CFA: Volt caught in crossfire

WASHINGTON, D.C. (WPRI) - Explosive testimony today on Capitol Hill as Republicans accuse the Obama administration of purposely delaying the disclosure of Chevy volt battery fires.

Lawmakers want to know whether the government's partial ownership of General Motors created a conflict of interest.

Specifically taking months to go public with it's investigation into fires of the batteries.

"I am really disturbed with the fact that this happened so early on, and yet, the full disclosure of it happened by chance from a reporter, not from the agency that's out there to protect the public," says Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA)

The controversy started in the spring of 2011 when a battery powered Chevy volt caught fire weeks after it went through a federal crash test.

A second volt car battery also caught fire in November of 2011.

Even though the first fire happened in June of 2011, it wasn't until November, 5 months later, that the government decided to inform the public and subsequently start an investigation into Chevy volt batteries.

On Wednesday at a hearing by the house committee on oversight and government reform, Republican lawmakers questioned whether the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration tried to cover up the original fire.

"Regardless of what the safety implications are, the fact that they're partnering with the very company they regulate in a secret investigation without public information is outside of the norm and should have never happened," says Sean Kane of Safety Research and Strategies in Rehoboth.

Friday, the NHTSA closed it's safety defect investigation into the potential fire risk in the Chevy volt and said no defect exists.

However, in early January, General Motors announced it will make a number of significant modifications to the battery pack.