Chevy Bolt Electric Car Recalled Again
General Motors has announced another recall of its Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicle (EV) line – this time of 140,000 of them – because “the carpet can catch fire after a crash when the front seat belt pretensioner activates,” according to a Reuters report . The recall includes approximately 120,000 vehicles in the US and 20,000 in Canada. Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicles from 2017 to 2023 are affected.
GM’s announcement to owners and the media was released Tuesday, but there hasn’t been a public announcement yet. They did not say how many fires resulted from the recall, only marking them as “rare occurrences”.
The Chevrolet Bolt debuted in 2016 as GM’s first electric vehicle. While it’s no longer GM’s only EV, it’s considered one of the most affordable EVs on the market, priced at around $25,000. The car has had quite a few recalls, including a massive recall in 2021 when GM told every owner to bring their own battery replacement bolts due to the risk of fire. The recall stopped production of the bolts until April this year.
Why is the Chevrolet Bolt being recalled?
Bolts have seatbelt pretensioners, devices built into the seatbelt that tighten up in a crash, whose exhaust fumes can come into contact with carpet fibers after a crash and potentially start a fire in the car. Although rare, GM has decided to take action due to the fire hazard to avoid incidents.
Instead of replacing pretensioners, GM is asking owners to bring their EVs to install metal foil along the carpet next to the pretensioner exhaust to protect it and eliminate the possibility of a fire. According to a USA Today report, some vehicles will receive a pretensioner cover .
If you want to know if your Bolt was affected by the recall, you can use the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s tool or search the GM website . Owners must be notified by GM in January if they are affected by the recall. If you have questions, you can call Chevy Customer Service at 1-800-222-1020. This GM recall number is N222383790.