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http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/3379302

Corvette Z06 Owners Hit GM with Proposed Class-Action Lawsuit for Cooling System Defect that Leaves Cars Limping on the Track



MIAMI--(Business Wire)--Owners of Corvette Z06 track cars today sued General Motors for knowingly selling allegedly defective Z06 models that, while marketed as having “track-proven structure and technologies”, cannot actually be operated safely on a racetrack and enter a performance-limited “limp mode” while tracked, even on public roadways, according to Hagens Berman and Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen, co-counsel law firms representing the plaintiffs.

According to the lawsuit, owners have reported that despite GM’s slick marketing of the 2015-2017 model year Z06 cars, the vehicles would overheat and often enter limp mode after only about 15 minutes of track driving due to a defective cooling system. When the vehicle enters limp mode, according to the complaint, its power and speed are “drastically reduced,” creating an obviously dangerous event when surrounded by speeding cars. Plaintiffs allege in the suit that they have experienced limp mode also while on public roadways. The defect also causes damage to the engine due to warping from high temperatures, the suit says.

Attorneys estimate there are more than 30,000 affected Corvette Z06 cars in the proposed class.

If you own or lease a 2015-2017 Corvette Z06, you may be entitled to compensation for this defect that inhibits your car’s performance. Contact Hagens Berman to find out more about this issue and your consumer rights against GM.

The law firms say that GM deceived customers and violated state and federal laws by failing to ensure that the Z06 functions safely, and by failing to disclose the cooling system defect. The suit brings counts of fraudulent concealment, breach of warranty, unjust enrichment and other claims.

Corvette Z06 owners are being represented by leading auto defect consumer-rights law firm, Hagens Berman, which achieved the then largest automotive settlement in U.S. history and Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen, a nationally recognized trial law firm. Hagens Berman is also leading litigation against GM for its ignition switch defects as well as an additional suit for its illegal use of emissions-cheating software in Duramax trucks.

The lawsuit, filed June 13, 2017, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, seeks monetary damages for a proposed nationwide class of consumers who purchased or leased the affected vehicles, as well as injunctive relief for Ford’s misconduct related to the design, manufacture, marketing, sale and lease of affected vehicles.

“We believe we’ve found GM to be guilty of a classic bait and switch – one that cost thousands of consumers dearly, up to $120,000, and broke state consumer protection laws,” said Steve Berman, managing partner of Hagens Berman. “GM enticed race enthusiasts with bells and whistles, promising a car that could maintain safe speeds and power when tracked, but we believe what it sold them was far from what it promised. This defect not only damages the Z06 engine, but endangers drivers.”

"The defect in question markedly limits the car’s performance – the sole reason these hotrod enthusiasts bought the Corvette Z06 in the first place. If they’d known of this defect at the time of purchase, they likely wouldn’t have spent six figures on the Z06," Berman added.

The complaint cites consumer online forums, stating, “Customer experiences with the Z06 on the track differ dramatically from GM’s promise of a track vehicle and chronicle the activation of Limp Mode, or the driver having to pull off the track to let the engine cool down. Z06 testimonial websites and GM customer service files are replete with complaints from consumers who reasonably believed that their Z06 would in fact be fully track capable, but instead have been put at risk of accident on race tracks and during non-track driving when the defective transmissions and rear differentials overheat, causing the cars to go into Limp Mode at drastically reduced speed and performance, or have to stop track driving to protect the engine.”

“In marketing the Z06, GM said this car was ‘conceived on the track’,” said Stuart Grossman, founder and partner at Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen. “Any reasonable purchaser would have assumed that a car sold this way wouldn’t shut down and lose speed and power after only 15 minutes of track driving.”

The lawsuit seeks reimbursement and all damages permitted by law for vehicle owners, including diminution in value of affected Z06 models and/or loss of the benefit of the bargain, in an amount to be proven at trial to compensate owners for GM’s fraud that put drivers at risk. Plaintiffs also seek an order enjoining GM’s deceptive marketing and sales acts and practices, as well as punitive damages.

