2008 Z06 Engine Failure - GM voids warranty
 

I know this has been coming up a lot lately, but I am very frustrated! One of the valves broke (in Cyl 6) on my 08 Z06 with 12K miles and it went through the intake so it got both sides. The dealer said I need a new motor and sent the info to GM. I purchased the car with 1500 miles on it and it was completely stock, or so I thought. I heard stories about GM denying warranties so I never touched the motor, only changed suspension and wheels. Now GM says that someone did a tune on it before I bought it and my warranty is void. First off I don't understand why someone do a tune but keep the stock headers, exhaust, intake, etc. then flash it back just to trade it in with 1500 miles... Doesn't make sense to me. Apparently one of the 15 or 20 numbers in the CPU printout didn't match something it was supposed to. I even had the car in for a check engine light back in December and was told that the car needed a software update (something about the cats) and they didn't say anything about the cpu not being stock - sure wish I knew then and I could have bought an aftermarket warranty or something. I went all of the way through the district rep and was told there is nothing they can do because its not GM's fault. She actually said I need to go after the dealer that sold me the car, which is a scary thought for anyone who sells a Z06! If the Chevy dealership that serviced my car didn't know the car was flashed when they looked at the CPU for a software update, how was the dealer that sold me the car supposed to know (or myself for that matter)? I would strongly recommend anyone considering buying a used Z06 to somehow have a dealer check the codes in the CPU prior to buying the car as apparently that is the only way to tell, or would just steer away from them all together. Not only do I need to buy a new motor, but they are charging me for the tear down (about $1K). Anyone have any recommendations because I think this is total BS and could use some help? Thanks!

that sucks man. :( why is this keep happening. :cry:

Assuming it did have a tune, unless the max. rev limit was changed, how could that cause a valve to break?

Man I feel for you.

Certainly that is one of the perils of buying something you dont know the history of.
But you cant fault GM for their position. Who knows what the previous owner did to the car before he suddenly decided to dump it.

A real shi##y spot for you to be in.

If you plan on tracking the car you might want to consider one of Katech or LG's engine packages........

Good luck
:cheers:

Sorry to hear that. This scenario has been discussed here on the forum but this is the first time I have heard of it actually happening. You will be setting a precedent. It is a precarious situation. It's not your fault because you just bought the car that you thought was stock. It's not GM's fault because the failure could have been caused by the aftermarket calibration that was in the car. I think you have just cause to go after the dealer that sold it to you. I'm sure they advertised the vehicle with remaining factory warranty sticker on the side and did not advertise it as a warranty blocked car.

Isn't the dealer supposed to inspect the vehicle when it's turned in at lease end?

Running too lean, overheating the valve causing fatigue. It may not manifest itself immediately.

Tuners will tell you they can squeeze out 15 or so more hp with just a tune and no mods since stock tune is not necessarily designed for max hp. Also, the dealer or previous owner may have put stock headers back on the car along with stock tune before trying to sell it.

Was the "performance tune" in there at the time of failure, or was the original tune reflashed when the engine failed? If so, so much for the folks that say GM can't detect a tune if it's been flashed back to original!

That was my concern that someone selling a Z would have a tune and then sell the car not telling the buyer and the only time you find out is when there is an expensive problem. That is why I spent a little more for new car. I see this happening more than people will know because a car with a warranty and no tune is worth much more than a car with a tune and no warranty on the resale market.

I would go after the original owner and the dealer in small claims court and try to recoup some of your money.

Do you have a receipt of the said software update? if so I would go back down to see them and show them that it was re flashed for a CAT issue.
Now lets analyze this a bit:
if you bought a used 08, which had a tune, which was then re-flashed by a GM dealer to rid of a check engine light, then that aftermarket tune no longer exist, and would match whatever the GM codes.

This is a very good case though, I would grab a lawyer and go after the dealer that sold you the car.

Now you see why I was screaming that GM has no due process for this warranty cancellation BS!

District rep says go after the dealer?!
 

Does your car still has warranty from the dealer you purchases it from. If so, I'd definitely go after them (assuming you've done nothing to the motor & left it stock). That said, it might be worth your time & $$$ to consult a lawyer. If the dealer sold you a pre-owned unit and gave you a waaranty with it, it is the dealer responsibility to insure that the car IS totally stock. I'm afraid though that the dealer would volunteer to eat this expense. You'll have to force their hand.

New stock motor ~$13,000. A couple f hours with a lawyer will probably cost you ~$300 - $500. I think it's worth coughing up a few hundred initially. This will also would give you an idea how to proceed.

Sorry for your trouble. It suck a**! I know this first hand. But with me, I was guilty of doing H & C so I man up & did not even bother my dealer with it. Just build a fresh motor. At any rate, good luck & wish you back on the road asap.

Same thing I was thinking. Tuner could have made an error with settings. Who knows? You're taking a chance letting someone monkey with your car.

:withstupid:
I would have called the dealer that sold the car and lawyered up the minute they said the car wasn't stock. It will be way cheaper than replacing it yourself. Problem I see here is defending that YOU didnt put the tune in it after it was purchased. This will be your word against theirs. I wish you luck. This will be tough.

Jason makes a good point. Your bill of sale must say something about remaining warranty.
Maybe the dealer had no idea it had previously received a tune. I dont think that it can be determined at the dealership anyway..... the CPU ususally goes bac to GM for analysis........ I always thought it was because they had the equipment to analyse and dealer didn't. Maybe its because they dont trust the dealer in such a huge claim.

Good Luck!!

^ wrong, but I'm not getting into it...do a search! :cheers:

there's a flaw in this story, either the GM tech doesn't know how to verify the numbers correctly, or the car was never re-flashed for the check engine light/cat issue, hence the aftermarket tune was still in there, or a stock tune was put back on, but it wasn't the one taken out of the car so the CVN number might be different than what the VIN for that car shows...

This is truely a nightmare but I think Jason is right, the dealer you purchased it from may be liable for selling you a car that had been altered without your knowledge.

Call an attorney to see what your options are and hopfully he doesn't take the whole $20K you're trying to recover...

^ yup, maybe you can get your Money back on the car...and let the dealer "deal" with putting a new motor in it...that's what I'd do...someone has to take some responsability somewhere and it shouldn't be you, the buyer, who bought a car expecting a full warranty.

Any clue why the valve decided to pop now, after you've driven the car around 10,000 miles? Any clue what the freeze-frame data may have shown? As always, there can be more to this story, but . . . the automatic warranty denial because of a telltale from a past (or current) reprogram has been something that GM has made clear in the last year or so - certainly readers of this Forum know all about it. We can debate whether GM can really tell in all cases, or whether the policy is "fair," but it is what it is. I pity the poor soul who reprogrammed just to get rid of the skip shift, for example . . . :ack: . . . or even worse, as may be the case here, buys a used Z without knowledge of prior reprograms.

Not true. The CVN can be verified at the dealer. It COULD be done during a used car inspection.