CarComplaints.com Notes: Engines shouldn't need a new quart of oil every 500-1000 miles, but for thousands of Suburban owners that's exactly what's happening. Engine oil consumption on aluminum block engines with Active Fuel Management (AFM) is out of control and owners are left looking for answers.
The most likely culprit is an uncovered AFM valve which, in many cases, can be covered under warranty. The problem is the issues don't stop there and many owners have been told by GM just to buy a new engine. Take one guess who they want to pick up the tab.
We bought our 2007 Suburban in November of 2008. It only had 28K miles on it. For the first few years it drove great. Around 90,000 miles, the low oil light kept coming on. I would get the oil changed every time the light came on and have them check the levels. Some times it was low and some times it was OK. I took it back to the dealership I bought it from (Team Chevrolet on Mansell in Alpharetta, GA) and they told me my car has an excessive oil consumption problem and I would need to get the values/pistons replaced and it would cost me $5,000. Not too long after this, I got a flashing error message that said my oil pressure was 0 and to shut down car and stop driving it. I had to towed to Capital Buick GMC on Cobb Parkway and filed a complaint with GM corporate. They said the oil pump needed to be replaced (93K miles). GM ended up covering the cost of the repair even though it was out of warranty. We thought this fix would have resolved our oil issue. We did not get the low oil light for almost a year and then recently started coming back on. Last Saturday, we were on the way out of town with my wife and two daughters in the Suburban and the Engine light came on and the error messages "Stabilitrak is Off" and "Traction Control is Off" were flashing on my dashboard. We pulled off the next exit and luckily found a chevy dealership. They ran the codes and it stated my #1 cylinder was misfiring was not a quick fix. The car was still drivable so we took it back to our dealership in Atlanta and left it. A few days later, we got the call that my engine needed to be replaced and it was going to cost me $8000. They said the lifters failed to pressurize causing the cam shafts to fail thus leading to #1 cylinder mis fire. No one can give me an explanation about the cause of the failure but my gut says the oil consumption problem has something to do with it. I am now trying to figure out next steps. I have been able to get the price down to $5000 but still feel like I should not have to pay this amount and GM should cover. I have called many mechanics around town and they said it is unheard of to have to replace an engine with only 111K miles on it. I still have not made decision about what to do with car. I am scared to put $5K into car to only have my transmission or some other big, expensive component of the car to go out. I will NEVER drive another GM car again. I wish GM would own up the the 2007 engine issues and not make their customers pay so much $$ out of pocket to repair themselves. To top this all off, I have 2 months left of paying off car and I was about to replace my 2002 Nissan Pathfinder (which I have had for 12 years and never had a problem). I wish there was someone out there that could help!
After replacing 2 EVAP Vent Solenoids, The EVAP Purge Solenoid went out. I belive the Code was P0443. Cost was about $25.00 as I did the work myself. Pretty sad since it only has 80K on it. This solenoid is located under the plastic intake cover to the rear of the intake. A little difficult to replace.
I've replaced the EVAP Vent Solenoid two times in 81,000 miles. Fairly easy to replace. Part is around $ 30.00 at the dealer and is located near the fuel tank. Need to lower and remove the spare tire, makes replacement easier for DYI's. Dealer said the tank had to be removed at a repair cost of $250.00. BS! There was a defect in the originals enableling dirt/trash to enter vent tube causing premature failure. Apparently the problem has been fixed. Pretty sad.
My engine warning light came on today and I could not identify the problem. I 'googled' the internet to find multiple complaints about the same thing and this is a common problem. Most are having to replace the same part which appears to be a 'global' problem. This should be covered by GM.
- hedinj,
Carlsbad, NMex, US
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We bought our 2007 Suburban in November of 2008. It only had 28K miles on it. For the first few years it drove great. Around 90,000 miles, the low oil light kept coming on. I would get the oil changed every time the light came on and have them check the levels. Some times it was low and some times it was OK. I took it back to the dealership I bought it from (Team Chevrolet on Mansell in Alpharetta, GA) and they told me my car has an excessive oil consumption problem and I would need to get the values/pistons replaced and it would cost me $5,000. Not too long after this, I got a flashing error message that said my oil pressure was 0 and to shut down car and stop driving it. I had to towed to Capital Buick GMC on Cobb Parkway and filed a complaint with GM corporate. They said the oil pump needed to be replaced (93K miles). GM ended up covering the cost of the repair even though it was out of warranty. We thought this fix would have resolved our oil issue. We did not get the low oil light for almost a year and then recently started coming back on. Last Saturday, we were on the way out of town with my wife and two daughters in the Suburban and the Engine light came on and the error messages "Stabilitrak is Off" and "Traction Control is Off" were flashing on my dashboard. We pulled off the next exit and luckily found a chevy dealership. They ran the codes and it stated my #1 cylinder was misfiring was not a quick fix. The car was still drivable so we took it back to our dealership in Atlanta and left it. A few days later, we got the call that my engine needed to be replaced and it was going to cost me $8000. They said the lifters failed to pressurize causing the cam shafts to fail thus leading to #1 cylinder mis fire. No one can give me an explanation about the cause of the failure but my gut says the oil consumption problem has something to do with it. I am now trying to figure out next steps. I have been able to get the price down to $5000 but still feel like I should not have to pay this amount and GM should cover. I have called many mechanics around town and they said it is unheard of to have to replace an engine with only 111K miles on it. I still have not made decision about what to do with car. I am scared to put $5K into car to only have my transmission or some other big, expensive component of the car to go out. I will NEVER drive another GM car again. I wish GM would own up the the 2007 engine issues and not make their customers pay so much $$ out of pocket to repair themselves. To top this all off, I have 2 months left of paying off car and I was about to replace my 2002 Nissan Pathfinder (which I have had for 12 years and never had a problem). I wish there was someone out there that could help!
- carrollga, Atlanta, GA, US