Learn more about the lawsuit against GM.

About Hagens Berman

Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP is a consumer-rights class-action law firm with offices in 10 cities. The firm has been named to the National Law Journal’s Plaintiffs’ Hot List eight times. More about the law firm and its successes can be found at www.hbsslaw.com. Follow the firm for updates and news at @ClassActionLaw.

About Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen

Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen is a team of award-winning trial attorneys devoted to helping individuals and businesses damaged by other’s negligence or misconduct seek the justice to which they are entitled. From its four offices throughout Florida, the firm is focused on the catastrophically injured and high-stakes litigation in state and federal courts in Florida and around the nation covering multiple areas of trial law, including medical malpractice, product liability, personal injury, wrongful death and complex litigation cases. Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen is extremely selective about who it chooses to represent because the firm is dedicated to ensuring clients receive the personal attention they deserve during their representation. For nearly 30 years, Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen has achieved a record of jury verdicts and settlements for its clients totaling more than one billion dollars and has been recognized with multiple national and regional awards, such as the LawDragon 500 Leading Attorneys in America, the Perry Nichols Award, Florida Trend’s Legal Elite and Top Attorneys in Florida. To learn more about Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen, visit www.grossmanroth.com or call 888-296-1681.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/hom...0613006370/en/

Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP
Heidi Waggoner, 206-268-9318
heidiw@hbsslaw.com
or
for Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen
Josh Merkin, 305-967-6667
Josh.merkin@rbbpr.com

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/3379302#ixzz4juuvkJHp

mcoomer

I guess it was only a matter of time, right?

Z06NJ

Subscribed.

keagan

This should be interesting.

tim414

And here I was 'considering' making the move to C7Z.



Add: My first time today coming back onto the Vette forum (in a while now) to pick up some knowledge on the C7Z to consider.

Kinda the same crap they (GM) put LS7 Z's owners through....deja vu?

I sure did not spend much time wondering and looking. Thanks for posting.

NofakeJake

subscribed

saleen556

I wonder if this will help with the incentives ;-)

djnice

Interesting.

How does this affect new sales? It seems like it will make them harder to sell.
If you buy a 2017 today will you be eligible for the settlement?
Any guesses what the settlement will be? Money toward the ZR-1?

Warp Factor

GM may be a little behind the times, failing to adequately consider what users posting their experiences on forums can do.

MSG C5

Watching as well. Surprised the 2017 is included as I thought those were performing well based on the changes made.

MThomas

Hummm....could get very interesting for sure.

Lrn2Swm

Kouasupra

Interesting!

MTPZ06

VENM

subscribed

VictorBarron

I would think at the very least GM would have to upgrade all of our Z's to combat the overheating issues.

Bad Dad

davepl

They're also (at least) the second to the party. There's another firm trying to get class action status. They're just chasing the $$$ of course.

Who gets to be class rep and what firm gets to represent them is not determined yet. In fact a "proposed" class action is no better than a wish.

In the end, even if it went ahead, GM would agree to pay out some benefit that most owners never took (like a second discount for Spring Mountain, if I was to make something up). Then the lawyers get 35% of that value (or whatever). GM won't be mailing out any checks.

Lawyers win, GM gets minorly annoyed for about 20 minutes, consumers benefit not a penny.

I remember when Blockbuster settled some huge class action... the attorneys made tens of millions on their share, the consumer got a coupon towards a future rental.

nightmel

StreetLegalH2R

This is idiotic. A class action lawsuit over an issue that only effected 4 cars under very specific conditions out of the 20,000 they sold? Great. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in litigation and the only people who are ever going to get anything out of this are the attorneys. Meanwhile we'll all have cars that take another $10k hit because they have a bad rap that they don't deserve at all. Even worse, now I'm gonna have to have the same retarded f'n conversation at every car show (and eventually) with every potential buyer when I go to sell it; 'did it ever overheat?'.

No matter how it turns out, the damage is done. Way to go ********.