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A group of consumers alleges in a recently filed class action lawsuit that a defect in the GM 8L90 and the 8L45 transmissions included in vehicles made between 2015 and 2018 causes problems when drivers try to shift the vehicles.
Lead plaintiffs, all GM owners, allege in their class action lawsuit that the 8L90 and 8L45 transmissions are defective, causing drivers to not only experience the “hard shift” but also engine damage. Ultimately, GM owners and lessees face mounting repair costs because of the alleged defect, the complaint says.
“Drivers attempting to accelerate or decelerate their cars feel a hesitation, followed by a significant shake, shudder, jerk, clunk, or ‘hard shift’ when the vehicle’s automatic transmission changes gears,” alleges the GM class action lawsuit.
Further, “The shuddering, shaking, jerking and hesitation is related to internal issues within the transmission and/or torque converter causing friction surfaces, hydraulic systems, and gears to not function properly, and resulting in metal shavings being circulated throughout the transmission,” continues the complaint. “Over time, damage to the transmission and torque converter occurs.”
The GM class action lawsuit contends that the car maker has known about the alleged transmission defect “for years.” Pointing out that GM has issued a technical service bulletin about the problem, the plaintiffs allege that the company has failed to inform consumers.
“But current purchasers and lessees should not have to cross their fingers for a fix, and prospective customers should be told of GM’s awareness of a defect,” argue the plaintiffs. “Presently, it appears GM is merely biding time until its warranty expires.”
According to the GM class action lawsuit, the alleged transmission defect presents a safety risk to drivers and passengers in 2015 through 2018 GM vehicles equipped with GM 8L90 or GM 8L45 transmissions. The defect can, according to the plaintiffs, cause the vehicle to shudder and jerk so violently that owners have complained that it feels as if they have been hit by another car.
The plaintiffs say that one GM owner reported that he almost drove through his garage door because the gear shifted so violently due to the alleged defect.
The class action lawsuit alleges that the defective transmission issue stemmed from GM’s use of an 8-speed transmission starting in 2015. The car maker said that the new 8-speed transmission would distribute power more evenly than the previous 6-speed transmission – a “win-win-win scenario” for consumers, according to advertising released in 2014 about the change.
The GM vehicles that include the 8L90 or 8L45 transmission are the 2015-2019 Chevrolet Silverado; the 2017-2019 Chevrolet Colorado; the 2015-2019 Chevrolet Corvette; the 2016-2019 Chevrolet Camaro; the 2015-2019 Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV; the 2016-2019 Cadillac ATS, ATS-V, CTS, CT6, and CTS-V; the 2015-2019 GMC Sierra, Yukon, and Yukon XL, and Yukon Denali XL; and the 2017-2019 GMC Canyon.
The GM class action lawsuit seeks to represent owners and lessees of vehicles equipped with the GM 8L90 or GM 8L45 transmissions in six different states: Florida, California, Illinois, New York, Oklahoma, and Texas.
The plaintiffs are represented by Theodore J. Leopold, Andrew N. Friedman, Douglas J. McNamara, and Julia A. Horwitz of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC and Robert Gordon and Steven Calamusa of Gordon & Partners PA.
The GM Class Action Lawsuit is Duffy, et al. v. General Motors, Inc., Case No. 9:18-cv-81726-RLR in the U.S. District Court Southern District of Florida.
UPDATE: The Vehicle Safety Defect Investigation is now open! If you own a vehicle that has a safety defect and you believe it should be covered by the warranty and it’s not, submit your information here.
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291 thoughts onGM Class Action Alleges ‘Hard Shift’ Transmission Defect
2018 Chevy express I’m having clunking from second to first dealership replaced knock sensor and temp control… engine light on again, code reads faulty knock sensor 2nd time Van is back at dealer. 81000 miles, 90% road miles. I want a new transmission ?
2017 Yukon Denali. Had the hard shift problem and took it to GM while under warranty. They said I needed a transmission fluid change and then charged me extra for the “new” transmission fluid. When I asked shouldn’t the extra charge for the special transmission fluid be covered under warranty they told me no. After not that many more miles it’s now doing it again, but of course I’m now out of the warranty.period.
2015 GMC Yukon Denali – Delayed engagement from park into reverse. Then a hard bank and jerk into reverse after several seconds of not engaging. Please ADD ME.
Same problem as everyone else on here, hard shifts, shuttering, Random RPM changes, add me to the list 2015 Chevrolet Z71 1500
2017 GMC Sierra, while shifting it jumps into gear and downshifts real hard from 2nd to 1st. Judging by the comments, there’s no need to bring this to the dealers attention without being told it’s normal and I’m glad I’m not the only one. I’ve heard of the adapting transmission, but I’ve owned this vehicle for a year already and i am still having this issue. Add me to the list.
I have been taking my 2018 Silverado in for the past year for this reason and they keep telling me its because of the transmission adaptation changes if i drive it differently each time. That it has to relearn how i drive each time if i drive differently so it knows when to shift. Otherwise, when or if i drive different or if someone else drives it and then i drive it again, it has to relearn my driving style again. I have had it in 3 or 4 times already for this reason and they keep telling they cannot reproduce the issue so cannot determine the problem so transmission is fine. Yesterday, they were able to reproduce the issue and they did a fluid change and checked for metal shavings and found none. Because there is no “Part” defect they found, it cost me over $300.00 dollars for the new fluid since no warranty covered the repair. It shifts hard often but not every time and once so hard it felt like someone rear ended me. It has also now started shuddering which I also mentioned to the dealership. Im at 49K miles now.
Jimmy Lynn Wilson, I have a 2016 GMC Sierra shifts so hard I think I’m being rear-ended. Please add me to class-action suit
2018 Silverado LT very hard downshift and consistent hesitation when accelerating. Please add me to the class action lawsuit.
Add me 2018 GMC Canyon hard shifting
Torque converter gave out, shavings everywhere, bell housing grinding. Hard shifts throughout the gear shifts. Acts like if it doesn’t know to accept or deny the gears. Having to rebuild the transmission. Failures started out of nowhere at 118,000 miles. Serviced regularly and 90% of miles are highway. Transmission mechanic stated that I was lucky to have even got to 118000 miles on a stock transmission. Says he’s serviced plenty of them with same issues. That GM only built them to last 100,000 miles if even that. Stated I will definitely need to rebuild it again in another 100,000 if it makes it to then even with the rebuild. If any lawsuit is taking place regarding these failing transmissions, I would gladly like to join that list.