This could mean they will quickly start to disappear from the road once their original batteries are no longer usable.
With the Spark EV, a fully electric vehicle based on the Spark city car released in 2009 and available under several different GM brands, Chevrolet delivered the market the affordable electric runabout it required. The Spark EV was produced from 2013 to 2017 (with roughly 7,400 units sold), therefore those vehicles are starting to show their age and may soon require battery replacements to stay on the road.
GM, on the other hand, is supposedly no longer supplying fresh packs for the electric Spark, since it no longer has any and will not be producing any.
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The Spark EV was originally rated at just 82 miles (131 km) on a single charge, with only 21.4 kWh total and 18.4 kWh usable capacity, but after four or five years of ownership, some drivers noticed a loss of capacity and range, despite the fact that the Spark EV has liquid pack cooling to control battery temperatures.
GM dropped Chinese battery company A123 as a supplier in May 2014 and began producing the Spark EV’s battery pack in-house with the support of a new partner, LG Chem. The new battery had a capacity of 19 kWh and weighed 86 pounds (39 kg) less than the pack it replaced.
This was the battery that GM manufactured and had on hand until April 7, when it was no longer available. According to EV Resource, the corporation has officially stopped supplying the replacement pack, which puts Spark EV customers in a difficult situation.
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For starters, with such a small number of automobiles produced, it’s unlikely that a third party will sell an aftermarket battery pack for this vehicle. There is just not enough incentive to develop a new battery, as there is for far more popular EVs, such as the Nissan Leaf, which has a plethora of aftermarket upgrade options.
According to the original article, this will effectively consign all Spark EVs to the junkyard, even if some owners would choose to keep them on the road even if it meant replacing the costly battery pack. It also implies that GM will not be able to get your Spark EV back on the road if the battery fails while it is still under warranty.
Source:Â EV Resource
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