[aehnert]

One year ago almost to the day, my daughter bought a 2013 cruze from a chevy dealership. It had 63,000 miles and now has 75,000 miles. Two days ago she was driving on the interstate. All of a sudden she lost acceleration and he check engine light came on. She was near an off ramp so she pulled off and shut the car off. The engine turned on. Her check engine light was on and blinking, her traction light was on and her message center said to check stabilizer. She tried to drive, had the gas pedal floored but car would not move. We called a tow truck and had it towed to the nearest chevy dealership. He says her ignition coil is "fried" and she needed a spark plug. But he thought that was not the cause but he had to start there to diagnose further. Authorized that. He then calls back and said those didn't fix but now she needs a new motor because the damaged coil and plug ruined her motor beyond repair because cylinders are misfiring, no fire. It seems odd to me that a car that is only 4 years old needs a new engine. This car exhibited no symptoms prior to this incident. The check engine light has never came on, the engine ran smooth, regular oil changes this past year. Any thoughts?

 

[aehnert]

The car is still under powertrain warranty.....why speculate?.....let them do what they do.

I do find the explanation questionable, but since it is on Chevys dime......

Rob

Per the dealer because the coil and spark plug are the cause of the engine failure and they only have a 3 year/36 month warranty, any issues they cause are not covered by the power train warranty.

 

[aehnert]

Contact Chevrolet Customer Care, with your VIN.

So a bad ignition coil and spark plug took out the entire engine? Sounds suspect to me. What part of the engine failed? Take out a piston, or is valve burnt? If its a vavle, get the head rebuilt.

The auto tech at the dealer just keeps telling us it is a catastrophic failure. He says when the coil pack failed it dumped gas down the cylinder and burned the valve. Hasn't said anything about rebuilding the head. Says need new engine. So all of a sudden we had a great running car that turned into a "catastrophic failure" with zero warning. I just can't get it to make sense.

 

[aehnert]

It's probably the common cylinder 1 or 2 misfire, happens in Cruzes very often. I doubt a bad ignition coil or spark plug caused anything to happen but they could have been caused by the real issue at hand.

Wouldn't there be some sort of symptom or warning that the there is a misfire? No engine performance issues/noises and no check engine light ever came on. Until she was stranded on the side of the road.

 

[aehnert]

If it is just a burnt valve, the lower block, crank, and pistons do not need to be replaced. The head could be rebuilt for ~$350-$400. Plus labor to remove and reinstall. I don't know the dealer's motiviation to try and sell you a new engine, but I would be asking a lot of questions. Why does 1 burnt valve necessitate the replacement of the entire engine? Did they do a compression check or leak down test? What were the results of the compression check? So what if a lot of gas got dumped down into #1 cylinder. Usually a burnt valve is caused by a lean condition. Too much air, so if anything your condition would have been a rich scenario. Something does not add up, and sounds like he's trying to get into your wallet.

Yeah the dealer wants $8300 for a new motor. Cylinders 3&4 are the issue according to the tech notes. They did a compression test on those 2 cylinders and there was 0 psi.

 

[aehnert]

If I was in your shoes, I'd be calling a tow truck to bring the car to another dealer. What he's saying makes no sense to me. I've never heard of a ignition problem taking out an engine like that.

Unfortunately the car broke down 90 miles from where we live. Roadside assistance would only tow 15 miles. The nearest town was 29 miles. Where it is now is the only chevy dealer in that town. We would have to tow it 90 miles. I opened a case with general motors because if there is an engine issue I feel the powertrain should cover it since like I have been told by numerous people it shouldn't take out the engine. The dealership where we bought the car won't get involved because they don't want to step on another's toes.

 

[aehnert]

Ask the dealer what is the cause of the 0 compression. If it is just burnt valves, get the head rebuilt. Do you have any powertrain warranty left? Call Chevy customer service ASAP. And get your car towed to another dealer.

Yes there is powertrain left. I have verified that. But the dealer says powertrain won't cover it. So I called customer care and opened a case.

 

[aehnert]

You could technically fight this because it does not say its not covered specifically. Just a thought.



Engine
All internally lubricated parts, engine oil, cooling hoses and lines. Also included are all actuators and electrical components internal to the engine, cylinder head, block, timing gears, timing chain, timing cover, oil pump/oil pump housing, OHC carriers, valve covers, oil pan, seals, gaskets, turbocharger, supercharger and all internal lubricated parts as well as manifolds, flywheel, water pump, harmonic balancer and engine mount. Timing belts are covered until the first scheduled maintenance interval. Exclusions: Excluded from the powertrain coverage are sensors, wiring, connectors, engine radiator, coolant hoses, coolant, and heater core. Coverage on the engine cooling system begins at the inlet to the water pump and ends with the thermostat housing and/or outlet that attaches to the return hose. Also excluded is the starter motor, entire pressurized fuel system (in-tank fuel pump, pressure lines, fuel rail(s), regulator, injectors, and return line) as well as the Engine/Powertrain Control Module and/or module programming.

I was thinking the same thing. Plus under the what's not covered section it doesn't say anything about if a problem starts elsewhere and causes damage to engine.