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.
Top Class Actions will post updates to this class action settlement as they become available. For the latest updates, keep checking TopClassActions.com or sign up for our free newsletter. You can also receive notifications when this article is updated by using your free Top Class Actions account and clicking the “Follow Article” button at the top of the post.
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
Good day,
We also own a 2012 Equinox that is now up for over $6000 in repairs due to this defect. Will be filling out the application and sending to legal counsel
I own a 2011 Equinox
Own a 2010 Chevy equinox. Experiencing the same problems as mentioned in the settlement
My 2013 Chevy Equinox that I just purchased in November 2019 has been about 3 quarts low every few weeks. Last night is started making a ticking sound when ever I would push the gas peddle. After I added 3 quarts of oil the noise went away but this seems to be getting worse and happening more often. This car has had several problems since the 1st week I got it. There are only 61000 miles on it as of right now.
I own a 2012 Chevy Equinox. I purchased it used in 2016 with roughly 126,000 miles. This car has been nothing but a damn lemon from the start, so many problems and oil guzzler. It’s in the shop more than its on the road. Well the worse of the problems is the rear master seal blew on the car slightly after I purchasing this vehicle which in turned blew the motor. I had to purchase a used motor from the dealer I purchased the car from, which they zinged me over $3500 dollars on top of the purchase of the vehicle because the favorite word from them is it is covered. I contacted Chevy and GM, but as always they want to know nothing and give you the runaround. The only thing I got was it will be documented with a case number. Its such a waste of time. Such bullshit! I tired of dealing with it. They take your money and smile, but do nothing when issues arise such as mine. Well, Chevy and GM can take there products and shove them, I will never buy another one.
I have 2010 Equinox. I recently received the letter about class action suit. It is crap that I am not able to get the replacement pistons and ring because of mileage. Any one that owns one of these should be able to get this repair. It is not my fault GM didn’t repair all of these for who ever has these lemons.
Bought a used 2010 Equinox for my parents. It had 46,000 miles and a spotless service record. There was a complete inspection on the car before we purchased and an oil change was done. Six months and 2,000 miles later, the car started to run rough and was taken to Chevy dealership. They told us that the car had less than ½ a quart of oil and that the engine needed to be replaced. During the dealership’s inspection, the service manager stated that there were no leaks and that it was owner error (even though no warning lights were activated). Contacted Chevrolet and the customer service manager at the dealership and both refused to acknowledge that there is an oil consumption issues. After multiple attempts to explain, Chevrolet and the dealership are refusing to fix the issue. They dealership is asking $7700 for a new replacement engine or $5995 for a rebuilt engine with 38,000 miles. In all the research done prior to buying the car, I had never heard of the excessive oil consumption with this car. This is the second GM car that we have had to basically trash due to faulty engines. Just received the notice of approval of the class action settlement. Struggling if I should proceed with repair and hope for the reimbursement. Not sure if I want to put my parents back into this car.
I had the 2011 Chevy Equinox and nothing but issues. Started with the throttle body, then transmission, then the whole oil issue with the pistons and timing chain being replaced because the whole oil consumption issue, the fuel pump, the catalytic converter and the list goes on. The “fix” didn’t work! 2 years later and the car was towed and they told me the engine was actively dying because geez there was no oil in the car after just having an oil change. I called Chevy and they told me they wouldn’t do anything because they had already replaced the timing chain and pistons and the car was no longer under warranty and that I had to prove that the issue was from the oil consumption. BS! I traded it in for a Nissan as I just could not afford the issues with this car. SMH, I will never purchase another GM owned vehicle as long as I live.
I have a 2012 Chevy Equinox and have had so many issues, it breaks down, things in my engine break I legit can’t keep up with it. It’s so disheartening.
I own a 2011 Chevrolet equinox- I cant find the letter GM mailed out