Chevrolet Bolt Electric Car to Suspend Production for Another 3 Weeks

SHANGHAI, Nov 8 (SMM) – GM said on November 5 that its Orion assembly plant that produce Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicles in Michigan will suspend operation for three weeks. 

GM expanded the recalled Bolt EVs to more than 140,000 units in August. Several Bolt EVs caught fire due to battery defects. GM will replace the battery module of the vehicles to solve the risk of fire. The Orion assembly plant announced a shutdown after the recall in August. The plant will suspend production again from November 15 and the production is expected to resume on December 6.

Replacing battery modules for the recalled vehicles is still their current priority. The company stated that they will continue to adjust the plant's production plan for the sake of the recall. The company’s president Mark Reuss said last month that they will work to resolve the recall issue before resuming production of new cars.

GM has suspended Bolt sales, and Reuss stated that GM must verify these vehicles before dealers resume selling Bolt models. But they did not disclose when the dealers will restart sales of the model. GM disclosed in October that its battery partner, LG Electronics in South Korea, had agreed to compensate for estimated costs and expenses of $2 billion related to the recall. In addition, GM and LG Energy Solution are currently building two joint venture plants in the United States.