Lenovo Recalls ThinkPad Notebook PC Extended-Life Batteries Due to Fire Hazard

WASHINGTON, March 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Consumer
Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today
announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers
should stop using the recalled product immediately unless otherwise
instructed.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030904/USCSCLOGO )
Name of Product: Lithium-ion extended-life batteries used in ThinkPad
notebook computers
Units: About 100,000 battery packs (an additional 105,000 battery packs
were sold worldwide)
Battery Distributor: Lenovo (United States) Inc., of Research Triangle
Park, N.C.
Battery Manufacturer: Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd., of Japan
Hazard: If the battery in the laptop is struck forcefully on the
corner, such as from a direct fall to the ground, the battery pack can
overheat and pose a fire hazard to users. This is not an internal battery
cell defect.
Incidents/Injuries: Lenovo has received four reports of batteries
overheating and damaging the notebook. This caused damage to the notebook
computers, minor property damage and, in one case, minor eye irritation to
one consumer.
Description: Lenovo sold these extended-life batteries with new
ThinkPad notebook PCs or as optional or replacement batteries for the
following ThinkPad notebook models: R Series (R60 and R60e), T Series (T60
and T60p) and Z Series (Z60m, Z61e, Z61m, and Z61p). The recalled 9-cell
batteries have the following part number, which can be found on the battery
label: FRU P/N 92P1131.
Sold Through: Lenovo's Web sites, telephone and direct sales, and
Lenovo authorized distributors nationwide between November 2005 and
February 2007, as an accessory for about $180, and as part of a ThinkPad
notebook computer for between $750 and $3,500.
Manufactured in: China
Remedy: Consumers should stop using the recalled batteries and contact
Lenovo for additional information and to receive a free replacement
battery. Consumers should use only ThinkPad batteries obtained from either
Lenovo or an authorized reseller.
Consumer Contact: Customers should contact Lenovo at (800) 426-7378
anytime, or log on to http://www.lenovo.com/batteryprogram to determine if
the battery is part of the recall and to order a replacement battery.
Note: In September 2006, Lenovo conducted a recall of batteries
manufactured by another firm for a different problem.