companies understand the urgency to move as quickly as possible, but, again, the most important thing here is we have to get this right."
Recall, back in July 2021, General Motors issued their second recall for the Chevy Bolt after it announced that two Bolts had caught fire without impact and that at least one of the two was related to the battery and happened despite the owner getting a fix from a previous recall.
The second recall included all Bolt EVs from 2017 to 2019, encompassing 68,000 vehicles. 50,925 of those vehicles were located in the U.S. and they have batteries that are produced at LG Chem’s Ochang, South Korea, facility, the report notes.
A spokesman for GM said last summer: "As part of GM’s commitment to safety, experts from GM and LG have identified the simultaneous presence of two rare manufacturing defects in the same battery cell as the root cause of battery fires in certain Chevrolet Bolt EVs. As part of this recall, GM will replace defective battery modules in the recall population. We will notify customers when replacement parts are ready."
GM may have finally figured out that one way to stop the fires is to stop producing the vehicle that keeps combusting...