Now to be fair, only 2,800 of the over 1 million recalled vehicles ended up with the wrong pretensioner cable assemblies but considering the last recalls were in 2016 and 2018 this probably won't sit well with the owners driving around with the wrong seat belts for the last few years.…
A federal investigation wants to know if rusty connectors are preventing 2020-2021 GM airbags from deploying.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has received six reports of severe crashes where the airbags didn't deploy in GM vehicles, despite those vehicles receiving "significant frontal damage." All six crashes resulted in injuries.…
Toss another lawsuit onto the ever-growing pile of GM Vortec oil consumption cases.
The Missouri based class-action is the latest in a series of suits saying the 5.3L Vortec engine churns through oil because of defects in the low-tension piston rings. The problem is compounded by GM's questionably designed oil life monitoring system which doesn't warn owners when oil levels get dangerously low.
In fact the system doesn't monitor oil levels at all, just the quality of the oil itself. So while the engine may be dry and on the verge of collapse, rest assured that last quart of oil is still in tip-top shape. 👍🏼…
GM may have used the wrong bolts to secure the seat belts in certain 2020 and 2021 Chevy models.
Could the new bolts work? Maybe. But when it comes time to rely on the seat belts, it's better knowing the right parts were used to tether them to the frame.…
A new class-action is accusing General Motors of knowingly selling vehicles that consume abnormally high quantities of oil.
It's not the first time GM has been sued for oil issues in the Vortec engine. Specifically (and stick with me here) the Generation IV 5.3L V8 Vortec 5300 LC9 engine.
As with previous lawsuits, the plaintiffs say low-tension piston rings, oil spray from the Active Fuel Management (AFM) system, and agressive vacuuming from the engine's positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) system are to blame.…
You’ve barely had a chance to get your 2019 truck dirty before buzzkill GM comes knocking for a recall of damaged airbag control modules.
The busted module means the passenger side airbag might not deploy in a crash … or maybe it will? No-one really knows and that’s kind of the point.
The recall covers the 2019 Chevy Silverado 1500 / GMC Sierra 1500 and is expected to begin on December 26th. I’m glad they didn’t plan it for the 24th, the traffic can be awful with all those grandma and reindeer collisions.
A lawsuit says a failed vacuum pump in GM’s brake boosters can make the brake pedal extremely hard to push, leading to longer stopping distances and accidents.
While investigating a rear-end collision involving the lead plaintiff ”GM told her she should read the manual to understand how the brakes worked.” Nothing says “we value our customers” like accusing them of not knowing how brakes work. GM promised to fix the plaintiff’s bumper in exchange for confidentiality. Obviously this didn’t go over well.
GM is recalling 23,000 vehicles because the a seat belt pretensioner cable may no longer be attached.
The automaker had been monitoring the field for signs of pretensioner cables wearing down in 2014-2016 trucks and SUVs and monitoring warranty data, leading the automaker to open an internal investigation.
GM says the cables fatigue because the driver [can sit on the] pretensioner and cable guide in a sliding motion while entering the vehicle.
Let that be a lesson to us owners to … stop sitting in our cars?
GM owners are still trying to convince a judge that Vortec 5300 engines have oil consumption problems and don’t give owners adequate warnings when oil levels are dangerously low.
According to the lawsuit, the Vortec 5300 engines in the vehicles consume extreme levels of oil because of defects in the oil rings that allow oil to invade the combustion chambers … The plaintiffs claim the oil pressure warnings can fail to activate in time to prevent engine damage, something GM has allegedly known is a problem with the Vortec engines.
The judge had previously dismissed the lawsuit and doesn't seem too interested in complaints about fires, oil rings, or inadequate warnings.
The plaintiffs have a small, uphill chance if they can amend their complaints.
Last year a very reasinable argument was made that the Vortec 5300 engine is designed in a way that creates excessive oil consumption. It's also designed in a way that doesn't warn you when an excessive amount of oil has been used.
However, a federal judge has ruled there isn't enough evidence to support the claims.…
KSBH is Kansas City has a story about a frustrated Chevrolet owner who is tired of his truck's excessive vibrations, especially on the highway.
[Mike] Hollingsworth said the shaking began within weeks of purchasing the truck. Because he bought it new, Hollingsworth said he didn't take it for a test drive ... That was the biggest mistake I made," he said.
Like many owners, Mr. Hollingsworth is being told by Chevy technicians that the shaking is within what's considered an acceptable range. GM needs to adjust its scale.
There's something funky going on inside GM's 5.3L Vortec 5300 engine causing it to use a higher-than-normal amount of oil.
Some might even say it's excessive. A lawsuit filed in Minnesota says the problem is multi-faceted.
GM used low-tension piston rings that allow oil to leak out of the crankcase and into the combustion chamber.
The rings, which are already leaking, are then overloaded by a spray of pressurized oil from the Active Fuel Management (AFM) system.
Even more oil is being burned off after being sucked into the intake by the engine's positive crankcase ventilation (PCV).
That's a recipe for disaster, but the cherry on top is the somewhat useless oil monitoring system. Instead of measuring the volume of oil left in the crankcase, the system measures environmetal variables to determine the quality of the oil.
Sure, there's only a pint of oil left in the engine but don't worry ... the oil quality is great.
The lawsuit mentions GM has tried to improve the situation by updating the vehicle's crankcase ventilation and active fuel management system, but it never really helped. Eventually GM just updated the Generation IV Vortec 5300 engine and replaced it with a redesigned Generation V Vortec 5300 that stopped using low-tension oil rings and reintriduced an oil level sensor.
Last month GM announced an airbag recall affecting 4 million vehicles.
Software errors have been found to disable the front airbags and seatbelt pretensions after "certain driving conditions." GM won't say what those conditions are, but they did say there’s been at least one death related to the bug.
“GM opened an investigation into the issue in June and contacted Delphi, the supplier of the sensing and diagnostic module. The automaker gathered additional electronic data recorder records from other incidents where the same crash symptoms occurred.”
After three days of road tests in September 2016, GM ordered the recall. The affected GMC vehicles include the Sierra lineup as well as the Yukon.
GM is recalling nearly 4,800 new trucks and SUVs, and telling their owners to stop driving until their front upper control arms can be repaired.
GM blames the problem on a bad weld near the control arm bushing, a problem the automaker discovered on a GMC Yukon XL Denali. The faulty weld can cause the control arm to change shape and eventually separate.…
Turns out the flexible steel cables GM used to connect its seat belts to the body of their trucks might be a little too flexible.
(The) cable can break over time due to a driver repeatedly getting into the seat, causing the cable to bend and eventually separate. GM says it discovered the seat belt problem by looking at warranty data, but no accidents or injuries have been reported.
More than 1 million Chevy and GMC trucks will need to be repaired.
The best way to find out what's wrong with a vehicle is from the people who drive them. Not only do owner complaints help us rank vehicles by reliability, but they're often used to spark class-action lawsuits and warranty extensions. Plus, they're a great way to vent.