gm nears possible volt battery fix: sources - 3.7 volt lithium ion battery

DETROIT (Reuters)-
GM is about to launch a proposed repair package for the Chevrolet Volt battery pack, which engineers believe will eliminate the risk of fire a few days after the crash, two people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.
Proposed repairs under consideration will involve Volt 400-
Pound battery pack, reinforced the housing around the lithium battery
Ion batteries and better protection of the coolant system from leakage in severe collisions, sources said.
GM moved quickly to ease concerns about Volt after the United StatesS.
Safety regulators investigate fire risk caused by plugs
In the hybrid battery pack last month
GM dealers can complete relatively fast repairs for car owners, which can avoid the cost and reputation damage to car manufacturers due to more complex safety recalls.
GM has used Volt as a symbol of its determination to take the lead in fuel economy and green technology.
Gas at Voltage-powered 1. 4-
The liter engine provides an additional range after about 40 miles of running on the battery.
Engineer No. 1 U. S.
Automakers are expected to update senior management this weekend to find out what may be relatively low
Repair the cost of more than 6,000 Volts in the United States nowS.
One of the sources said the road.
The repair costs being considered may be less than $9 million in total for GM, or about $1,000 per Volt, the source said.
This may include the labor force for dealer repairs.
If the United States does not act, the cost may rise. S.
Regulators are urging more complex solutions, sources said.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration launched an investigation into Volt's battery pack last month.
NHTSA has the right to review the safety repair scheme proposed by the car manufacturer, but has not commented immediately.
GM spokesman Rob Peterson says engineers are still working on the issue.
"As far as I know, we haven't discussed the exact solution yet," he said . ". A lithium-
Three weeks later, at the NHTSA testing facility in Wisconsin, an ion battery pack in a Volt went through a crash test and could have caught fire.
In a laboratory test completed in the United States at the end of NovemberS.
The second Volt battery pack began to smoke and release sparks, while the third battery pack caught fire a week after a simulated collision, the regulator said.
GM executives say Volt's battery pack will be safe during and after any crash, and the issue has nothing to do with any defects in the battery provided by South Korea's LG Chem Ltd.
GM says Volt is safe and quickly uses what it calls "white-Gloves "method.
While the safety investigation continues, the automaker has offered rental cars to more than 6,000 Volt owners.
A few days later, GM's chief executive Dan Akerson raised the stakes and vowed to buy back any Volts if consumers had concerns, an unusual move if not unprecedented
Akerson told Reuters last week that the United StatesS.
Automakers may need to redesign the Volt battery.
General Motors officials say engineering repairs could be much lower than cleaning
Redesign the slate for the most expensive parts of the vehicle.
An influential insurance group, the Road Safety Insurance Association, said on Monday it had no plans to deprive it of its "Five
Star safety rating.
Consumers pay close attention to the ratings of the group and are often used in the marketing of car manufacturers.
NHTSA also has no plans to change Volt's five
Another key resource for consumers-star "security rating. The plug-
Before the $40,000 federal tax credit, the cost of a hybrid was $7,500.
GM has been losing money on cars due to Volt's high start-up costs and low sales.
The Obama administration has been strongly supporting electric vehicles like Volt and has set a goal of getting 1 million batteries --
Motor vehicles on the road by 2015.
GM shares closed up nine cents to $21 on Tuesday.
68 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Also, in Washington, a congressional committee overseeing NHTSA said it would hold hearings as early as next month on the agency's response to the Volt fire.
The supervisory subcommittee of the House oversight panel wondered why it took nearly six months for the matter to be made public and whether the committee should be advised.
Representative Jim Jordan, chairman of the subcommittee, said in a statement: "This is a serious situation that our committee will look at further . ".
NHTSA said that from the first fire in the spring of last year to the test incident in November, this period needs to be carefully analyzed to identify the problem and ensure that it is not an exception.
Traffic officials say the car is safe.