General Motors announced that battery production for the Chevy Bolt EV is once again underway. Battery production resumed on Monday, the automaker said, and outlined a course of action to “ensure that customers can safely and confidently drive, charge, and park the Chevy Bolt EV and EUV.”
Over the past twelve months, the Bolt EV has had three recalls related to battery issues that have caused combustion in some instances. During the July recall, the second related to battery problems, GM announced that “the simultaneous presence of two rare manufacturing defects in the same battery cell” caused an increased risk of battery fires. The recall affected around 69,000 cars worldwide.
GM then doubled down on the recall in late August, announcing that it had temporarily halted production of the Bolt altogether. GM spokesman Daniel Flores commented:
“We will not resume repairs or restart production until we are confident LG is producing defect-free products for us.”
As of now, manufacturing of the Bolt EV has not resumed, only the production of the battery cells that the vehicle utilizes.
The recalls set GM back around $1.8 billion so far this year and led to a widespread case of paranoia among those who saw the vehicles on the road. A parking lot in San Francisco actually prohibited Bolt EVs from parking at their facility due to the battery issues.
Now, GM has announced that production has resumed for Bolt EV batteries. Due to an updated manufacturing process and new advanced diagnostics software from GM, there is now confidence from the Detroit-based automaker that the worst of the issues are now behind them. “We’re grateful for the patience of owners and dealers as we work to advance solutions to this recall,” GM Executive VP of Global Product Development, Purchasing and Supply Chain, Doug Parks, said. “Resuming battery module production is a first step and we’ll continue to work aggressively with LG to obtain additional battery supply. In addition, we’re optimistic a new advanced diagnostic software will provide more convenience for our customers.”
The Bolt EV utilizes cells from battery supplier LG, which operates cell production plants in Holland and Michigan. Both facilities have resumed production and replacement battery modules will be shipped to dealers “as soon as mid-October,” the company said. LG has worked with GM to initiate and implement a new plan of attack that will recognize and identify defects in battery cells, providing confidence in the batteries moving forward.
How the Chevy Bolt EV became GM’s 1.8 billion dollar problem
In terms of the replacement process of the affected population, GM said it will “continue to prioritize Chevy Bolt EV and EUV customers whose batteries were manufactured during specific build timeframes where GM believes battery defects appear to be clustered. The company has established a notification process that will inform affected customers when their replacement modules will be available.” The new batteries will include an extended warranty as well: 8-year/100,000-mile limited warranty (8-year/160,000 km limited warranty in Canada).
Additionally, GM will launch a new advanced diagnostic software that will roll out within approximately 60 days. The software will detect specific abnormalities that might indicate a damaged or defective battery in either the Bolt EV or EUV, alerting customers of abnormalities. GM plans to allow owners to return to 100% state of charge once diagnostic processes are completed. For now, the company states that owners should do the following:
- Set the vehicle to a 90 percent state of charge limitation using Target Charge Level mode. Instructions on how to do this are available on chevy.com/boltevrecall. If customers are unable to successfully make these changes or do not feel comfortable making these changes, GM is asking them to visit their dealer to have these adjustments completed.
- Charge the vehicle more frequently and avoid depleting battery below approximately 70 miles (113 km) of remaining range, where possible.
- Continue to park vehicles outside immediately after charging and do not leave vehicles charging indoors overnight.
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Tesla announces major milestone at Gigafactory Shanghai
First deliveries started in December 2019, with the first units being given to employees. By the end of 2020, the plant was building cars at a run rate of around 150,000 vehicles annually.
Tesla has announced a major milestone at its Chinese manufacturing facility, Gigafactory Shanghai, confirming on Monday that it had built its four millionth vehicle.
Tesla Gigafactory Shanghai first started building cars back in October 2019 with Model 3 assembly, just ten months after the company broke ground on the plant’s 86-hectare piece of land.
First deliveries started in December 2019, with the first units being given to employees. By the end of 2020, the plant was building cars at a run rate of around 150,000 vehicles annually. Production continued to ramp up, and by September 2023, less than three years after it started building Tesla’s EVs, it had built its two millionth vehicle.
Fast forward to December 2025, and Tesla has confirmed that four million cars have rolled off of production lines at the plant, a major milestone in the six short years it has been active:
Produced our 4 millionth vehicle at Gigafactory Shanghai🎉
Thanks to all our owners and supporters❤️ pic.twitter.com/DayVXUr220— Tesla Asia (@Tesla_Asia) December 8, 2025
The capacity at Giga Shanghai is exceeding 950,000 vehicles per year, and this year, the company has delivered 675,000 cars through the first three quarters. It is also the only plant to manufacture the Model Y L, a longer wheel-based configuration of the all-electric crossover that is exclusive to the Chinese market.
