Auto on Info  January 2004

Do General Motors' Pickup Trucks and SUVs Make a Grotesque Noise?

Some owners have said, "Yes!" In fact, some contend that they make so much noise that their resale value is nothing or next to nothing. This has prompted quite a number of lawsuits. At http://www.lemonlaw.com/gm-engine-problem.html the law firm Kimmel & Silverman claims to have represented "hundreds" of General Motors truck owners who have complained of "piston slap" or engine knock.

The response of General Motors, per plaintiffs and trial attorneys, has been:

1. First, try to persuade the owner that the engine knock is normal,

2. If unsuccessful, offer to extend the warranty to 100,000 miles,

3. If unsuccessful, offer a cash settlement of $2,000 to $5,000,

4. If unsuccessful, buy back the vehicle.

Per a reprint of a Detroit Free Press article found at the above internet address, GM spokesman Tom Read declined to confirm or deny that GM had offered extended warranties, cash settlements, or buybacks.

However, Ron Martiny, whose Silverado developed the engine knock very shortly after purchase, and his attorney, Vince Megna, told a Knight Ridder reporter that after the extended warranty offer and a $3,000 cash settlement offer, GM ponied up $20,000 to cover the loan balance plus another $20,000 plus attorney fees.¹ Mr. Megna further stated that General Motors usually buys back the vehicle before the engine knock cases go to court, as "[t]hey know when these are filed, they aren't going to win these cases."¹

The engine knock problem is reported to affect 1999 through 2002 Chevrolet and GMC pickup and sport utility vehicle models with 4.8-, 5.3- and 6.0-liter V-8 engines, per dealer service bulletins obtained by Knight Ridder Newspapers.¹ It occurs when carbon builds up about a portion of the piston that then bangs against the cylinder wall.²

Mr. Read, the GM spokesman, claimed in November 2003 that the knocking problem has occurred in only "a small percentage of vehicles."² The contention is supported by Consumer Reports reliability tables.³ However, Brian Parker, a Michigan trial attorney, remarked that only in the last year has this problem become really obvious.¹

The increased frequency may have been what prompted two of the engine knock lawsuits to seek class action status. The second lawsuit seeking class action status, filed in Oklahoma City, alleges that there are 800,000 pickup trucks with the defective engine that the plaintiff's Chevrolet Silverado has.⁴ However, this may only be the tip of the iceberg, as Wards Automotive Yearbook 2001 reports sales of Silverados and Sierras alone for 1999 and 2000 to be 1,468,611.⁵ If this number is doubled to include 2001 and 2002 Silverados and Sierras and then account is taken of Chevrolet and GMC large sport utility vehicle sales, potential liability is in the tens of billions of dollars and may approach $100 billion. A more exact estimate would take account of the number of pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles that contain the affected engines and the distributions of the engine knock onset times and mileages.

The engine knock problem occurs at an inopportune time for General Motors, as it has been spending much effort and a bundle of money trying to convince consumers that the quality of its products has improved.

¹ "Engine Noises Plague GM Trucks," Akron Beacon Journal, 23 November 2003, http://www.ohio.com/mld/beaconjournal/7325459.htm

² http://www.lemonlaw.com/gm-engine-problem.html

³ Consumer Reports, April 2003, pages 92, 95

⁴ "Suit Against GM Claims Piston-Slap Ruins Residual Value," Dow Jones Newswires, 26 January 2004, accessible at Yahoo! News

⁵ Wards Automotive Yearbook 2001, page 251

To gather more information with regard to the latest class action lawsuit, click here. If the searcher is redirected to a page listing all the states, click the radio button preceding "Oklahoma" and then click "Select State." For an expanded list of possibly affected vehicles, check the following web page of a California law firm: www.classcounsel.com/news/gm.htm.

To express your opinion on the severity of the piston slap - engine knock of GM vehicles and lawsuits based thereon, click here.