— As General Motors continues to evaluate death and injury claims submitted to its ignition switch compensation fund, many GM owners have skipped applying to the fund and instead filed lawsuits.
A Texas lawsuit is the latest such lawsuit to accuse GM of selling 15 million vehicles with deadly ignition switch defects. However, the lawsuit also accuses GM of numerous other failures related to everything from airbags to the power steering systems.
The ignition switch lawsuit alleges GM kept quiet for 13 years as its own engineers were reporting problems with the ignition switches that could accidentally turn off if bumped by the driver's knee. Once the ignition switch is off, all electrical power is lost to the car and a driver will lose all power steering and power brakes.
The switches have been linked to at least 56 deaths because once the car is shut off, the airbags won't deploy in a crash.
These same ignition switches have caused millions of GM vehicles to be recalled while GM management faced tough questions at congressional hearings.
While the number of ignition switch lawsuits exploded, GM created a compensation fund to reimburse those directly affected by the faulty switches. The fund has helped decrease the number of potential lawsuits by offering money to owners or family members in exchange for not suing the automaker.
The compensation fund has also allowed people to apply for payment even though they might not have much of a case if they sued GM. Those people are owners who were drinking or speeding when an accident occurred, two things that could certainly be a detriment to winning a lawsuit against GM.
What makes the most recent ignition switch lawsuit a little different is the number of vehicles included based on alleged defects not related to ignition switches.
Documents filed in the case do not indicate how many vehicles are included in the GM lawsuit, but the complaint names the following vehicles and the alleged defects associated with the vehicles.
Ignition Switch Torque Performance
- 2005-07 Chevrolet Cobalt
- 2006-07 Pontiac Pursuit
- 2003-07 Saturn ION
- 2006-07 Chevrolet HHR and Pontiac Solstice
- 2007 Saturn Sky, Opel/Vauxhall GT, Daewoo G2X and Pontiac G5
- 2008-11 Chevrolet HHR
- 2008-10 Chevrolet Cobalt
- 2008-10 Pontiac G5
- 2008-10 Pontiac Solstice; 2008-10 Saturn Sky; 2008-10 Opel GT; 2008-09 Daewoo G2X
Front Passenger Airbags
- 2009-14 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana
Side Impact Airbag Connector
- 2008-13 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, GMC Acadia, Saturn Outlook
Electronic Power Steering
- 2004-06 Chevrolet Malibu/Malibu Maxx, Pontiac G6
- 2004-07 Saturn ION
- 2008-09 Chevrolet Malibu, Pontiac G6, Saturn Aura
- 2010 Cobalt
- 2009-10 Chevrolet HHR and previous power steering recall service parts
- 2014 Chevrolet Impala
Ignition Cylinders
- 2005-10 Chevrolet Cobalt
- 2006-11 Chevrolet HHR
- 2006-10 Pontiac Solstice
- 2003-07 Saturn ION
- 2007-10 Saturn Sky and Pontiac G5
Passenger Airbags
- 2015 Cadillac Escalade
Key FOB Can Bump Ignition Switch
- 2010-14 Chevrolet Camaro
Key Replacement From Slot-to-Hole Design
- 2005-09 Buick Allure and LaCrosse
- 2006-14 Chevrolet Impala
- 2000-05 Cadillac Deville
- 2004-11 Cadillac DTS
- 2006-11 Buick Lucerne
- 2006-07 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
Defective Airbags
- 2014 Chevrolet Corvette with Competition Sport Seats
- 2013-14 Chevrolet Cruze Driver
Unintended Ignition Key Rotation
- 2003-14 Cadillac CTS
- 2004-06 Cadillac SRX
- 1997-2005 Chevrolet Malibu
- 1998-2002 Oldsmobile Intrigue
- 1999-2004 Oldsmobile Alero
- 1999-2005 Pontiac Grand Am
- 2000- 05 Chevrolet Impala and Monte Carlo
- 2004- 08 Pontiac Grand Prix
- 2008-09 Pontiac G8
- 2011-13 Chevrolet Caprice
Reduced Brake Performance
- 2007 Chevrolet Optra (Canada)
- 2009-10 Chevrolet Aveo
- 2009 Pontiac G3/Wave
Ignition Key Pullout in Run Position
- 2002-04 Saturn Vue
Transmission Shift Cable Detachment
- 2007-10 Saturn Aura
- 2008-10 Chevrolet Malibu and Pontiac G6
Electronic Stability Control
- 2004-12 Chevrolet Malibu
- 2004-07 Chevrolet Malibu Maxx
- 2005-10 Pontiac G6
- 2007-10 Saturn Aura
Ignition Binding
- 2011-2012 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado HD, Silverado LD, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra LD, Sierra HD, Yukon, and Yukon XL
The General Motors lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division - Paul Bermudez, et. al. v. General Motors, LLC.
The plaintiffs are represented by Bailey Peavy Bailey.
Read what owners say about the vehicles listed in the GM lawsuit:
Buick Problems
Cadillac Problems
- Cadillac Deville
- Cadillac DTS
- Cadillac CTS
- Cadillac SRX
- Cadillac Escalade / Escalade ESV / Escalade EXT
Chevy Problems
- Chevrolet Corvette
- Chevrolet Camaro
- Chevrolet Cobalt
- Chevrolet Cruze
- Chevrolet Express
- Chevrolet HHR
- Chevrolet Monte Carlo
- Chevrolet Impala
- Chevrolet Malibu
- Chevrolet Caprice
- Chevrolet Optra
- Chevrolet Aveo
- Chevrolet Malibu Maxx
- Chevrolet Avalanche
- Chevrolet Silverado
- Chevrolet Tahoe
- Chevrolet Traverse
GMC Problems
Oldsmobile Problems
Pontiac Problems
- Pontiac G3/Wave
- Pontiac Grand Am
- Pontiac G5
- Pontiac G8
- Pontiac Grand Prix
- Pontiac G6
- Pontiac Pursuit
- Pontiac Solstice
