General Motors has released a software update for the 2019 Chevy Bolt EV that will lift range and charging restrictions on the vehicle and allow owners to once again park within 50 feet of another vehicle.
According to Automotive News, the GM software update is now available for owners of the 2019 Chevy Bolt EV. The update limits the battery capacity of the vehicle to 80 percent, allowing owners who have not yet received a replacement battery module to safely park indoors and within 50 feet of another vehicle. The software update will also allow owners to charge their vehicles overnight and operate them below 70 miles of range. GM had warned customers against engaging in these behaviors with their Chevy Bolt EV models, as they could pose a safety risk should the vehicle catch on fire.
In addition, the software update will be able to detect faults within the vehicle’s battery pack that could indicate when the battery has a problem that could lead to a fire. The battery fires reported in Chevy Bolt EV vehicles have been traced back to a rare situation in which a torn anode tab and folded separator are present within the same battery cell. This detection software will also help GM determine which vehicles will need a full battery module replacement under the recall.
This software update is currently only available for 2019 Chevy Bolt EV models. The automaker is working on a software update for 2017-2018 model-year vehicles and 2020-2022 model-year vehicles, which are expected to be released within the next 30 days, AN reports.
Owners of 2019 Chevy Bolt EV models must schedule an appointment with their dealership in order to have the update installed on their vehicle. Owners of 2017-2018 and 2020-2022 Bolts will receive a letter from GM when the software is available for their vehicle, at which point they too will be encouraged to make an appointment with their dealer to have the update installed.
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Comments
Chevy DOLT.
Good to see GM is getting this crisis under control, and I read on Bolt forums batteries are being replaced for customers at a rapid pace, and all the owners I read are happy once replaced.
Good for GM, but is this really the end?
Richard P.
GM’s only just begun. Ford, Nissan & Toyota are all close to hitting the 200,000 plugins sold in the USA mark. Meaning they will all be losing their Federal tax subsidies in 2023. Effectively raising the price of their vehicles. Tesla has also raised the price of the Model Y.
At a time when the price of cars and gas is going up the Bolt & Bolt EUV look like quite a deal at $32k & $35k. All things considered I think sales will quickly rise to 60k a year in the U.S.
Lol owners can finally park there car within 50 feet of there own home 🤣
That suggestion really got out of proportion… That was a single suggestion in an email that floated around for Parking decks only to reduce risk, it wasn’t a hard line must do everywhere thing.
This is why people get turned off by electric cars. They are being told this is the future and it will be eventually but at the same time this car has had problems that can ultimately put your car and belongings on fire and worse case cause a house fire. It has been taken off the market this year but all these people who bought this car I mean I would be worried.. and kind It’s kind of insane. I could see GM dropping it and starting over with a new car in 5 years. I could be wrong obviously but the perception. People who aren’t in to electric cars are really going to have a harder time with things like this.
I’m hoping this is the only car coming from GM that has this problem.
I understand why the owners of the Chevy Bolt should be concerned, since I own a 2021. I was told the battery recall was limited to 2017-2019 when I bought it. The stigma of other people wanting to banish the Bolt from multi level parking lots, the question of whether it’s going to catch fire (13 out of 140,000 have), and the reputation of a modern Ford Pinto all weigh negatively on the car. The buy-back process has been long, and the hope of a replacement battery even longer.
Still, I wasn’t expecting to like this car so much. I am in my 50’s and have owned quite a few vehicles, but this one has put more smiles on my face than all the big block muscle cars and off-road trucks I have driven. The linear torque feel, instant pedal response, and low center of gravity have made the little car fun to drive. James May of Top gear has observed that it is more fun to drive a slow car to it’s limits than a fast car within its limits, and I agree.
It’s quiet and has no missed shifts (no gears to shift to). I am paying $0.25 per kilowatt hour which works out to about a $1 per gallon of gasoline, in a day where the fuel stations near me are selling gasoline for $5 per gallon. The one-pedal driving with the regeneration paddle on the steering wheel works wonderfully and my brakes are barely used (saving money on maintenance). I love charging at home because stopping at the gas station often is something I don’t miss (I commute 20K miles per year). In 160K miles or at the end of my 8 year warranty I will have saved enough in fuel costs to pay for the vehicle.
So what are my options? The Bolt was super cheap ($26k) and the buy-back will give even less money, therefore I can’t get another electric car for the same money (especially with car prices spiked and availability so low). I would even be crazy enough to trade it in on the 2022-2023 Bolt with Automatic Cruise Control, if GM could make one. In my 50’s I don’t need a prestige car to impress anyone. Even with all the downsides, this little electric car has unexpectedly made its way into my heart.
You really don’t know anything , do you?
As a 2020 Bolt owner, I’d rather have GM buy it back with a fair offer. As I see it, this update reduces my fair driving range by another 7 percent. Which would cause me to charge more than I do now. First, I didn’t buy the car to save the planet, or anything like that. I bought it to save me money on Gas, it has done that, but it costs me now more in time since the recall.
Gm should be offering us some compensation for the lack of use of the vehicle due to those charging stipulations.
Gm has the same problem as other companies, the lack of quality control, They “farm out” work to smaller other companies to save a buck.
EV’s the wave of the future, for the commuter going to work, or the housewife doing errands maybe.
So now the Bolt will warn you before it turns into a flaming Ford Pinto! Is the Bolt name damaged beyond repair?
So let me get this straight, if my 2019 Bolt that has a Korean manufactured battery doesn’t have an issue after the installation this new software, I don’t receive a new battery? That is what it is starting to sound like after having to put up with all this recall crap.
I scheduled an appointment to install the latest software at the same dealership that installed the first battery recall update supposedly fix of my 2019 Bolt. I scheduled the new appointment online. Two days later I received a phone call from the Chevy Service department to tell me that they don’t know anything about the 80% interim charging fix. Boy, I sure don’t have a warm & fuzzy feeling about gm’s communication skills with their customers or their dealerships.
That’s the fault of the Dealership, not GM.
GM has sent communications out to every EV certified dealer and communicated what the software will do.
It’s up to the dealerships to pay attention, if they don’t well then time to find a dealership that knows what they are doing and for the customer to report that dealership to GM’s regional office.
Some Chevy dealers have, for years, been so intent on selling gasoline powered SUVs and pick ups that they will hardly talk to a prospective customer about EV offerings. I can only imagine how willing their slow moving, understaffed, and overloaded service departments are to talk about the Bolt battery replacements.
No that’s not it, you will still receive a new battery once one is made for your Vin.
I wouldn’t park within 150 feet of those pieces of garbage.
One of the best looking cars not on the market today !