GM defective paint class action overview:ย
- Who: Four owners of vehicles made by General Motors are suing the company.ย
- Why: The plaintiffs say General Motors used defective paint on its vehicles. It was prone to cracking, clouding and delaminating.ย
- Where: The GM defective paint class action lawsuit was filed in a California federal court.
This new class action alleges that General Motors sold cars coated with defective paint. That causes the vehiclesโ exteriors to peel, crack, become cloudy and delaminate.
Plaintiffs Bryon Lyman, Kelly McAteer, Jason Merkel and Mark Volk filed the class action lawsuit against General Motors LLC on July 9 in a California federal court. They allege violations of state and federal consumer laws.ย
The class action refers to paint on 2015-2020 Chevrolet Tahoes, 2015-2020 Chevrolet Suburbans, 2015-2020 GMC Yukons, 2015-2020 GMC Yukon XLs, and 2015-2020 Cadillac Escalades.ย
โAlthough the defect manifested over time, [General Motors] knew or should have known of those issues prior to sale of the [vehicles]; yet GM continued to put the latently defective class vehicles on the market,โ the lawsuit alleges.
The Lawsuit alleges that the paint issue is an expensive fix
The class action contains many consumer stories about the issues with their vehiclesโ paint jobs.
Lyman says he bought a used 2017 Tahoe LT in California in 2019. He alleges that In early 2022, he began noticing issues with the vehicleโs paint. Despite his efforts to polish the car himself, the problem continued. A professional detailer later diagnosed it as a โclearcoat issueโ and buffed the car. Lyman says that only provided a โbandaidโ fix.ย
Lyman states that to repair and repaint the vehicle fully, he would have needed to spend over $10,000. This process would involve sanding the car down to bare metal. Lyman alleges that would significantly depreciate his carโs value.ย
GM likely knew about the defect, plaintiffs allege
The lawsuit alleges that the problem is not unique to Lymanโs Tahoe. Many other General Motors customers suffer from the same defect. Itโs allegedly repeatedly leading to peeling, cracking, cloudiness, flaking, bubbling, erosion, and microblistering of the clearcoat.
The plaintiffs say they expected their โluxuryโ vehicles to be of good quality and had no reason to anticipate the paint issues. Had they known, they would not have bought the vehicles or paid less for them. The lawsuit says General Motors knew or should have known about the defect due to the high number of customer complaints.
The plaintiffs seek to represent anyone in the United States who bought or leased a class vehicle in California. Theyโre suing for breach of warranty, unjust enrichment, fraud, and violations of state consumer laws. The plaintiffs are asking for class action certification, damages, fees, costs, and a jury trial.ย
Meanwhile, consumers recently filed class action lawsuits against General Motors (GM) over claims involving alleged vehicle defects, unlawful data collection and sharing and hackable key fobs. GM also expanded a recall last month over concerns certain GMC Sierra and Chevrolet Silverado vehicles contain tailgates that can inadvertently unlatch while the vehicle is parked.ย
Are you affected by this GM defective paint lawsuit? Let us know in the comments!ย
Steven W. Ritcheson, Taylor C. Bartlett, and Jeanie Sleadd of Heninger Garrison Davis LLC represent the plaintiffs.ย
The GM defective paint class action is Bryon Lyman et al v. General Motors LLC, Case No. 2:24-cv-05786ย in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.ย
Donโt Miss Out!
Check out our list of Class Action Lawsuits and Class Action Settlements you may qualify to join!
Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:
458 thoughts onGM class action claims Chevy Tahoe, Cadillac Escalade and other vehicles have defective paint
I have a 2017 Chevy Tahoe, had it only 2 years and am experiencing cracked clear coat. I took it to several places and they have all told me that this is a know issue with GM and that it would require new paint. Too expensive of a car to have to repaint something that shouldnโt have had a problem to begin with! I never had any issues out of my 2015 Tahoe and had I know about the paint issue, I would have never traded it in. I hope something positive comes of this lawsuit so we can all get our paint fixed! GM is responsible for this.
I have the same problem. I have a 2916 Chevy Tahoe and the hood looks awful. Itโs faded and appears to have scratches all over it. Is there an update on this lawsuit and how can I be involved?
Same!!2016 with the metallic green that looks black. Iโm so annoyed and when asked Chevy dealer they simply said they can email gm thatโs it.
Same here on my 2015 Escalade ESV, looks horrible. Started to show about two month ago. Hood and front part of roof.
I bought a 2021 GMC Sierra 2500 in 2021 the paint is peeling off in sheets. Contacted dealership and was told nothing they could do. I paid 80,000$ for a top of the line truck, this should not happen.
My 2018 Escalade has several areas affected by defective paint and/or clear coat. Iโd like to know when this lawsuit is resolved. Thanks
2017 GMC Sierra paint peeling off of back drivers side door. This vehicle reached its warranty of 100,000 miles/7years in May/2024. The paint started peeling July. This vehicle I has been impeccably kept. This should not have happened.
We are having the same issue. 2017 Chevy Tahoe Premiere 4WD. Please contact me. Iโd like to be involved with the lawsuit to get this issue fixed at the expense of Chevrolet.