I personally think (IMHO) “how the owner drives the vehicle” May play a major role in cracking the pistons. I have 2,300 miles on my 2017 LT and have never “WOT” the engine. At best was 1/2 down to pass a bus or get onto the Parkway. I also followed the engine brake-in instructions in the owners manual. I don’t intend to “WOT” unless I have an emergency or I’m being chased by “Godzilla”. I will be visiting the dealership next month for (my first of 2) free oil changes. I will talk directly with the Service Manager (he did invite me to meet with him on my first visit). Let’s see how honest he is. I will report what I’m told.
My Family Has Two 2017 Cruzes with Two Engine Failures...thoughts?
I've had some Cruze issues that just don't seem right and I wanted to see if anyone else had similar issues.
My better half and I both leased brand new 2017 Cruze base models starting back in November. Both are set up as high mileage leases and both cars are driven quite a bit. On one, most of the mileage is city driving and on the other the mix is closer to 50/50 city and highway driving. Generally, different gas stations are used. Both cars have been maintained by quick lube places, but at different locations, different times, etc.
Right around 28k on each of the cars, a bad misfire developed. It got worse very quickly and in both cases, the dealer diagnosed the issue as piston failure. Different dealerships in different states worked with each car. In both cases, the dealer attempted to replace one piston and in both cases, there was further internal damage and the engines needed to be replaced. Car #1 had the work done and runs fine now. Car #2 is in the shop now and hopefully will be finished by the end of the week. Both are being covered under warranty, but both cars are used for work and without our cars, we cannot work. Between the two of us, this has cost about $3,500-$4,000 in lost income. Needless to say, I am very disappointed. We invested in new cars to be used as a tool. I don't expect engine failures after less than 30k. I am very nervous that we will be dancing this dance again at 60k,90k, etc. when the cars are out of warranty. We both really like our Cruzes, but this could be a big problem.
Has anyone else had piston issues on a Gen 2 Cruze?
I am also a writer and journalist, so I reached out to GM's public relations department to inquire about possible issues. They have not commented.
I also have not been able to find out for sure which cylinder had the piston failure. Both dealerships haven't been able to give me much information and the service writers seem very detached from the actual technicians.
Any thoughts or experience would be appreciated.
My better half and I both leased brand new 2017 Cruze base models starting back in November. Both are set up as high mileage leases and both cars are driven quite a bit. On one, most of the mileage is city driving and on the other the mix is closer to 50/50 city and highway driving. Generally, different gas stations are used. Both cars have been maintained by quick lube places, but at different locations, different times, etc.
Right around 28k on each of the cars, a bad misfire developed. It got worse very quickly and in both cases, the dealer diagnosed the issue as piston failure. Different dealerships in different states worked with each car. In both cases, the dealer attempted to replace one piston and in both cases, there was further internal damage and the engines needed to be replaced. Car #1 had the work done and runs fine now. Car #2 is in the shop now and hopefully will be finished by the end of the week. Both are being covered under warranty, but both cars are used for work and without our cars, we cannot work. Between the two of us, this has cost about $3,500-$4,000 in lost income. Needless to say, I am very disappointed. We invested in new cars to be used as a tool. I don't expect engine failures after less than 30k. I am very nervous that we will be dancing this dance again at 60k,90k, etc. when the cars are out of warranty. We both really like our Cruzes, but this could be a big problem.
Has anyone else had piston issues on a Gen 2 Cruze?
I am also a writer and journalist, so I reached out to GM's public relations department to inquire about possible issues. They have not commented.
I also have not been able to find out for sure which cylinder had the piston failure. Both dealerships haven't been able to give me much information and the service writers seem very detached from the actual technicians.
Any thoughts or experience would be appreciated.
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Sorry, I forgot to add that if I crack a piston like “Pegasus” I will scream holy **** at Chevy!I personally think (IMHO) “how the owner drives the vehicle” May play a major role in cracking the pistons. I have 2,300 miles on my 2017 LT and have never “WOT” the engine. At best was 1/2 down to pass a bus or get onto the Parkway. I also followed the engine brake-in instructions in the owners manual. I don’t intend to “WOT” unless I have an emergency or I’m being chased by “Godzilla”. I will be visiting the dealership next month for (my first of 2) free oil changes. I will talk directly with the Service Manager (he did invite me to meet with him on my first visit). Let’s see how honest he is. I will report what I’m told.
Interesting posts Heliarc. Because of yours and others I “Goggled” LSPI and watched a couple of YouTube videos describing it to try and fully understand it. You're right and it’s not a new thing. I want to be fully “armed” when I visit the dealership next month. I’m hoping the Service Manager is a straight shooter and not a BS artist.So you see more manuals then autos with the issue.
