A judge in Florida federal court has put her stamp of approval on a $42 million settlement agreement which resolves three lawsuits claiming that General Motors sold vehicles with an oil consumption defect.
Plaintiffs Ellen Berman and Dayana Guach allege that General Motors model year 2010-2013 Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain cars that have 2.4-liter Ecotec engines suffer from the defect that consumes oil at a very high rate.
The primary cause of the defect is malfunctioning piston rings, which are prone to premature wear, the judge’s order states. The defect necessitates the need for the car owner to replenish the car’s oil more frequently.
The plaintiffs filed suit in September 2018, claiming that General Motors breached their written warranties under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act and violated the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
Two other class action lawsuits were subsequently filed, based on similar allegations. The judge’s approval of the settlement resolves the claims in these three cases.
Starting in 2014, General Motors issued Special Coverage Adjustments (SCAs) for the model years 2010-2012 of the class vehicles, the judge’s order reads.
The SCAs were put into effect to extend the class vehicles’ warranty for piston replacement beyond the normal warranty expiration period, which was five years or 100,000 miles.
“The SCAs provided that owners of Class Vehicles could take their vehicles to a dealership and undergo an oil consumption diagnosis. If the diagnosis indicated excessive oil consumption, GM would replace the piston rings for free, if the vehicle was within certain time and mileage limitations,” the judge states in her order.
The Settlement Class is defined as: “All persons within the United States who purchased or leased, at any time before the Preliminary Approval Date, a new retail or used model year 2010, 2011, 2012, or 2013 Chevrolet Equinox or GMC Terrain vehicle equipped with 2.4 liter Ecotec engines, manufactured prior to the Production Change, and who have not executed a prior release of claims related to Class Vehicle oil consumption or resulting piston or engine damage in favor of GM.”
In addition, the judge’s order states that, for model year 2010-2012 class vehicles, owners will be able to get a free replacement of piston assemblies at authorized dealerships.
Also, Class Members who already paid for covered repairs but who did not already submit a claim under the Special Coverage Adjustments will have 120 days to submit a claim.
For model year 2013 class vehicles, Class Members will receive free piston assembly replacement. Also, those who previously paid out-of-pocket for repairs can file claims for reimbursement of expenses.
Each Class representative will receive $4,500 as a service payment, which the judge determined to be “appropriate, fair, and reasonable.” This award is being paid by General Motors separately from the funds being made available via the settlement agreement.
Also, the attorneys for the plaintiffs will receive fees of $3,390,351, which is eight percent of the settlement value. Class Counsel will also receive reimbursement of $109,649 for litigation expenses.
Do you own one of the class vehicles mentioned as part of the settlement? Leave a message in the comments section below.
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The plaintiffs are represented by Rachel Soffin, Gregory F. Coleman, Adam A. Edwards and Mark E. Silvey of Greg Coleman Law PC, Robert Ahdoot of Ahdoot & Wolfson PC, and Daniel K. Bryson and J. Hunter Bryson of Whitfield Bryson & Mason LLP.
The GM Chevrolet Equinox SUV Oil Consumption Defect Class Action Lawsuit is Ellen Berman, et al. v. General Motors LLC, Case No. 2:18-cv-14371, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida; Hindsman, et al. v. General Motors LLC, Case No. 3:17-cv-05337, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California; and Sanchez, et al. v. General Motors LLC, Case No. 1:18-cv-02536, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
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2,106 thoughts on$42M GM Chevy Equinox Oil Guzzling Class Action Settlement Approved
My engine light came on and did some research on my 2013 2.4L gmc terrain. Checked my oil and had burned 3 qts in 3 months and 1200 miles. When I went to the gmc dealer I was told that I missed the deadline. I was never notified that there was an issue so now they are saying out of luck. Per my mechanic I need timing chain, tune up and there is possible engine damage. Is there any way that this will be covered because I did not get notified?
My 2012 is in the shop currently with the same issue. What can I do.
I have a 2012 chevy equinox lt that consumes to much oil. I tried taking it in the have an oil change to monitor the oil consumption so gm can replace it charge free but when I got to the desk they told me the warranty for it expired in oct 2019 so I would have to pay $5,000 to fix the pistons. How can I file a suit on this because now I noticed my catalytic converter is damaged because of the excessive oil consumption. I just bought this truck in November 2020 from a small dealer. I also did a little research to see how long a catalytic converter should last me the life Expectancy is 10 years it hasn’t been 10 years.
I’m in the same situation. My 2012 Equinox is at the shop they are charging me 5,000 to replace the pistons. I sent a copy of the Action Law Suit. My next step is to call a lemon law attorney. Good luck
This us the first I heard of a class action for this. I have a 2013 equinox that uses q to 3 quarts if o a week depending on how much driven. I also spent 2,500 dollars on having it rebuilt can I recover this and get it fixed even after repairs it still uses a lot of oil
I own a 2010 equinox that uses a quart of oil every week. How do I go about getting it fixed? It also needs a catalytic converter due to the oil consumption. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
I need help. I have a 2012 equinox that I bought used. I changed the oil on it and in way less than 1,000 miles, I’m over 3 quarts low. What can I do. I didn’t know about this problem until I had vehicle problems going on.
I have a 2011 Chevy equinox who Engine failed had to replace plus just about everything had to be replaced warranty covered engine I still came out of pick over 2 grand. Car is still not fixed correctly. I’ve moved since I bought the car so I’m guessing I didn’t hear about this because of that.
I purchased my 2013 Chevy Equinox July 24, 2020. I am just finding out about this oil consumption class action suit and am wondering did I buy a vehicle that was part of the class action suit and was never repaired. I’ve taken my car back to the dealership twice & then was told by the dealership Northgate Ford that I would be better served by taking it to a Chevy dealership. Two days after I bought it I couldn’t get it to stay started. Northgate Ford stated I needed an oil solenoid. Then about a month later my car is shaking violently, so I take it to Midas in Norwood, because I trust them, they’ve never led me a stray or taken advantage of me. They told me my oil was bone dry. I had no warning lights, no oil low lights but am still driving around with no oil. That was 11/24/20. By Jan the first week in January I was bone dry again. This time I’ve been checking my oil every other day & it’s in the shop again because my check engine light came on & less than 400 miles driven & I’m already down a quart of oil. What should I do? How do I find out if my car was part of the class action suit & the previous owner took the money & dumped the car for the next person? Shouldn’t these vehicles be fixed before they’re resold? I feel like I’ve been @#*&$, big time.
2013 equinox just snapped timing chain and engine is mush / shot.
Opened a case with GM & had dealership involved. Leased vehicle new and brought to dealership thru 2016, since then changed oil every 3k miles religiously. Dealership said $9,400 for reconditioned Chevy engine to be installed of which GM will cover 30%, so $7,100 for us on a vehicle that is worth around $7K, not worth it. 2013 w/ 90,890 miles on it, can you tell me if we qualify for more under the class action suit. Seems so,
So wrong on the part of GM / Chevrolet. Of course we were
Never notified of any potential problems in the 1st 3 years it was serviced / oil changes at the dealership.
I have purchased a 2013 Chevy Equinox in 2015 and have already had to replace the engine at 100,000 due to the timing chain jumping because of the oil and pistons. If I do qualify for reimbursement or settlement can someone please let me know.