Tag Archives: chevrolet volt fires

Hewlett-Packard Fined $425,000 for Not Reporting Defective Lithium Ion Batteries that Seriously Injured Consumers

The controversy is of interest to the auto industry since its use of lithium ion batteries in electrical vehicles and hybrids is growing at exponential rate, with millions of battery packs soon to be on U.S. roads. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration closed its investigation of fires in Chevrolet Volt EVs last week. Nevertheless many consumers remain wary of the emerging technology and it remains to be seen if the Volt brand is damaged. Continue reading

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NHTSA Keeps Chevrolet Volt Battery Fire Probe Open

GM said this morning that it was “optimistic” that no recall would be required, a politically sensitive issue since the federal government, which NHTSA is part of, still holds a large 27% stake in GM. For GM’s part, a safety recall is arguably more damaging to the reputation of the Volt than the proposed customer service action. Last year Chevrolet sold 7,671 Volt models , which cost more than $40,000 without taxpayer subsidies to its mostly rich buyers, another political controversy in itself. Continue reading

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