Photo: Renault
We were still waiting for Renault to contact us about the ZOE battery pack recall when a second recall warning emerged. Instead of Renault Portugal, the alert came from the carmaker’s headquarters in France, but multiple aspects of the new report were like the previous one. That was when Renault told us it was about the same recall, which involves 733 units of the electric hatchback.
The new alert warns that the battery pack “may stop working properly during the charging cycle or rolling vehicle, causing an internal short circuit.” In the previous warning, Renault only said that the battery pack presented an internal short circuit and that it the condition could “lead to increased risk of fire.”
It makes no sense to have two reports about the same issue, but the two end up complementing each other. The Portuguese alert said that the problem was related to the BT4 XLR (Extra Long Range) battery pack, which Renault commercial refers to as "E.V. 50 battery pack." It is not clear why the battery pack will stop working, but Renault mentions in the document that this interruption causes the short circuit.
According to the French warning, the affected vehicles were produced between January 3, 2021, and February 22, 2021. That makes the production period ten days longer than that on the Portuguese alert, which mentioned manufacturing of the defective EVs started o January 13, 2021. The end date is the same.
Renault told us that it would contact these 733 owners to fix the cars. The repair most certainly includes replacing these battery packs, but we still need to confirm that with the French automaker. When asked if the issue also affects ZOE units exported to other places, such as South America, Renault stated that only cars sold in Europe would need the repair.
Repeating ourselves, much of the necessary information about these recalls should be included in the alert to European authorities. It seems that there is no demand for crucial data to be included, which leaves us with half-baked reports that we have to clarify with automakers. If the idea is to protect customers, the European Union should make sure they have immediate access to everything they should know.
It makes no sense to have two reports about the same issue, but the two end up complementing each other. The Portuguese alert said that the problem was related to the BT4 XLR (Extra Long Range) battery pack, which Renault commercial refers to as "E.V. 50 battery pack." It is not clear why the battery pack will stop working, but Renault mentions in the document that this interruption causes the short circuit.
According to the French warning, the affected vehicles were produced between January 3, 2021, and February 22, 2021. That makes the production period ten days longer than that on the Portuguese alert, which mentioned manufacturing of the defective EVs started o January 13, 2021. The end date is the same.
Renault told us that it would contact these 733 owners to fix the cars. The repair most certainly includes replacing these battery packs, but we still need to confirm that with the French automaker. When asked if the issue also affects ZOE units exported to other places, such as South America, Renault stated that only cars sold in Europe would need the repair.
Repeating ourselves, much of the necessary information about these recalls should be included in the alert to European authorities. It seems that there is no demand for crucial data to be included, which leaves us with half-baked reports that we have to clarify with automakers. If the idea is to protect customers, the European Union should make sure they have immediate access to everything they should know.
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