Muscle cars are some of the most unsafe vehicles on the road; we all know that and continue to love them. But the Camaro has some owners mad about serious flaws Chevy knew about and omitted to mention.
A class-action lawsuit has begun this month, filed in the U.S. District Court in the state of Delaware, and it alleges that General Motors "knowingly sold Chevy Camaro models without disclosing that the vehicles are plagued by a starter and/or heat shield defect."
Besides the technical details of this lawsuit, what really strikes us is the size and scope. It could affect every Camaro made after 2010 or over 750,000 of them. Basically, every modern 'Maro owner should know about this. So what's the issue?
There's an issue with heat buildup in the wires that connect to the starter, which in some cases can melt. In addition, the lawsuit says the pinion and starter gear are permanently connected to the flywheel, which damages them over time and causes the heating of the cables.
“GM’s failure to disclose the starter defect at the time of purchase is material because no reasonable consumer expects to spend hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars to repair or replace damaged vehicle components that the manufacturer knows will fail well before the expected useful life of the component and damage other components of the vehicle as well,” the lawsuit says. “Had GM disclosed the starter defect, the plaintiff and class members would not have purchased the class vehicles or would have paid less for them.”
Engines that don't start are indeed one of the most common problems you'll find online with the Camaro. General Motors reportedly knew about this since 2010 but decided not to do anything about it for either of the two generations. However, from what we gather, there aren't that many instances of starters going bad, and the no-start either has to do with the battery being in the trunk or mixed signals from the key.
Besides the technical details of this lawsuit, what really strikes us is the size and scope. It could affect every Camaro made after 2010 or over 750,000 of them. Basically, every modern 'Maro owner should know about this. So what's the issue?
There's an issue with heat buildup in the wires that connect to the starter, which in some cases can melt. In addition, the lawsuit says the pinion and starter gear are permanently connected to the flywheel, which damages them over time and causes the heating of the cables.
“GM’s failure to disclose the starter defect at the time of purchase is material because no reasonable consumer expects to spend hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars to repair or replace damaged vehicle components that the manufacturer knows will fail well before the expected useful life of the component and damage other components of the vehicle as well,” the lawsuit says. “Had GM disclosed the starter defect, the plaintiff and class members would not have purchased the class vehicles or would have paid less for them.”
Engines that don't start are indeed one of the most common problems you'll find online with the Camaro. General Motors reportedly knew about this since 2010 but decided not to do anything about it for either of the two generations. However, from what we gather, there aren't that many instances of starters going bad, and the no-start either has to do with the battery being in the trunk or mixed signals from the key.