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
I am a current owner of a 2013 Chevrolet Equinox. The oil consumption has already been placed in July 2019. Replacement parts were installed. However the very first oil change after the replacements resulted in my vehicle no longer able to be driven. There is a knocking coming from the motor. When I took it to the same dealer who replaced the parts they verbally stated that the manufacturer warranty which was 12,000 miles or 12 months on the parts and labor that were covered under warranty is now voided due to me taking it to a different service center and them putting the cartridge filter in “crooked”. With that being said the motor was knocking immediately after the oil change.
I have a 2012 chevy equinox burning thru tons of oil. It stahls all the time now with and without oil. Why didnt i get anything in the mail regarding this lawsuit. Does anyone know who i should contact?
Thanks!
I have a 2013 Chevy Equinox with the 2.4 Ecotec engine. I would appreciate being a part of whatever the company is doing to fix the problem of high oil consumption. Mine runs thru about a quart of oil a week
I owned a 2010 Chevy equinox with 30k miles and I was putting at a minimum of 1 qt of oil a week in. in 2018. I inquired about recalls and I was informed that chevy knew of this however there was no recall issued because it was not a safety issue. In 2018 I was forced to trade in and purchase a new vehicle because I just could no afford the repairs and the cost of putting oil in it constantly.
i own a 2012 Chevy Equinox that i bought in 2015. i absolutely love my car, but thought it was just me having so many issues with the oil. i have always kept up on the maintenance and always do oil changes as needed. i could not figure out where the oil was going. never saw puddles under the car and it was not spraying all over the engine. I was very happy to see this class action lawsuit because thats how i found out it was not just me. i cant wait to get it fixed because it sucks having to add so much extra oil in my car, especially on long trips.
Owner of a 2012 GMC Terrain bought brand new. I add 1/2 a quart of oil a month. Had the timing chain guids done at 50,000 miles, crank seal done at 80000. What do I need to do to be added to the class action or what are the steps to get now rings put in.
Owner of a 2010 equinox. I’ve been replacing oil summer every two weeks… also spent $2300 on engine repairs last winter… this winter dealing with faulty stabilitrak engine power reduction.
Own a 2013 Equinox with 127000 miles. Have over $2,400 in repairs so far due to this problem. Have contacted Chevy twice and they will do nothing. It is morally and ethically irresponsible that they are unwilling to deal with their defect and leave their customers with this burden.
I purchased a 2013 equinox in 2013 brained new , about 50000 miles it started making knocking noise. Am I elegable for some reimbursement to fix car
I have a 2012 Equinox and just discovered I have a large amount of oil being used my my vehicle. I have been adding extra oil for past 9 months and then researched what is wrong and found the bulletin. If anyone can tell me the next step to get this covered by GM. Please let me know. Thanks Denise Chevy dealership has already told me that GM would not cover the 2500 dollars to fix this defect.