The Chevy Bolt EV battery remember saga has been an remarkable inconvenience for lots of early adopters that bought a single. GM very first asked Bolt EV house owners not to park the auto within or charge right away. They then expanded the directions to contain not parking within just 50 feet of any other car.
For some buyers, it was impossible to comply with GM’s guidelines and it can be no solution that this led to several unhappy Bolt EV entrepreneurs. Immediately after months of asking yourself how GM will in the end rectify the issue, the corporation finally declared that they will substitute the battery packs in all Bolt EVs and Bolt EUVs made from 2017 through 2022, and directed clients to agenda the services with their local dealership.
Bolt EV hearth in Cherokee County, GA
GM isn’t really only changing a faulty module or two, they are giving all Bolt EV homeowners totally new LG Chem battery backs, plus new warranties.
When the Bolt EV was launched in 2017 it had a 60 kWh pack and was EPA selection rated at 238 miles. Then, in 2020 GM enhanced the battery potential to 66 kWh, which additional 21 miles of EPA-rated assortment and the 2020 Bolt’s formal ranking was 259 miles.
Having said that, less than the recall and replacement plan, all Bolt EVs will get the new bigger battery pack. That indicates the Bolts built in 2017 by 2019 will not only get a manufacturer spanking new battery pack, but they will now have more capacity than their initial pack did when it was new.
But considering that these automobiles aren’t new, the batteries have currently begun to degrade, so the ability variation from their first packs to the new alternative pack will be even better.
A pal of ours, Stan Jaracz, founder and president of Central Jersey Electric Car Affiliation, has two 2017 Bolt EVs, both of those of which have had their batteries replaced below the recall.
But prior to the second Bolt had the replacement, we carried out a 70-mph variety examination with it. The motor vehicle then experienced the new battery put in, and we repeated the take a look at the working day right after the battery was changed, seven times following the primary selection exam.
We done the initially examination on February 27, and the next a single on March 6th. The temperature was about the similar on the two days and the vehicle experienced the exact same winter season tires fitted to the exact same wheels for each array assessments.
The only variation was that Stan did the initially examination by himself, and I came along for the experience for the 2nd operate. Therefore, the Bolt with the new substitution battery pack had to have an added 190 lbs. (It must have only been 175 extra lbs, but I’m guilty of adding the “COVID 15”, also)
On equally runs, we billed the auto up to 100% and finished the variety examination with 2% state of demand. The initial battery pack had 73,000 miles on it, and Stan instructed me that it by now experienced some noticeable capability decline.
Stan was in a position to travel the Bolt with the initial pack 165.7 miles, and we completed up the variety test with the new pack soon after driving 188.2 miles. That is a 13.5% assortment improve – not a poor reward for getting to go via this total battery recall system, specifically when you consider you also get a fresh new battery warranty.