Yes hot rodding and driving incorrectly will cause that as well. Too much low end boost.
LSPI isn't exactly a "new" thing.
Preformance car tuners know that you can't run high boost in low rpm.
But it's happening because of the conditions that new mfgers are introducing in order to achieve HP, MPG, and drivability.
Dealership guys will almost always deny problems lol
I guess I need to clarify something. I never said I had a cracked piston. (yet) My wife and I are new Cruze owners, a new 2017, currently with 4K miles. We didn't know about the cracked piston issue before we bought the car. Now my wife and I both have some concerns about whether we made the right decision. Now maybe using 91 octane might prevent this or not (don't know that was just a theory some people on here are saying) but if we had been told that we needed to use 91 octane to prevent piston cracking, we neve would've bought the car. It's stupid to make an economy compact car and require it to have the most expensive gas. People buy economy cars to save fuel costs, not to have to spend an extra dollar a gallon to avoid engine damage.
Now perhaps higher octane isn't the answer, but who knows. It's not like anyone at Chevrolet has come out and said what the problem is or was with the cracked pistons. If they have can someone link me to it, because I haven't read it yet.
I asked my local dealers service dept. and they claim they don't know the official reason either. All they could tell me was they haven't seen any piston problems yet with the gen 2's but they aren't in a high volume market anyway, so they don't know if the problem is fixed or not. They are like my wife and I, keeping their fingers crossed and hoping it won't be an issue in the future.
Sorry about that. I should have gone all the way back and re-read your original posts. I too am worried about cracking a piston etc. and perhaps having to use premium gas. That is a lot of extra expense over 25k, 50k, 100k miles etc. to “help avoid” a “possible” problem. I visit my dealership next month for the first (of 2) free oil changes. I will be talking directly with the Service Manager about it then, but honestly, I really don’t expect a “true straight forward answer”. We’ll see.
The thread was started by Cruze Talk member “New Englander” and he indeed had to engine failures.Sorry about that. I should have gone all the way back and re-read your original posts.
Yikes, there are so many different “Threads & Posts” about LSPI, cracked pistons etc., premium gas vs 87 Octane, premium oils etc that my 71 year old brain is spinning.?. I’ve watched videos on LSPI and read articles about it and lots of individual posts to the point of WTF! Any way I went to COSTCO today and filled up my “Hot Red” 2017 LT with regular 87 octane. Today’s prices in New Jersey $2.539 for 87 and $2.899 for 93 octane. COSTCO has (hands down) the lowest gas prices in the state. I’ve run some actual numbers based on my first 5 months of ownership: (Remember I’m retired so not too many miles driven)I am going to use some tricks outlined here, unless and until we have a word from GM. Top-tier premium fuel. Best oil (maybe the Amsoil SS), fuel treatment every 10,000 (just about due for the 1st, have bought the Gumout brand stuff, haven't put it in yet), haven't decided yet if the catch can is worthwhile.
I did have two LSPI incidents that I'm aware of. Both under heavy throttle. Once at around 2000 rpm, once in the upper 2000s to the best of my recollection. Pedal matted both times. I think both were after a dealer oil change where it was overfilled about 1/2 quart and where I think they may have used the prior revision of oil. I took it back to them after a few hundred mi to correct the overfill, before being aware of the oil revision and the propensity of these engines to blow up. They drained & refilled it but didn't change the filter. I haven't noticed a problem since, but I am also driving it differently, and using premium fuel, so not sure if anything has actually changed
I must say, the only thing more expensive than using top tier premium fuel and expensive oils and driving carefully, is selling the thing early and buying a different new car. I don't feel really wealthy, but, I could afford to do this I think. Not sure what type of Toyota I'm going to get next.
Interested to know what 'Italian tune-up' techniques work for this thing. Afraid to press the throttle to the floor now, but I suppose at 3,000 and above, it's ok. Haven't felt the need to redline it, but is this a necessity once in a while?
2,356 miles, total of 89 gallons used. Had I used premium gas I would have spent $32 more
Now let’s go further (using a 28 MPG average)
25k miles = 892 gallons or $321 more using premium over regular
50k miles = 1784 gallons or $642 more
75k miles = 2676 gallons or $963 more
100k miles = 3568 gallons or $1,284 more
That’s not too bad of an extra expense (to possibly avoid a “possible” major engine failure) but here in NJ the difference is only 36 cents a gallon more. Some CT members have said premium gas is a $1.00 or more per gallon higher! I’m not considering $$ for oil because you should always use the best oil regardless of the make/model of the car.
I can’t wait to get that first free oil change at the dealership. Perhaps I can make the Service Managers head spin TOO. LOL ?
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