General Motors (GM), the giant automotive brand, is facing one of its most significant crises following the confirmation of a new massive recall. Over 600,000 trucks and SUVs are under scrutiny in the U.S., But it is not the only recall they are dealing with: more than 720,000 vehicles have been recalled globally due to a major failure in the V8 L87 engine, primarily used in their high-end vehicles. It, of course, makes this situation even worse.
Last May 1 was the day this news was made public, although the truth is that users have been complaining about the problem for years. But wait, because it seems this is not GM’s month. Now, a federal class action lawsuit filed in Michigan claims that GM had installed these engines knowing they were defective and had hidden it for years.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) did not take long to report the defect in critical components such as the crankshaft and the connecting rods, the main culprits of the engine damage. We tell you below what is happening with GM and what you can do if you are one of the affected.
Which GM models are affected?
The NHTSA states that the affected vehicles were manufactured between 2021 and 2024, and that the identified failure causes sudden engine shutdowns due to issues with the crankshaft and connecting rods. It is established as a “serious” problem of the L87 and would affect the following models:
- Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV
- Chevrolet Silverado 1500
- Chevrolet Suburban and Tahoe
- GMC Sierra 1500
- GMC Yukon and Yukon XL
Was this already known?
GM began the official investigation of the facts last January 2025, but the reality is that in forums and surveys from GM Authority itself, users had already been warning of recurring engine failures for years, which makes one think that GM simply turned a deaf ear to these errors that could have cost many lives on the road. That is where the users’ indignation comes from upon discovering now, according to the class action lawsuit, that GM knew about this defect but never did anything to fix it, and did not even inform its customers…
Details about the class action lawsuit
It was filed in February of this year before the United States District Court in Michigan. Its main plaintiff, James S. Powell II, alleged that the 2023 GMC Yukon Denali (which came with the L87 V8 engine) was defective. It was then that he decided to replace the engine with another one that… was also defective. That is when it began to be believed that GM already knew about this defect and had not communicated it to its customers.
The lawsuit is registered as No. 2:25-cv-10479 and has already sparked reactions in other parts of the country, with more drivers joining the collective legal actions, and new cases in Georgia courts, increasing the scandal nationwide.
What should users do?
Now, GM has informed that all affected vehicles must undergo immediate inspection, that they will inspect the engines and replace those they find defective. Likewise, they have informed that due to the magnitude of this recall, wait times may be quite long and that dealerships might not have the capacity to absorb the demand for replacement engines… A mess.
What awaits General Motors now?
Despite not being their first recall (already in 2021 they had to recall all Chevrolet Bolt EVs due to fire risk), this news seems to be about to sink GM’s public image. Did they really know they were delivering defective engines and still continued? Clearly, this recall is going to hurt them where it hurts most: consumer trust.
We will have to wait and see how General Motors handles things now, but the reality is that it leaves much to be desired that, in a market as fierce as the automotive industry, a brand delivers defective engines and acts surprised when faced with a class action lawsuit…