NHTSA Opens Investigation Into GM V-8s That Won’t Stop Imploding, Despite Receiving Recall Remedy

• The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened an investigation into General Motors’s 6.2-liter V-8 over continued failures.
• The ODI’s investigation involves an engineering analysis of recall 25V-274 and has been expanded to include engines produced after the production period noted in the recall.
• According to NHTSA, the ODI has received 499 reports alleging post-remedy engine failures, while GM itself has reported 6953 such complaints.

General Motors is in hot water with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Office of Defects Investigation. The issue? Engines the automaker previously supplied with a recall fix continue to have catastrophic failures. So, the ODI team has opened a new investigation that specifically targets the L87, GM’s 6.2-liter V-8, which was the subject of recall 25V-274.

The recall, which covered 597,630 trucks and SUVs in the United States, was initiated because of manufacturing defects with the crankshaft and connecting rods that could lead to a catastrophic engine failure. At the time, GM’s remedy involved engine inspections, and for units that passed scrutiny, a higher oil viscosity, a new oil fill cap, and an oil filter replacement. Those that failed were replaced. Unfortunately, neither solution seems to have fixed the underlying issue.

The new ODI report shows that as of August 20, the office had received 499 complaints alleging post-remedy engine failures for cars affected by the recall. Of that population, 473 were supplied with a change in recommended oil while 26 received a complete engine replacement. GM itself has reported that it has received 6953 complaints of post-remedy engine failures, with the ODI reporting that it learned of a further 191 failures for engines produced outside of the recall’s production range.

The oil issue has dogged GM for more than a year now. A class-action suit was brought against the company last year, alleging that the automaker knowingly sold vehicles with bad engines. Earlier this year, GM changed the recommended oil viscosity for the L87, marking the second change in recommended oil for the recalled engine. Now, the ODI is opening its investigation to include L87 engines produced outside of the production window originally laid out in the initial recall.

Jack Fitzgerald’s love for cars stems from his as yet unshakable addiction to Formula 1.
After a brief stint as a detailer for a local dealership group in college, he knew he needed a more permanent way to drive all the new cars he couldn’t afford and decided to pursue a career in auto writing. By hounding his college professors at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, he was able to travel Wisconsin seeking out stories in the auto world before landing his dream job at Car and Driver. His new goal is to delay the inevitable demise of his 2010 Volkswagen Golf.