Filing Class Action Lawsuit Regarding Timing Belt Issue

[TracyKearnes]

I own a 2005 Chevy Aveo. I have 53,000 miles on my Car. My timing belt shredded and destroyed my engine. I have read about many people who have had the same problem. I do not understand why there has not been a recall. I am looking into a Class Action Lawsuit as soon as I get my Damage Report back from the Shop so I can look into finding a Lawyer. Anyone interested please let me know.

Tracy Kearnes

[jimzdat]

My guess is that a number of people have attempted similar actions in the 12 years since these cars came out - but the likelihood of success probably prevents a lot of progress.

Realistically, expecting a rubber belt to last for 11 years is a bit of a stretch; even tires have about a 5-6 year lifespan... And if there has been any potential contamination on the belt (oil or coolant), that will drastically reduce the lifespan as well.

Not trying to poo-poo your idea, but seen a bunch of similar posts on other auto forums any time there's a "common" failure issue on a particular car.

[PoisonIvy]

I'm sorry for your painful car experience. You aren't alone. Unfortunately at this point I really think you'd be throwing away both good time and money, after bad. While GM didn't specify it in the manual, I believe the going industry rate is about 6 - 8 years to replace the belt (and accessories ideally). Fortunately belts seem to be becoming more scarce in favor of more reliable chain engines.

[MetroMPG]

Interesting development. There sure have been a lot of ruined Aveo engines over the years (mostly due to not following the maint schedule is my impression). It sucks yours went "early". Keep us posted.

[slayerized6]

The owner's manual says to replace the belt every 60k miles.

11 years of dry rot, humidity, moisture, wear and tear, and abuse add up. Goodluck proving that GM have you a faulty product. Its just the design of their engine and the price of owning a car.

[NirvAveo]

I'm pretty sure the owner's manual also states that you should replace the belt every 6 years or that amount of mileage, whichever comes first. You have no leg to stand on if you ignored the time period. I know this because I'll be changing my timing belt at my car's 75 000km service next year (6th year since the car was first registered), even though it has 33 000km currently.

This is very clearly stated multiple times in the manual and is standard industry practice. I know it sucks that a part of your engine can destroy the whole thing, but following the manual would really help. Not changing the belt for 11 years is asking for trouble.

[rrb6699]

I think putting an engine out that has no safeguards built in where any component(s) failure destroys the engine is by design poor and a recipe for failure.

as consumers we want reliability. I can understand buying a Triumph TR6 bac in the day where you drive it for 2 days and spend 2 days under the hood, but, 2005+? no.

if Takata has to replace all airbags, then a substandard design where drivers feel like the tiniest of threads is all that seperates having a car and having to junk it or replace the engine is not acceptable.

are the 2009+ engines still using the same concept of design? there should be a retrofit of a few safeguards to prevent engine failure.

I have several vehicles that are running 30+ years with no failure as catastrophic as what could happen if a roller, tensioner, water pump or pulley fails.

they stop running but, just replace the component. back on the road!

really.... Daewoo should have to replace every failed engine in my opinion.

[jimzdat]

Timing belts that can cause major failure are by no means a new concept - and from the beginning, there has always been the potential for damage if things are out of time.
My old 1976 Honda Civic CVCC wagon used a timing belt as well - and it had a much more stringent maintenance interval.

I've also seen a Chevy 350 that jumped time due to a failed/stretched chain - resulted in a handful of bent pushrods; should Chevy start paying for every potential engine failure related to the SBC, dating back into the 1960s?

The reality is that yes, we as consumers want a reliable car... We also want affordable cars, economical cars, and cars that will get us from point A to point B - the Aveo meets those criteria, but it comes with a recommended maintenance plan to make sure it continues to do so. The OP did not follow this schedule, and is now looking for a lawsuit to make someone else pay for it - but as has been pointed out, they likely don't have much of a case.

The reality is that if the Aveo snaps a timing belt, it can do considerable damage - but that doesn't necessarily mean that it needs to be junked or have the engine replaced. I bought ours for $500, with a snapped belt (due to lack of maintenance); I pulled the head, replaced the valves and guides, reassembled it, and was on my merry way for under $400 in parts. No new engine, no car to the scrap heap.

What we are missing in a lot of the world now is the knowledge or willingness to actually work on a car - when I was in high school, we had this thing called auto shop; try and find that in a school nowadays... I've now been wrenching on cars for 35 years; I view a non-running car as a minor challenge - while some see it as garbage.

Expecting a manufacturer to replace every failed engine is unrealistic - if they had failed due to a manufacturer's defect, that would be one thing. But replacing it because the average consumer can't be troubled to read a maintenance schedule isn't gonna happen.