Posted on 03/12/2015 6:34:38 PM PDT by Citizen Zed
General Motors is recalling the extended range electric Chevy Volt because of a possible carbon monoxide risk.
When the Volt is in electric mode it’s very quiet so it’s easy for a driver to forget to shut it off and when that happens the battery drains and the gasoline generator starts and if the car is parked in the garage the fumes can get into the house.
Two people have been overcome by carbon monoxide after fumes built up in their houses reports WWJ AutoBeat Reporter Jeff Gilbert.
The fix will limit the time that a parked Volt can be left running.
The recall involves 64,000 Volts from the 2011 to 2013 model years.
What?
Here is a Volt owner's post from April 2012 describing the problem:
Volt Gave Me a Scare
A few days ago I went out to my garage (on some random errand) and found my Volt running on the ICE. The garage itself was filled with exhaust and the Volt was plugged into the 120v charger still (and charging).I was able to pop open the garage door quickly, and (after 2 tries since I didn't have my keys on me) get the car moved out to the driveway and off.
I have since decided that I probably left the car on when I parked it a few hours earlier, and have been unable to reproduce the problem (ie ICE engine starting while plugged in) over the last few nights. What is confusing me is that when I first got into the vehicle (engine running but no keys), the dash showed the estimated time to full charge screen but no other displays, suggesting that the car was 'off'. It also would not let me move the vehicle or turn it off because there was no key present.
Has anyone else had a similar issue? Did I just leave it on? And even if I did, why would the ICE be running while it was on the charger (I don't recall if the battery was full or discharged after I got it started up afterwards)?
Suggestion to GM: If the car is charging and the main battery is discharged, TURN OFF THE VEHICLE instead of running the ICE to maintain charge!!!!
I am just thankful that I needed a beer and happened to need a trip to the garage, esp with my 2 year old sleeping in the room above (no exhaust smell in his room, but we opened a few windows just to be sure). Remember kids, beer saves lives so drink often!
Don’t worry, about it. Take care, CZ.
Electric cars don't have to keep "running" to be on.
So, the user has to study the dashboard to determine if the car is "on" or not. Mistakes can be a problem, if, for example, the user has a two-year-old sleeping in the bedroom above the garage.
Electricity costs the equivalent of between $1.00 to $1.50 a gallon. It turns out that transforming heat into electricity centrally and shipping it out over the electric grid is a lot more efficient than everyone having their own little engine. Internal combustion engines have efficiencies in the 30% range, whereas electric motors are in the 90s.
“Add in the lack of range and it is not an option for most people. I can only imagine the lack of range on a 10 degree day in Illinois. I would suspect the heater would suck up allot of the potential range.”
The Chevy Volt has a 380 mile range: the first 40 miles every day are electric and then it switches to gasoline for the next 340 miles. As long as you know how to stop at a gas station, range is not an issue. Also, 78% of Americans drive less than 40 miles in their roundtrip work commute, so most people driving a Volt would only use gasoline when they go visit grandma.
No, they have to not be hard of hearing. There is a cacophony of chiming that warns you if you are leaving the car while it is still on.
USA Today says it’s a software glitch they need to fix.
The EIA is from the government, and it's here to set you straight (emphasis added):
What is U.S. electricity generation by energy source?
In 2013, the United States generated about 4,058 billion kilowatthours of electricity. About 67% of the electricity generated was from fossil fuel (coal, natural gas, and petroleum), with 39% attributed from coal.
In 2013, energy sources and percent share of total electricity generation were
- Coal 39%
- Natural Gas 27%
- Nuclear 19%
- Hydropower 7%
- Other Renewable 6%
- Biomass 1.48%
- Geothermal 0.41%
- Solar 0.23%
- Wind 4.13%
- Petroleum 1%
- Other Gases < 1%
Generally speaking, oil is too valuable to use for electricity generation.
The surprising number to me is that wind accounted for anywhere near as much as 4.13%. And also that hydro is only 7%.
Hey look everyone - its the guy who only posts here to cheerlead for the Volt.
A regular car, huh?
You are aware, I’m sure of what the hp rating is for the electric motor. Now how about that engine...what’s its hp. Is It substantially lower? Now I’m going to give you a homework assignment. Look up the hp and weight of a Ford Fiesta and tell me whether or not it had a better weight/hp ratio than the Volt.
Hint. I already know the answer.
Btw....after this little software fix, just how will a Volt keep its batteries cool when shut off. So I go back to my previous question. Would you pay your own money for a Volt and park it at the airport for a week in July?....Or would that permanently reduce battery life?
More than likely true.
The problem is the gas engine turning on when it shouldn't. That's a software problem. E.g., don't turn on the ICE unless the car has been moving recently.
If there's a hardware component, maybe it would be a occupant sensor. I.e., if there's nobody in the car, don't run the ICE. Of course, that would still allow for suicide by CO ... Can't solve all bugs!
Based on the Volt owner quoted in #42, that's not always true.
I get you now. It is amazing the points of view on this topic. I saw a study that evaluated the production, use, maintenance, and ultimate destruction of various autos - to compare how green a car really is. I believe Scion won and the Hummer turned out being more green than a Prius. It seems that mining for rare earth elements like Lithium and even magnets in windmills is a dangerous dirty process for humans and it leaves the environment damaged. That Prius battery probably will set you back a few grand every few years when you replace it and dispose of the toxic waste it contains.
Our discussion in our other thread was about daily parking. For long term storage you should avoid leaving it in the sun in hot climates. Now “a week” is not really “long term” so I personally wouldn't worry about it. Maybe three or four weeks would necessitate something different.
The Volt has been out for four years and owners have reported virtually no capacity loss so I don't think it is an issue.
Prius batteries are 100% recycled.
Forget those fears that hybrid and electric vehicles will result in landfills full of dead batteries.
When Toyota hybrid battery packs reach the end of their lives, every piece is recycled. And it's all because of a program launched a year ago by Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. and its dealers.
http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120102/RETAIL07/301029980/1147
Other automakers like Tesla and Nissan have battery recycling programs as well.
fta... When the Volt is in electric mode it’s very quiet so it’s easy for a driver to forget to shut it off ...
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Confirms the IQ level of people who buy electric autos.
Can’t believe they sold 64k Volts. I’m in the DFW Metro and I’ve only seen maybe a half-dozen when out running errands.
A lot of fleet sales were to government agencies, townships and municipalities so that the King didn’t look too bad for flushing billions down the Generous Motors rat-hole.
Electric Vehicles run on coal.
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That would be a great bumper sticker to sneak on EVs encountered in parking lots!
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