GM Chevy is expecting a record year of Bolt EV sales after the fire was extinguished

Detroit – General Motors expects sales of its electric Chevrolet Bolt models to rebound from a high-profile recall after several cars caught fire in 2022 to achieve record results.

“We’re seeing a record number of sales and production for ’22’, and ’23’ is going to be bigger than ’22’. We are bullish on both EVs and UVs,” Chevrolet Marketing Vice President Steve Mizoros told the media on Wednesday.

The automaker resumed production and shipments of the Bolt EV and a larger “EUV” version this week. Vehicle production at a plant in Michigan has plummeted since August, when the automaker recalled every bolt produced at the factory since 2016.

Two lithium-ion battery cells in a Detroit Automaker car battery pack could cause a fire after determining “rare production errors”. GM is aware of 19 car fires related to the problem, a spokesman said.

The fire and recall were a major blow to the automaker in terms of EV sales and its reputation, although its battery supplier, an LG company, was responsible for the problems.

GM will try to reintroduce Bolt models to Americans through a new national television broadcast for the car from Thursday, Mezros said. There is no mention of withdrawal or fire in the advertisement shown to the media.

“We think we have a lot of interest and awareness for this,” he said. “I think it’s going to continue our advertising efforts.”

Mizoros, calling it a “hand race”, said the expectation of record bolt sales was largely due to the overall increased interest in EVs, which is not linked to the nationally recorded gas prices this year.

Sales of the Bolt EV began in December 2016, when the Bolt UV was sold last year, shortly before all vehicles were recalled. Bolt nameplates achieved record sales of about 25,000 units last year, topping more than 23,000 Bolt EV sales in 2017.