If there is one term that can characterize this tumultuous period for the automotive industry, it is patience. A few weeks after announcing that it wanted to resume production of its Chevrolet Bolt on December 6, General Motors (GM) said last week that it was postponed until next year.
The American giant, which signed a US $ 1.9 billion compensation agreement in October with its battery supplier LG Chem, is seeking to focus its efforts on replacing the batteries in the recalled Chevrolet Bolts. In all, this concerns around 142,000 vehicles. Assembly of the 2022 Chevrolet Bolts at the Orion, Michigan plant “will take some downtime for the remainder of the 2021 calendar year,” General Motors Canada told us. No specific date has been put forward for the moment.
GM has also updated guidelines for 2019 model-year Bolts. A software update will limit charging capacity to 80%, which, according to the automaker, will allow parking restrictions to be lifted. away from a building as well as those directly related to recharging. Note, however, that the minimum charge remains a posted range of 113 km.
This update will also be generalized over the next few weeks to other Bolts produced to reduce the inconvenience while waiting for their battery to be replaced. It must be installed at a dealer of the brand.
Remember that manufacturing defects have been detected in some batteries, which can create overheating and possibly a fire.