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GM urges Chevy Bolt EV owners to park their cars outside due to fire risk

This latest safety concern builds on a recall first announced last year.

2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV
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2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV

This safety issue affects the pre-facelift Bolt EV.

Chevrolet

and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued a statement Wednesday urging some owners to park their cars outside and away from their homes or other buildings, due to the risk of fire. GM also cautioned owners not to leave their Bolt EVs plugged in to a charger overnight.

Back in November, GM issued a recall for roughly 69,000 Bolts globally due to the possibility of fires breaking out inside the battery pack. "The affected vehicles' cell packs have the potential to smoke and ignite internally, which could spread to the rest of the vehicle and cause a structure fire if parked inside a garage or near a house," NHTSA said. 

As an interim solution, GM rolled out a software update that capped the EV's charging capacity at 90%.

Now, NHTSA says it has reports of two fires breaking out in vehicles that were repaired as part of the original recall. "Vehicles should be parked outside regardless of whether the interim or final recall remedies have been completed," NHTSA said.

launched a website related to this recall, and NHTSA urges owners to enter their VIN on the government agency's website to check if their Bolt EV is affected.

The 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV is a balance of power and practicality

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Steven Ewing Former managing editor
Steven Ewing spent his childhood reading car magazines, making his career as an automotive journalist an absolute dream job. After getting his foot in the door at Automobile while he was still a teenager, Ewing found homes on the mastheads at Winding Road magazine, Autoblog and Motor1.com before joining the CNET team in 2018. He has also served on the World Car Awards jury. Ewing grew up ingrained in the car culture of Detroit -- the Motor City -- before eventually moving to Los Angeles. In his free time, Ewing loves to cook, binge trash TV and play the drums.
Steven Ewing
Steven Ewing spent his childhood reading car magazines, making his career as an automotive journalist an absolute dream job. After getting his foot in the door at Automobile while he was still a teenager, Ewing found homes on the mastheads at Winding Road magazine, Autoblog and Motor1.com before joining the CNET team in 2018. He has also served on the World Car Awards jury. Ewing grew up ingrained in the car culture of Detroit -- the Motor City -- before eventually moving to Los Angeles. In his free time, Ewing loves to cook, binge trash TV and play the drums.

Article updated on July 14, 2021 at 4:17 PM PDT

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Steven Ewing
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Steven Ewing Former managing editor
Steven Ewing spent his childhood reading car magazines, making his career as an automotive journalist an absolute dream job. After getting his foot in the door at Automobile while he was still a teenager, Ewing found homes on the mastheads at Winding Road magazine, Autoblog and Motor1.com before joining the CNET team in 2018. He has also served on the World Car Awards jury. Ewing grew up ingrained in the car culture of Detroit -- the Motor City -- before eventually moving to Los Angeles. In his free time, Ewing loves to cook, binge trash TV and play the drums.
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