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
Does anybody know if they will still cover my 2013 gmc Terrain 2.4l I have 135,400 on it now it won’t run anymore because of the bad motor problems.i bought it with 57,000 miles on it. I have bin putting at least 3 to 4qt of oil in it a week since I bought it. They never said anything to me about this problem and I said that it was going through oil and they said to me that they burn a little oil. Wtf will never buy a thing from general motors or a GMC. Calling a lawyer tomorrow. GOT IT FROM HAMMONTON NJ.
Curious if anyone has a newer V6 Equinox with the oil consumption/burn issue. My 2016 has been having issues since 50k miles and is at the dealership waiting to be torn down this week to see if the extended warranty I paid for will cover the fix and rebuild.
We should put all of our money together and get a lawyer and sue them again so we all can get new vehicles it’s not fair to us that they sold a bad product
I also have a 2013 GMC Terrain that has the same problem with oil burning.now it won’t run because of general motors bad motor. Now I have no vehicle because of them I owe $13,200 on it. They sold me a bad vehicle. They won’t fix it because am out of the warranty.
I have a 2015 equinox and lots of problems going through oil. We do I have to do for this settlement?
I have a 2014 equinox that constantly have oil change before it’s time
Yes I have a 2012 Chevy Equinox I actually purchased for my daughter. It is going through oil like crazy. How do I get information and copy of the paperwork for this settlement.
I also have 2011 equinox that are oil like crazy … I did recieve something in the mail forever ago about this lawsuit but never sent it in …. anyone know what to do about signing up?
I have A 2012 Equinox and I am in the same boat. Wondering how/if I can get this problem fixed through the settlement.
I owned a 2013 Chevrolet equinox. And had the same exact issue. I had a oil change done and 2 weeks later the motor blew. It literally went through oil fast all the time. Where I had to check on it weekly. I’m now letting my vehicle go back to the bank. Cause I can’t afford a new $6,000 motor and i still owe $8,000 from my loan. I’m a single mom without a vehicle now. And with the coronavirus it caused me to be laid off so i definitely can’t afford a new vehicle. Chevy should be ashamed and stand by it’s products
I have a 2013 GMC Terrain Denali that I take to the gmc dealership every 2-3 months for oil changes and constantly add oil in between. My oil light is always on and I always have 1-2 bottles of oil in my car just in case. The dealership has never said anything to me and I’ve never received any notification on this defect. I finally brought it to a different shop to get it evaluated why I go through so much oil and they told me about the class action suit. Why wouldn’t GMC take responsibility for such a thing! Please add me to the lawsuit I want to take care of this problem.
I have a 2011 Equinox with the 2.4-liter Eco-Tech which burns oil. I put maybe 75 miles on it a month. I ran to the grocery store this morning which is maybe 10 miles from my house and noticed it was not sounding right again so I had my husband check the oil when I returned home which he changed not only a month and half ago and it had no oil showing on the dipstick. So he googled and found this information. So I called GM and they told me that since I was over 120 miles that it would not be covered and I would have to pay for the repair and the customer service Rep named Logan told me that GM knew of the defect . So can I be included in this lawsuit please. I would greatly appreciate if I can be included,
Thank You so much
I received a letter in the mail about this settlement while I was on deployment.
My friend tried to send it to me but it was lost in the mail, is there anyway I could receive a copy of an online version of the form to send ?