Federal Judge Rules the Cracked Wheels Lawsuit Against General Motors Can Proceed

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Federal Judge Rules the Cracked Wheels Lawsuit Against General Motors Can Proceed

Photo Credit: Keith Cornett


The Corvette cracked wheels lawsuit lives on.

A federal judge has refused to dismiss most of the claims filed by 18 plaintiffs who argue wheels on certain 2015-19 Z06 and 2017-19 Grand Sport Corvettes are defective, allegedly cracking, bending, warping, and allowing air to leak out.

General Motors had filed a motion to dismiss the class action suit for several reasons: that the plaintiffs are targeting an alleged design defect not covered by the Corvette warranty, that the plaintiffs pleaded no facts to allege their wheel problems were not caused by normal wear or road hazards, that some plaintiffs didn’t claim their cars were within the warranty periods when brought to dealerships, that some plaintiffs never brought their cars to dealers, and that some voided the warranties with non-GM parts through non-GM repair facilities.

Federal Judge Rules the Cracked Wheels Lawsuit Against General Motors Can Proceed

Photo Credit: Sonny Lenaers


But the judge ruled against GM, even going so far as to say claims should not be dismissed for failure to seek repairs during the warranty periods.

The judge also ruled that the suit can continue despite having just 18 plaintiffs, even though GM had argued it should be dismissed because the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act requires at least 100 named plaintiffs.

Federal Judge Rules the Cracked Wheels Lawsuit Against General Motors Can Proceed


The judge dismissed unjust enrichment claims but allowed multiple claims against GM to continue, including MMWA, express warranty, implied warranty, consumer protection, and injunctive relief claims.

The plaintiffs have long argued that the cast wheels are too weak to handle the torque and power input from the Corvettes and that GM allegedly was aware that the cast rims should have instead been forged. The plaintiffs also say that Corvette owners routinely spend nearly $1,000 to replace one cracked wheel with “an equally defective replacement wheel.”

GM has blamed the cracks on potholes or driver error and won’t issue a recall.


Source:
carcomplaints.com

Related:
A Lawsuit Against GM Over Cracked Corvette Wheels Has Been Dismissed
Hundreds of C7 Corvette Owners Join Class Action Lawsuit Against GM Over Defective Wheels
New Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against GM Over Defective and Cracking C7 Corvette Wheels

 



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9 COMMENTS

  1. GM was not aware of any defects?????
    Yet GM offered FRC (Full Replacement Cost) all risk insurance coverage as an option. Hmmmm

  2. What am I missing here? The Grand Sport has the same 460 HP engine that the basic Stingray has (and same torque) doesn’t it? Then why only the Z06 and GS and not the basic Stingray are having wheels crack? I can maybe understand the Z06 since it has a lot more torque & horsepower, but why the GS?

  3. This is really a good ruling, how often does the average owner look closely at their rims, especially the inside. I recently hit a section of pavement hard on I-95 that was being re-done and I was worried about a crack. Luckily, no, I pulled them to inspect and clean. I always keep my tire pressure at 30 psig as recommended to reduce chances of a crack. As to the question above about cracking the optional sized wheels used on the Z06 & Grand Sport are lower profile and as such the rim is thinner on these wheels.

  4. GM needs to be held accountable for this. You are talking about one of the most important, if not the most important component of an automobile. People could be severely injured, or even killed with a failure like that!

  5. It’s a shame that GM has this ( it not my fault) attitude. They received a BAIL OUT from the US consumer , we purchase there vehicles with the hope they stand by there product. But NO. I have a C3, C7 and ordered a C8, I have second thoughts about the C8.
    After replacing 2 rims on the C7, what hidden issues are on or in the C8?

  6. My 2019 Z06 Wheel cracked at 7000 miles. I purchased a set of ZR1 wheels when the dealer (mind you, I purchased TWO 2019 Corvettes) told me to pound sand.
    The service rep even stated there was no physical damage to my wheel or tire.
    How do I get in on this lawsuit?

  7. I have a 2019 grand sport 2LT C7
    I had to front bent wheels with a tire and wheel package and I still was getting a hard time so I went i my own and had wheel company repair for me and I i got a new 4 set of new tires at same time

  8. I have a carbon 65 grand sport when I got back from Kentucky I had 3 cracks on one wheel, on the way there I met 2 people with grand sports hat crack wheels had to replace them to get back home. I had 8 corvettes no more I’m through with corvettes. They do not stand behind their product.

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