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Major Engine Problems 2018 6.0


amgems

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Posted

2018, 2500HD, Silverado, 4WD, 6.0 Engine, Reg Bed, Extended Cab

I've been a loyal Chevy owner for a long time. Have purchased 4 or 5 new Chevy pickups since the early 80's. Nothing but perfect reliability up until now. Maybe a water pump here and there, but nothing like this. Just retired, purchased another new Chevy. Getting ready for lots of travel. Not happening with this one, now I'm afraid to drive it to down to the grocery store.

Truck has been in for engine failure 3 times:
1st time -  1 Failed lifter and broken rocker arm 3/28/18 - 678 miles
2nd time - Multiple bent push rods, broken rocker arms, and failed lifters - 4/17/18 - 976 miles
3rd time - Oil Pump Failure, Metal found in oil pump - 8/16/18 - 3408 miles

The oil pump went out on a trip from California to Colorado. Got 900 miles into my planned 1000 mile trip and was stuck in a trailer park for 6 days. Never did make it to my bucket list destination.

From what I have researched, generally this 6.0 engine is pretty much bullet proof. Not this one. I believe this particular one has some underlying lubrication system issues. Pretty darn rare for lifters to go bad on a new engine. Multiple lifters....unheard of. Metal in the oil pump....not good.

My fear is that this engine is now compromised. It may run OK for a while, but what about 10 - 20 -30K down the road?

I asked that the engine be replaced when it went in the second time for lifters. GM would not approve it. After the oil pump nightmare I started a case with GM Customer Service. Asked for engine replacement or truck buyback. A rather slow and painful process so far. The rep I talked to is more concerned about reimbursing my expenses while stuck in the RV park. My main priority is to get a new engine or a new truck. That concern seems to be secondary to him and he keeps telling me to contact my Customer Experience Manager, but hasn't told me who that is, or how to get in touch with them.

Not very happy at this point in time. I hope GM comes through with the new engine or a buy back. Seems like the new engine back in April would have saved them money in the long run. Certainly would have helped them retain a loyal customer. Not feeling so loyal to GM right now.

Thanks for allowing me to vent my frustrations. Maybe someone on this forum or some of the other GM truck forums that I'll be posting to, can offer some hope, or advice, or share a similar experience and what steps they took to resolve it.

 

To be fair, I'll certainly follow up this post with the outcome. I hope it has a happy ending.

Posted

Lemon Law. Check your state for what qualifies and follow it to a T. Consider a Lemon Law attorney who normally get paid as part of the settlement so no up front out of pocket expense. Been through this myself in Florida and I can assure you GM is not your friend and will fight you all the way. Good luck.

Posted

Sounds like your the 1 in a million with this motor. Manufacturing defects do happen and this is what warranties were made for. However your lost time and the frustration you feel can not be compensated for.


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Posted

tell him you appreciate what he is trying to do but that you would like to speak with his manager.  let his/her manager know that the only thing that is going to put your mind at ease over this is to have a completely new engine put in or be put into another brand new truck.  The 3 major/critical issues you have had with less than 5000 miles on the thing should never have happened and you have lost complete faith and trust in this truck and that the manager would feel the same way as well.  See how that goes.  Just keep it polite and professional though. 

Posted
On 9/5/2018 at 12:43 AM, Colossus said:

tell him you appreciate what he is trying to do but that you would like to speak with his manager.  let his/her manager know that the only thing that is going to put your mind at ease over this is to have a completely new engine put in or be put into another brand new truck.  The 3 major/critical issues you have had with less than 5000 miles on the thing should never have happened and you have lost complete faith and trust in this truck and that the manager would feel the same way as well.  See how that goes.  Just keep it polite and professional though. 

I'm going to try that route. Thanks for the advice.

Posted

I contacted GM Customer Care multiple times for various issues on my truck, none as severe as yours, and they were entirely unhelpful. I found the best way was to contact a Lemon Law firm and to let them handle things. These firms will only accept cases if they believe you can win and there is no cost to the consumer. My recommendation is to contact them, unfortunately, GM does not seem to care until they receive a letter from a law firm. It is still a long process, but it actually yields results. I'm not sure about CA's Lemon Laws, but I would think you are a perfect candidate to be covered under it.

