2019 CHEVROLET BOLT EV Complaints

The recall on the defective batteries in the 2017-2019 Chevrolet Bolt EVs has presented a safety risk and a loss of function that has reached a completely unacceptable level. Us as owners are living under the spectre of a fire that can cause significant personal or property damage and to date, GM's recalls have failed. GM just released their second recall for the issue after fires continued after applying the first fix. In addition, the guidance of how to use the vehicle after completing the new recall renders the car unusable from a practical perspective. As an electric vehicle, range is limited and is affected by cold temperatures and highway miles. The guidance to reduce the charge to a maximum of 90% and never drive below 70-miles range severely hampers the usefulness of the vehicle. Additional guidance includes not parking indoors, and not charging overnight. The car takes 8-hours to charge; how are we to avoid overnight charging? The GM recall has been ongoing for many months and has now failed; putting all owners in danger both physically and financially. Something needs to be done to protect owners. At this point, only a buy-back seems viable to avoid severe damages to owners. As it is, the resale value of the vehicle has plummeted due to these severe safety issues.

I have a 2019 Chevrolet Bolt with a US made battery. It is not part of the recall for battery fires. NHTSA, Chevrolet, and LG all say that the problem with the fires is "2 rare manufacturing defects" and not an issue with the battery design or the manufacturing process. It has a 60kwh battery just like the Korean made batteries that have caught fire. It is produced at an LG factory following their industrial design, and presumably the manufacturing process is the same as at the Korean factory - since it was a defect that caused the problem, and not a manufacturing problem. However, LG has had to recall batteries made for other brands of autos. LG has had to recall home storage batteries. Looking at all the different batteries that LG has had to recall, how can I trust NHTSA when they restate that the problem is a rare manufacturing defect that was identified by Chevrolet and LG? Can I believe something that was identified by a manufacturer who has had to recall multiple batteries for multiple cars and stationary situations? I would like you to investigate the manufacturing process that LG uses, and be sure the non-recalled batteries are truly safe, especially for the 2019 Chevrolet Bolts that have the exact same battery as the ones that caught fire. Thank you. Anne Mellinger-Birdsong 934 Artwood Rd NE Atlanta, GA 30307

We have known that these cars have defective batteries for at least 8 months. GM has had plenty of time to fix the issue but they've waited around, endangering many and limiting the amount we can drive without being tethered to a charger. I leased this particular car because of the range. Now the range is yet again reduced. This isn't what I paid for. The suggestion to park outside does me no good. I park in a carport. If my car catches fire, so does the structure and the other cars. The problem didn't start when they announced the issue, it started when they sold the cars with the defective batteries. We don't know how long they knew before they announced it. They cannot get away with this.

In response to Safety Recall N202311731, GM updated the battery management software in my 2019 Bolt on 6/4/21. I was not satisfied that updating the software would solve a physical battery pack problem and requested a buyback (which GM had been granting since February 2021). GM Case No. 9-6763124491 declined on 6/29/21, and GM referred me to BBB AutoLine. GM Rep would not tell me why my case was declined when many others were clearly approved. Vermont Bolt burned on 7/1/21. Filed BBB Case No. CHV2119981 7/2/21. On 7/13/21 BBB determined my complaint not "within the jurisdiction" of the program because there were "less than 2 repair attempts". Now GM issues 2nd Recall N212343880 saying that batteries may be replaced, but gives NO TIMEFRAME. While I wait with a potential fire/safety issue, the recall instructs me to limit charges, limit charge down (resulting in only 63% useful charge), park outside, do not charge overnight. My landlord has told me that I cannot park my Bolt on the property, so I now have no access to charge my car. I'm afraid he will not renew my lease (we are in CA at beginning of fire season). GM will not tell me what happens when the software identifies a problem--the Rep just repeats that "GM has total confidence in the update". I have no idea how long I will have a limited use car. I do not have enough range to visit and care for my aging father. GM should buy back Bolts from owners who cannot operate their cars under the new recall limitations, especially since there is no timeframe given.

