— A Corvette cracked wheels lawsuit will continue as a federal judge refused to dismiss most of the claims which allege the Chevy rims crack, bend and warp.
Included in the cracked wheels class action lawsuit are 2015-2019 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 and 2017-2019 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport cars in the U.S.
According to the Chevy Corvette cracked wheels lawsuit, General Motors equipped the cars with cast aluminum alloy wheels that cannot handle the torque and power input from the cars.
The 18 plaintiffs claim the cast wheels are too weak and GM allegedly knew the rims should have instead been forged. Additionally, GM allegedly used less material than needed to save on weight borne by the suspension.
The Corvette lawsuit alleges this causes deformed and cracked wheels which can cost thousands of dollars to replace.
The cracked wheels lawsuit also alleges GM replaces the defective wheels with equally defective wheels at as much risk of cracking and warping as the original rims.
The plaintiffs claim their Corvettes wobble and vibrate when the rim flanges deform, while cracks in the barrels cause the tires to lose air pressure as the wheels lose strength. According to the Corvette cracked wheels lawsuit, the wheels can fail while under the loads of braking.
The plaintiffs argue Corvette owners routinely pay nearly $1,000 just to replace one cracked wheel with "an equally defective replacement wheel."
General Motors allegedly conceals the defects by telling Corvette owners the wheels are not defective and the cracks were caused by potholes or driver error.
Chevy Corvette owners who sued allege GM dealers refuse to repair or replace the cracked wheels under warranty, and the automaker allegedly won't recall the vehicles to replace the wheels with alternate rims.
Replacing the cracked Corvette wheels with the same GM wheels allegedly causes owners to spend great amounts of money to constantly replace the wheels with the same defective GM wheels, even when the cars may have only a few thousand miles on them.
In one example, a Corvette owner said he paid $4,700 to replace three of his wheels with only 1,100 miles on the odometer.
Motion to Dismiss the Corvette Cracked Wheels Lawsuit
General Motors filed a motion to dismiss the Chevy Corvette class action but the judge ruled most of the claims can move forward even though many questions remain unanswered.
GM argued express warranty claims should be dismissed because the plaintiffs are talking about an alleged design defect which is not covered by the Corvette warranty.
In addition, the automaker said the plaintiffs pleaded no facts to allege their wheel problems were not caused by normal wear or road hazards.
Some of the plaintiffs allegedly also never even took their Corvettes to dealers, and GM says some customers also voided the warranties by using non-GM parts through non-GM repair facilities.
GM also told the judge certain plaintiffs didn't even claim their cars were within the warranty periods when the cars were brought to dealerships.
However, the judge ignored all of GM's arguments, even ruling claims should not be dismissed for failure to seek repairs within the time and mileage limits of the warranties.
The judge also ruled in favor of the plaintiffs regarding Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act (MMWA) claims which GM argued should be tossed out because there aren't at least 100 named plaintiffs. According to the judge, the claims can continue at this stage even though there are only 18 plaintiffs.
The Corvette cracked wheels lawsuit found the judge dismissing unjust enrichment claims, but ruling multiple claims against GM can move forward including MMWA, express warranty, implied warranty, consumer protection and injunctive relief claims.
The Chevrolet Corvette cracked wheels lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan: Bossart, et al., vs. General Motors LLC.
The plaintiffs are represented by the Miller Law Firm, P.C., Berger Montague PC, Capstone Law APC, LeVan Muhic Stapleton LLC, Carlson Lynch LLP, Freed Kanner London & Millen LLC, Kehoe Law Firm, P.C.
