GM Defies Trump with Plan to Import Chinese
EV Batteries
Breitbart,
by
Lucas Nolan
Original Article
Posted By: Hazymac,
8/8/2025 4:22:46 PM
General Motors plans to import batteries from China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) for its second-generation Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicle, despite the high tariffs imposed by the Trump administration.
The Wall Street Journal reports that General Motors has announced that it will source batteries for its upcoming second-generation Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicle from China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL). This decision comes despite the steep tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on Chinese imports, which currently stand at around 80 percent for EV batteries.
GM’s decision to import batteries from CATL is a temporary measure until the automaker and its Korean partner, LG Energy Solution, can ramp up their own manufacturing of
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Reply 1 - Posted by:
jalo1951 8/8/2025 4:28:50 PM (No. 1988211)
So let them. Not many want an electric car but if they do they can pay the price.
72 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
Hazymac 8/8/2025 4:31:25 PM (No. 1988213)
By boat, transporting Li-ion powered vehicles has become too dangerous for one major carrier, which just lost a ship and several thousand cars in a Li-ion battery fire south of Alaska. Insurance companies are likely to bail out of transporting e-anything, especially cars. I wouldn't blame them if they did. e-Anything for transportation is an unacceptable risk.
Airliners have also been brought down by burning (Li-ion) batteries in the cargo hold, so that's really an unacceptable risk, as well. So these hotly burning batteries should travel by land. Oh, they can't? Then TS. I hope GM fires their incompetent PC management before the whole damned company goes out of business.
63 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
billp 8/8/2025 4:32:37 PM (No. 1988215)
Wasn't the Volt a miserable failure? GM is now going to build a 'second gen' failure? Must be some kind of corporate death wish.
55 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
RobertJ984 8/8/2025 4:35:39 PM (No. 1988218)
They aren't "defying" Trump.....he never forbid anyone from buying anything, from anyplace
85 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
seamusm 8/8/2025 4:38:31 PM (No. 1988219)
GM isn't DEFYING Trump. They have simply made a business decision to pay the tariff. What a stupid headline. Consumers will decide whether the car is worth it and/or GM's shareholders will reward or punish them for it. I truly tire of the clickbait headlines.
91 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
philsner 8/8/2025 4:43:19 PM (No. 1988223)
They won't sell any anyway, so what's the diff?
39 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
franco 8/8/2025 4:53:17 PM (No. 1988228)
Obama Motors is still around? I've been waiting for them to get over-extended and not have a sugar daddy in the White House willing to bail them out. Now might be the time... Let's see those Bolts rot on lots... maybe we'll witness lots of spontaneous lithium fires...
23 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
Jethro bo 8/8/2025 5:07:29 PM (No. 1988235)
GM is stuck with a contract they can't get out of. GM knows those batteries will go into junk that will never e sold.
21 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
Safari Man 8/8/2025 5:12:14 PM (No. 1988239)
See #4. Headline built on bias, leftist narrative.
25 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
DVC 8/8/2025 5:19:06 PM (No. 1988243)
How do you ship them here without burning down the shipping conveyance? "Chinese lithium battery" should make a shiver run up the spine of anyone.
31 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
earlybird 8/8/2025 5:23:47 PM (No. 1988247)
Tariffs and all? For Chevy Volts?
16 people like this.
Reply 12 - Posted by:
mc squared 8/8/2025 5:24:26 PM (No. 1988248)
Has GM figured out how to pay for their 877,000 defective engines yet?
According to documents published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the investigation covers the 2019 through 2024 model year Chevrolet Silverado 1500, Tahoe, Suburban, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, Yukon XL, Cadillac Escalade, and Escalade ESV. The potentially affected population comprises a staggering 877,710 vehicles produced for the US market.
All complaints filed with the federal watchdog alleged that L87 engine failures are caused by a bearing failure. In this event, a connecting rod may seize the engine or punch a hole through the block, resulting in a catastrophic loss of engine oil. The sudden loss of motive power is quite a biggie as well, for it greatly increases the risk of a crash.
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/gm-recalls-v8-powered-trucks-and-suvs-for-incorrectly-manufactured-l87-engine-components-250652.html
20 people like this.
Reply 13 - Posted by:
earlybird 8/8/2025 5:29:58 PM (No. 1988250)
Re #11 Bolt.
Volt. Bolt. Dumb names.
14 people like this.
Reply 14 - Posted by:
kono 8/8/2025 6:10:28 PM (No. 1988259)
#5 is a salient point, if GM isn't lying about transitioning to a South Korean supplier. I'm not sure LG batteries will be inherently safer; but at least they seem to present a more tariff-friendly alternative.
12 people like this.
