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GM sued over pickups, SUVs recalled for engine issues
General Motors Co. is being sued for fraud after the Detroit automaker recalled nearly 600,000 trucks and SUVs for potential engine failure this year.
Lawyers for seven plaintiffs on Tuesday asked the U.S. Eastern District Court of Pennsylvania to grant class-action status to the suit, which seeks financial compensation for consumers who bought the affected vehicles.
Recalled vehicles were 2021-2024 model year Chevrolet Silverado 1500s, Tahoes and Suburbans; GMC Sierra 1500s, Yukons and, Yukon XLs, and Cadillac Escalades and Escalade ESVs that are equipped with GM's 6.2-liter V-8 L87 engine.
In response to a request from The Detroit News, GM spokesperson Bill Grotz said: "It's our policy to not comment on pending litigation."
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has warned that "failure or malfunction of the engine results in loss of motive power of the vehicle, which may lead to an increased risk of a crash resulting in injury and/or property damage."
GM recommended that dealers inspect and fix the engines of the affected vehicles, if necessary. For vehicles with engines that passed inspection, drivers were told to use a thicker oil, which the plaintiffs allege makes the SUVs and pickups less fuel-efficient and therefore more expensive to own.
"Thus, as the result of the underlying defect and GM's recall remedy, owners are presented with two bad options: do nothing and risk catastrophic engine failure or get the recall and pay hundreds of dollars more for gasoline," lawyers for the plaintiffs wrote in the filing.
The defect and decreased fuel efficiency "has and will continue to depreciate the resale value" of the vehicles, lawyers wrote.
NHTSA launched an investigation into the GM vehicles in January after receiving complaints of an engine rod bearing failure leading to engine seizure or breach of the engine block by the rod. A report has not yet been released.
An internal GM investigation found more than 28,000 complaints or incidents possibly related to the L87 engine failure between April 2021 and February 2025, according to a separate recall report by NHTSA. GM identified 12 crashes potentially related to the engine issue, none of which were serious.
The plaintiffs claim GM kept information about the defect from buyers and unjustly profited from concealing the issue. They're suing under both federal and several state consumer protection laws.
"These class vehicles, when sold or leased and at all times thereafter, contained a serious engine defect that can lead to catastrophic engine failure and attendant safety risks," according to the lawsuit. "The class vehicles were therefore not merchantable, not fit for the ordinary purpose for which vehicles are used, and did not conform to the promises or affirmations of fact made on their labels."
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