Posted

Thanks for the replies and advice guys. Still trying to work it through GM. I'll give them a little more time to make it right. Not real hopeful. I'll update if anything moves in a good or bad direction.
The GM customer service guy is the most frustrating. Not sure if they train them to be that way or it is just incompetence. Very strange experience. 

Posted
On 9/4/2018 at 10:53 AM, amgems said:

2018, 2500HD, Silverado, 4WD, 6.0 Engine, Reg Bed, Extended Cab

I've been a loyal Chevy owner for a long time. Have purchased 4 or 5 new Chevy pickups since the early 80's. Nothing but perfect reliability up until now. Maybe a water pump here and there, but nothing like this. Just retired, purchased another new Chevy. Getting ready for lots of travel. Not happening with this one, now I'm afraid to drive it to down to the grocery store.

Truck has been in for engine failure 3 times:
1st time -  1 Failed lifter and broken rocker arm 3/28/18 - 678 miles
2nd time - Multiple bent push rods, broken rocker arms, and failed lifters - 4/17/18 - 976 miles
3rd time - Oil Pump Failure, Metal found in oil pump - 8/16/18 - 3408 miles

The oil pump went out on a trip from California to Colorado. Got 900 miles into my planned 1000 mile trip and was stuck in a trailer park for 6 days. Never did make it to my bucket list destination.

From what I have researched, generally this 6.0 engine is pretty much bullet proof. Not this one. I believe this particular one has some underlying lubrication system issues. Pretty darn rare for lifters to go bad on a new engine. Multiple lifters....unheard of. Metal in the oil pump....not good.

My fear is that this engine is now compromised. It may run OK for a while, but what about 10 - 20 -30K down the road?

I asked that the engine be replaced when it went in the second time for lifters. GM would not approve it. After the oil pump nightmare I started a case with GM Customer Service. Asked for engine replacement or truck buyback. A rather slow and painful process so far. The rep I talked to is more concerned about reimbursing my expenses while stuck in the RV park. My main priority is to get a new engine or a new truck. That concern seems to be secondary to him and he keeps telling me to contact my Customer Experience Manager, but hasn't told me who that is, or how to get in touch with them.

Not very happy at this point in time. I hope GM comes through with the new engine or a buy back. Seems like the new engine back in April would have saved them money in the long run. Certainly would have helped them retain a loyal customer. Not feeling so loyal to GM right now.

Thanks for allowing me to vent my frustrations. Maybe someone on this forum or some of the other GM truck forums that I'll be posting to, can offer some hope, or advice, or share a similar experience and what steps they took to resolve it.

 

To be fair, I'll certainly follow up this post with the outcome. I hope it has a happy ending.

Have you tried posting in the HD section to see if any other members have a similar problem since this is the 6.0?

Posted
On 9/8/2018 at 9:05 PM, Bikemobile said:

Where was your Colorado bucket list location? Just curious. 

Was on my way to Salida to ride a dual sport motorcycle event. Ended up 100 miles short in Montrose. I did get to do some riding west of Montrose, nice area.

Posted

Update, GM has assigned a new Customer Service Rep. She is, at least, a much better listener than the last guy.
On the way home from Colorado the oil pressure seemed low. It is at the dealer for that problem now. They tested it and the service rep told me there is a 90% chance I will get a new engine.
Stay tuned....

Posted
1 hour ago, amgems said:

Was on my way to Salida to ride a dual sport motorcycle event. Ended up 100 miles short in Montrose. I did get to do some riding west of Montrose, nice area.

Cool, I live in Gunnison. 

  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

Hopefully my final update.

My dealer called me yesterday and said my truck is ready. I was quite surprised, because I'm still working with GM Customer Service on a buy-back. The dealer's service rep said "Really?... we just completed the install of a brand new factory fresh engine." apparently the two don't talk.

They found the oil pressure was 4psi, the cam bearings were shot, and the block was damaged beyond repair. I'm guessing where the cam rides.

So...I'm happy. New engine runs fine, and is much more quiet than the old one.

I'm supposed to talk to the GM service rep on Monday. I guess I'll tell her .... never mind.

The Service Dept guys at Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet in San Diego did a great job... Thanks!

GM / Chevy came through with the right fix....but what a painful process.

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