Apparently the feds forgot to read the fine print in the owner’s manual.
The Detroit Free Press reports,
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said today it had investigated a fire that occurred this spring, after the Volt extended-range electric vehicle underwent a 20 mile-per-hour, side-impact test for its five-star crash safety rating. The crash punctured the Volt’s lithium-ion battery, and after more than three weeks of sitting outside, the vehicle and several cars around it caught fire. No one was hurt.
General Motors believes the fire occurred because NHTSA did not drain the energy from the Volt’s battery following the crash, which is a safety step the automaker recommends, GM spokesman Rob Peterson said. NHTSA had not been told of the safety protocol, Peterson said.
What will this do to the Volt’s CO2 emissions profile? Check out our “Detailing the Green-washed Chevy Volt”.
The Chevy Volt is an over-priced GM ( Govt. Motors ) DUD….Toyota, Nissan and Ford all make better Electric / Hybrid vehicles…Electric Vehicles are nothing but a small niche market in the USA.
My grandmother had a phrase: “Better the Devil you know than the Devil you don’t.” Her point was that problems that you have solved before and have some experience with are easier to deal with than those that surprise you.
In my experience (going back for over 40 years) alternative solutions to old problems, especially those which introduce novel technology, only appear better than the well-worn time-proven solutions because we don’t know all the variables yet, and we therefore underestimate the problems and the costs involved with errors.