General Motors Class Action Lawsuit Alleges Engine Defect

UPDATE:

• Reported on April 1, 2021 A California federal judge dismissed the fuse box class action lawsuit against General Motors, ruling that the plaintiff had failed to establish that the carmaker knew about the alleged defect before it sold the vehicles.

A class action lawsuit has been filed against General Motors LLC by a vehicle owner claiming the fuse block in her 2014 Buick Enclave is defective; however, a California federal judge dismissed the case, finding that the plaintiff had failed to establish her claims. 

Buick’s Allegedly Defective Fuse Block

Plaintiff Rebecca Casey purchased her used Buick Enclave from a dealership in Carlsbad, California when it had 70,657 miles on it, according to the General Motors class action. Casey claims the vehicle at issue was newly sold on or about Oct. 13, 2013. She says that, at the time of purchase, the car was still covered by portions of the original factory warranty.

When her Buick reached 89,373 miles, Casey claims she brought her car to the dealership after the stability and traction warning illuminated, with a warning of reduced power. The dealership allegedly discovered the fuse block ignition bus was loose and reinstalled the parts. However, Casey says she was required to pay for the repairs.

When her car reached 92,318 miles, Casey reportedly brought it back to the dealership, saying the engine light was going on and off and the reduced power message was displayed. The dealership replaced the fuse block but Casey allegedly paid for the repairs again.

The plaintiff states if a vehicle has a defective fuse block, the car can experience intermittent or total disruption of energy distribution. Casey argues that the defect may result in the vehicle not starting or intermittently starting, as well as the engine stalling.

“It is undeniable that if a Class Vehicle stalls while the Class Vehicle is being driven on the roadway, the stalling created an extremely unsafe and unacceptably dangerous condition for the occupants of the Class Vehicle, and the pedestrians and other vehicle occupants in the general vicinity,” according to the General Motors class action lawsuit.

The plaintiff says the fuse block functioning correctly is important because it distributes power to a variety of components, such as airbags, brakes, brake lights, and headlights.

“It is critical that GM and other manufacturers design robust fuse blocks that are free of defects. The failure of a fuse block poses a safety hazard,” the General Motors class action lawsuit notes.

Casey argues that the fuse blocks are mass-produced, as the company looks to reduce the costs associated with the design, materials, and assembly of the parts. According to the General Motors class action, the company is aware there is a defect in the design, materials, and assembly of its fuse blocks.

“GM knew or should have known that the Fuse Block Defect resulted in the Class Vehicles being defective and not fit for their intended purpose of providing consumers with safe and reliable transportation,” argues the General Motors class action lawsuit.

Casey maintains that General Motors concealed and failed to disclose the defect to herself and other Class Members at the time the cars were leased or purchased. Also, General Motors has not notified Class members of the fuse block defect, which places consumers at risk of possibly suffering injury and financial loss, the plaintiff states.

General Motors Dodges Defect Claims

By April 2021, GM managed to convince a federal judge that Casey had failed to establish her claims that the automaker knew of the defect, but failed to inform consumers before they purchased the vehicles.

In an order dismissing the class action lawsuit, U.S. District Judge William Q. Hayes reportedly noted deficiencies in several of the class action allegations. Judge Hayes rejected Casey’s contention that GM omitted information about the allegedly defective fuse box.

“The plaintiff fails to ‘describe [with specificity] the content of the omission and where the omitted information should or could have been revealed as well as . . . [the content of] advertisements, offers, or other representations that plaintiff relied on to make her purchase and that failed to include the allegedly omitted information,'” concluded the court order dismissing the case.

The judge also took issue with the plaintiff’s proposed Class, finding that Casey had failed to establish the minimum requirements for a class action lawsuit, including more than 100 Class Members and damages of at least $5 million.

Do you own a GM vehicle with a defective fuse block? Leave a message in the comments section below.

The plaintiff is represented by Robert L. Starr and Adam Rose of the Law Office of Robert L. Starr.

The General Motors Fuse Block Class Action Lawsuit is Casey v. General Motors LLC, Case No. 3:20-cv-00299-WQH-MSB, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.

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