Gigafactory Shanghai’s four million cars have not all stayed within the domestic market, either. For a considerable period, the factory was exporting a significant portion of its monthly production to Europe, helping Gigafactory Berlin supplement some Model Y volume and all of its Model 3 deliveries. This is due to the Berlin plant’s exclusive production plans for the Model 3.
The site is one of the most crucial in the company’s global plans, and Gigafactory Shanghai’s incredible pace, which has led to four million production units in just about six years. It’s fair to say that it won’t be long until we’re seeing Tesla celebrate the plant’s five millionth vehicle produced, which should happen sometime late next year or in early 2027, based on its current manufacturing pace.
The company also builds the Megapack on the property in an adjacent Megafactory.
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Tesla gamifies Supercharging with new ‘Charging Passport’
It will also include things like badges for special charging spots, among other metrics that will show all of the different places people have traveled to plug in for range.
Tesla is gamifying its Supercharging experience by offering a new “Charging Passport,” hoping to add a new layer to the ownership experience.
While it is not part of the Holiday Update, it is rolling out around the same time and offers a handful of cool new features.
Tesla’s Charging Passport will be available within the smartphone app and will give a yearly summary of your charging experience, helping encapsulate your travel for that year.
It will also include things like badges for special charging spots, among other metrics that will show all of the different places people have traveled to plug in for range.
Tesla has just introduced “Charging Passport,” a new yearly summary of your charging.
• Charging badges: Iconic Charging badge (for visiting places like the Tesla Diner, Oasis Supercharger, etc), Explorer badge, green saver badge, etc.
• Total unique Superchargers visited
•… pic.twitter.com/c1DHTWXpj7— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) December 8, 2025
Tesla will include the following metrics within the new Charging Passport option within the Tesla app:
- Charging badges: Iconic charging badges for visiting places like the Tesla Diner, Oasis Supercharger, etc., Explorer Badge, and more
- Total Unique Superchargers Visited
- Total Charging Sessions
- Total Miles Added during Charging Sessions
- Top Charging Day
- Longest Trip
- Favorite Charging Locations
This will give people a unique way to see their travels throughout the year, and although it is not necessarily something that is needed or adds any genuine value, it is something that many owners will like to look back on. After all, things like Spotify Wrapped and Apple Music Replay have been a great way for people to see what music they listened to throughout the year.
This is essentially Tesla’s version of that.
With a handful of unique Superchargers already active, Tesla is also building some new ones, like a UFO-inspired location in New Mexico, near Roswell.
Tesla is building a new UFO-inspired Supercharger in the heart of Alien country
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Tesla launches its coolest gift idea ever just a few weeks after it was announced
“Gift one month of Full Self-Driving (Supervised), which allows the vehicle to drive itself almost anywhere with minimal intervention.”
Tesla has launched its coolest gift idea ever, just a few weeks after it was announced.
Tesla is now giving owners the opportunity to gift Full Self-Driving for one month to friends or family through a new gifting program that was suggested to the company last month.
The program will enable people to send a fellow Tesla owner one month of the company’s semi-autonomous driving software, helping them to experience the Full Self-Driving suite and potentially help Tesla gain them as a subscriber of the program, or even an outright purchase.
Tesla is going to allow owners to purchase an FSD Subscription for another owner for different month options
You’ll be able to gift FSD to someone! https://t.co/V29dhf5URj
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 3, 2025
Tesla has officially launched the program on its Shop. Sending one month of Full Self-Driving costs $112:
“Gift one month of Full Self-Driving (Supervised), which allows the vehicle to drive itself almost anywhere with minimal intervention. All sales are final. Can only be purchased and redeemed in the U.S. This gift card is valued at $112.00 and is intended to cover the price of one month of FSD (Supervised), including up to 13% sales tax. It is not guaranteed to cover the full monthly price if pricing or tax rates change. This gift card can be stored in Tesla Wallet and redeemed toward FSD (Supervised) or any other Tesla product or service that accepts gift card payments.”
Tesla has done a great job of expanding Full Self-Driving access over the past few years, especially by offering things like the Subscription program, free trials through referrals, and now this gift card program.
Gifting Full Self-Driving is another iteration of Tesla’s “butts in seats” strategy, which is its belief that it can flip consumers to its vehicles and products by simply letting people experience them.
There is also a reason behind pushing Full Self-Driving so hard, and it has to do with CEO Elon Musk’s compensation package. One tranche requires Musk to achieve a certain number of active paid Full Self-Driving subscriptions.
More people who try the suite are likely to pay for it over the long term.