Took my 2015 Cruze for an oil change at GM and they forgot to refill the engine oil and left the coolant reservoir cap loose. Literally one of my worst nightmares was stalling in rush hour traffic which happened today due to the engine overheating. I drove about 10KM off the service lot and got a message on my dash saying "overheat, idle engine" and then the car stalled in traffic. I waited couple minutes for the engine to cool down then restarted and pulled into the nearest parking lot to discover the wonderful service the advisors had done under the hood. The coolant cap had blown down by the engine with coolant splashed everywhere, and to make matters worse a message saying 0% oil shows up next :eusa_clap:. I drove back to the service centre and they made up an excuse saying "we could've possibly been diagnosing a coolant recall and forgotten to tighten the cap." They took the car back to the shop and filled the oil and coolant up again. Do you think this has caused unnecessary stress on engine? I still don't understand how someone could be so careless doing their job.
Potential engine damage?
1 - 17 of 17 Posts
Joined
·
60 Posts
Was there oil on the dipstick or was OnStar saying you had 0% oil because that's what the DIC said and the oil life monitor wasn't reset?
Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App
If the car was actually drained of oil......I mean drained, like drained and filter replaced but no oil ( I mean NO oil....ZERO, NADA, NONE) and run the distance you describe, I cannot imagine how much damage likely took place.
Running with the coolant cap off makes quite a mess but I doubt if enough coolant was lost to cause harm.
I hope you have some documentation of this event if in fact it was operating with no oil in the crankcase.
The Onstar thing was only to tell you the oil life was at 0% and a change was due......if the dealer did change the oil, correctly, but forgot to reset the oil life system, well, that could generate the Onstar call.
Onstar has no way to determine if the oil LEVEL is correct or not.
If there was no oil, the warning lamp with the oil can should have been illuminated while the engine was running.
If the oil light was on with the engine NOT running, that is a normal event.
So, if you are certain the engine was operated with no oil, yes, most likely internal engine damage has taken place.
Rob
Running with the coolant cap off makes quite a mess but I doubt if enough coolant was lost to cause harm.
I hope you have some documentation of this event if in fact it was operating with no oil in the crankcase.
The Onstar thing was only to tell you the oil life was at 0% and a change was due......if the dealer did change the oil, correctly, but forgot to reset the oil life system, well, that could generate the Onstar call.
Onstar has no way to determine if the oil LEVEL is correct or not.
If there was no oil, the warning lamp with the oil can should have been illuminated while the engine was running.
If the oil light was on with the engine NOT running, that is a normal event.
So, if you are certain the engine was operated with no oil, yes, most likely internal engine damage has taken place.
Rob
I'm positive there was no oil because the message had originally showed up on the cars dash and then initiated the Onstar message. My car had about 22% oil life left before taking it in so I don't understand how it could show 0% even if the dealer had not reset it. I did send GM an email regarding my concern for engine damage.
If there was truly no oil, not only would the red oil lamp have been illuminated, the car would've had a message on the dash that said "Oil pressure low, stop engine now." Along with a very annoying constant chime. The car has no way of knowing the oil level, only whether it has oil pressure or not.
Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App
Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App
Would it be possible that the "Oil pressure low, stop engine now" warning was not displayed because the "overheat, idle engine" was being displayed along with constant chimes?
Joined
·
17,889 Posts
No. Oil pressure light would have shown immediately upon starting the car.
I suppose it would be possible, though very improbable. As jblackburn stated, it should've registered low oil pressure immediately upon startup (I notice even after an oil change my oil lamp stays on for a second longer at startup). I also would assume the oil pressure message would take priority over an overheat message, or any other message for that matter. That would be the intelligent thing for GM to do...of course we know how that goes sometimes...lol
Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App
Joined
·
7,843 Posts
The moment that the engine management system detects an overheat situation it will flash the caution message on your dash AND it will drop oil life from whatever percentage it is to ZERO.
I believe that your dealership has demonstrated human error.
I would demand an extended warranty on the engine for seven years / 160,000 KM.
I also believe that you erred by not immediately stopping the vehicle. Calling OnStar and getting the vehicle towed back to the dealer. But you're allowed a little human error too.
I believe that your dealership has demonstrated human error.
I would demand an extended warranty on the engine for seven years / 160,000 KM.
I also believe that you erred by not immediately stopping the vehicle. Calling OnStar and getting the vehicle towed back to the dealer. But you're allowed a little human error too.
That makes sense why it would display 0% oil life. I was only 4km away from the dealer when the message showed up so hopefully not too much damage was done driving it back. Will definitely demand an extended warranty when a GM rep calls tomorrow.
Joined
·
10,712 Posts
Yeah, low oil is the the most annoying chime you could get from this car. It would have beeped the entire way telling you to shut the engine off. I get it every now and then if I hit a nice sized puddle.
1 - 17 of 17 Posts
Join the discussion
