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 had sent in my info for this but I have moved. What do I need to do?
We have had trouble with oil consumption in our Chevy equinox. The dealership says it doesnt meet their criteria for repairs.
I have a 2011 Equinox with 92000 on it and it is burning a quart every 1200 miles. I called GM and they said the service period has expired so no help. How do I file as part of this lawsuit.
I have a 2013 Equinox that I am having a new engine installed. The cause was the rapid burning of oil in the related engine in the article above. How do I file a claim for reimbursement? thanks
So my 2010 Equinox starting showing symptoms if this back at 75k miles a couple years ago. Oil empty, frequent refills etc. Nobody could help. Now it blew a timing chain at 150k. The guy who fixed it said it was oil consumption issue. So what now? Do I eat the 2500. Or can I get Chevy to pay for it at this point? Family car which we rely on so had to get it done quick. And now I see this. Pretty frustrating.
I have a 2013 Equinox, so did my sister amazing she recieved a notice. I did not. I called GM they have me a number but could not explain why I didn’t get notice. I have had my car since 2014. Makes no since. I made appointment they were very vague we will see what happens I go through at least two quarts of oil a month.
I had to have a new timing chain kit installed last November (2019).
I own a 2013 GMC Terrain and had repairs done back in 2016 and would like to be a part of this class action suit.
We received a notification about two weeks ago regarding this issue as we own a 2011 Equinox. Since we had not experienced this issue with our vehicle we thought we were not able to participate as we had no proof of damage. I had returned the notice stating that since we didn’t have an issue and that we would not be participating in the class-action lawsuit.
However, ten (10) days ago I took it in to the dealership for its regular oil change and drove the next several days incident free. But, this past Saturday, February 5, 2020, on the way home from an event the Check Engine Light came on and the screen posted a notice that we were experiencing reduced engine power.
I took the vehicle to the dealer this morning, Monday, February 3rd, with the issue and received a call from the Service Manager mid-morning that the oil reservoir was empty and the issue with the engine probably is a result of burned piston rings. the cost of replacing the piston rings, pistons, throttle-body, timing chain and actuators is about $3,600. Since I intend to keep the vehicle (currently with 15,00 miles on it) I directed him to do the repairs.
Hence, this request to have our status as a complainant re-instated. The vehicle is registered in my wife’s name: Theresita M. Kluck at 3795 W. Pillar Rd, Whitmore Lake, MI 48189-9631.
This law suit only covers vehicles that have 120,000 miles or less. I have a 2013 Equinox that has burned 3 quarts of oil in 2,500 miles (checked by the dealer ship). I have 128,000 on my Equinox so they are saying I’m SOL. Never buying a GM product again.