My vehicle is fully electric and has been under a recall for fire risk from the high-voltage battery. I completed the remedy from the manufacturer earlier this year, but now a new recall has been placed because the original remedy didn't actually fix the problem. The manufacturer is now stating that they will need to replace some/all of the battery, and they've said it isn't safe to charge the vehicle overnight, charge it in my garage, or charge it fully to 100% capacity. This means I'm unable to use my vehicle safely to drive to work or other required activities. I'm dissatisfied with General Motors' response to this safety issue, and I'm requesting that they approve vehicle buy backs for any owners of affected vehicles who request them to do so.

The battery in these vehicles is prone to catching on fire when charging, resulting in the complete destruction of the vehicle. GM has been failing to repair these vehicles for over a year. They have now issued a third recall for the same problem with no resolution and guidelines that require owners not to use their vehicles in any reasonable manner. This recall represents a serious danger to life and property, with a fire that could cost untold damages. These vehicles are unsafe, and GM is clearly unwilling or incapable of repairing the defect.

GM's recall solution is unacceptable and leaves consumers with virtually unusable vehicles if they follow GM's safety recommendations. This situation has been allowed to go on too long and we are lucky that no one has gotten hurt.

Chevrolet has a major safety defect on their hands with the 2017-2019 Bolt EV. In 2020 a safety recall was issued on the Bolt EV around batteries catching fire in unattended new, low mileage vehicles. A temporary fix was assigned to restrict the battery's state of charge to 90%. After several months, a "final" software fix was issued to address the problem (N202311731). Since this fix, two additional fires have occurred in low mileage / non-abused or damaged vehicles. Today Chevrolet issued an additional recall (N212343880) stating that battery cell swaps would be required and owners should not maintain a state of charge outside of 30%-90% (reducing the range from 235 miles to 140 miles or less). As an owner with some moderate knowledge of lithium polymer batteries, I do not have confidence that Chevrolet will be able to successfully detect manufacturing defects at scale and replace all impacted cells. As this is the third critical safety recall on a single component, which is fully warranted and under a low mileage, NHTSA needs to critically review if Chevrolet dealerships have the capabilities and training to properly diagnose and replace individual LiPo cells within a battery pack. As an owner, the only "real" solution which would give confidence of a safe vehicle would be a full battery pack replacement, or a full buy back of the vehicle in question, regardless of local state lemon laws. So far, vehicle buybacks seem strongly tied to local state lemon laws. This is an unacceptable situation for owners from a safety position.

The car’s electronics under the hood got very hot when charging at Level 2 (ChargePoint wall charger) at home at night in mild ambient conditions (low 70s deg F). The surface of the electronic component boxes on top of the engine compartment were very hot to the touch but not burning the skin. It is not clear whether the propulsion battery also got very hot or not, but later on car’s display showed that car consumed 10% of used electricity for “battery conditioning” since the last full charge, namely since the car was unplugged and started to use battery power to keep battery cooling system going. This implies that it is quite possible that the battery also got hot (>100 deg F, since this temperature is what I have had observed in the past was the trigger temperature for initiating battery conditioning/cooling, e.g. 30 minutes into fast charging - FCDC - when ambient temperature was in the low 90s). The temperature measured by electronic thermometer on the surface of one of the electronics boxes under the hood indicated 113 deg F one hour after the car was unplugged and moved out of the garage, while the ambient temperature was measured to be 72 deg F. This implies the temperature of car components was even higher an hour earlier during and right after charging. If the car continued to charge, it is possible it would be in danger of catching fire since it appears the cooling system was not able to stop electrical component temperatures from rising. As far as I am aware, this car is the only Bolt EV that has been observed to reach unexpectedly high temperatures when Level 2 charging (240V 32A = 7.6 kW) without actually catching on fire.

As a 2019 Bolt owner I am once again being asked by GM to limit my charging to 90%, do not charge unattended ( overnight while you sleep) , and do not park in the garage or carport. My family does not want to ride in my vehicle due to fire risks. Trade in values are greatly affected to any 2019 Bolt now. I do not feel safe and I want GM to buyback my 2019 Bolt asap. How many more fires must 2019 Bolt owners endure until GM is forced to buy all of them back? How many people will need to die first???