Reply 15 - Posted by:
DVC 8/8/2025 9:41:11 PM (No. 1988297)
Re #12, any person who owns one of those vehicles should immediately switch from the factory spec 0W-20 oil to 0W-40 oil to prevent bearing failure.
These identical engines in Camaro and other high performance vehicles are speced to use 0W-40 oil and have essentially no bearing failures.
The ultra thin oil was factory specified to get a small increase in fuel economy, because of the evil EPA fuel economy standards and huge fines for lower fuel economy.
21 people like this.
Reply 16 - Posted by:
JHHolliday 8/8/2025 11:51:04 PM (No. 1988315)
Re #15. I never use less that 40 wt year round then again, I live in the South. I might go down to 30 in the winter if it was time for an oil change but I drive so little, I don't change it very often. wouldn't use 20 wt ever. Maybe people in Alaska might benefit or the northern states in winter.
When I was racing sports cars I used DW racing oil but it was 40 wt. I am no automobile engineer but 20wt seems too light for all but the most severe cold winters.
9 people like this.
Reply 17 - Posted by:
JHHolliday 8/8/2025 11:55:44 PM (No. 1988316)
Sorry for the 2nd post but I forgot to mention that I have an ev. It's called a golf cart and I use it for fishing and riding around in my lake community. Then again, it uses plain standard 12 volt batteries so I don't worry about it spontaneously bursting into fire.
14 people like this.
Reply 18 - Posted by:
NotaBene 8/9/2025 1:43:48 AM (No. 1988325)
What is good for General Motors is no longer good for America. These ingrates were rescued from bankruptcy by US.
14 people like this.
Reply 19 - Posted by:
Strike3 8/9/2025 5:34:16 AM (No. 1988339)
GM has had a death wish for a long time. Allow them to die of stupidity.
7 people like this.
Tariffs bring money to the taxpayers. I think that was Trump's plan.
4 people like this.
Reply 21 - Posted by:
Californian 8/9/2025 7:08:52 AM (No. 1988376)
3, the Volt was a failure, yes.
This article is talking about the Bolt which was pretty well received.
4 people like this.
Reply 22 - Posted by:
Zigrid 8/9/2025 9:21:29 AM (No. 1988419)
And the BIG boys are nervous...so now what are the electric car makers going to do...if independent carriers won't transport them because it's to dangerous...then why would anyone buy an electric car and risk an explosion...back to gas guzzlers ....any danger from them...is the person driving the car....back to a simpler time...when you were in charge of your life and decisions had to be made based on your requirements.....
8 people like this.
Reply 23 - Posted by:
MickTurn 8/9/2025 12:10:34 PM (No. 1988483)
Wait for it Government Motors, a 500% Tarriff is in your FUTURE!
2 people like this.
Reply 24 - Posted by:
DVC 8/9/2025 1:22:33 PM (No. 1988518)
Re #16, you are on the right track but the oil specs mean that the first number is the cold temperature viscosity, and the second number is the warm temp viscosity.
So....0W-100, if there even was such a thing, would still have excellent cold starting flow, but would be much more viscous at running temps than 0W-20, 0W-40, or 0W-50 (if it exists).
A 10W-40 would be an excellent all year oil for your climate. No real need for the 0W-XX oils in the southern states. Select the SECOND number for your engine running, and the first for cold weather starting. 0W-XX oils make sense here in Kansas as we get pretty darned cold in the winter, and when at our cabin in the Colorado mountains, we have had -7F mornings, which definitely call for a 0W-XX oil.
My current Honda cars spec 0W-20 oils, and I am giving serious consideration to switching to 0W-40 in both of them as soon as the current stock of 0W-20 is consumed. But, Hondas were properly engineered for the low viscosity oil.
The root cause of the GM problem was a too rough surface finish on the crankshaft journals. Won't work with the 0W-20 oils, but the same surface finish is OK with 0W-40 oils.
Lubrication is a VERY complex topic. If you want more info there is a guy, Lake Speed, who has a top notch tech series on lube oils on YouTube. REAL science, not theory. He has been associated with racing motors and oil, and is educated in the science of tribology. Has lots of videos on oils, many applicable to street cars.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Msgo3wId-Uc
3 people like this.
Reply 25 - Posted by:
Rumblehog 8/9/2025 4:06:45 PM (No. 1988548)
Slap the CEO in prison.. then see if his successor repeat's the folly.
If that's not effective, cancel any and all business with GM until they learn the lesson.
0 people like this.
Reply 26 - Posted by:
danu 8/9/2025 4:42:04 PM (No. 1988566)
we'd go baltimore to see the Dolts. another bad idea? still, baseball is a good game.
0 people like this.
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