Car And Driver Suffers Engine Failure In Long-Term 2014 Corvette
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long-termer – n. a test car acquired by a publication for an extended real-world trial, typically 20,000 to 40,000 miles
The folks over at Car and Driver have certainly gotten more than they bargained for from their “long-termer” 2014 Corvette Stingray; namely, a blown engine. At only 6,000 miles.
Being an alumnus of the publication, yours truly happens to know that each long-termer that Car and Driver tests has no prior usage, to rule out the possibility that some previous hoon might have gotten too brave behind the wheel and compromised some part of the vehicle. In this case, however, I’m not sure that it matters; the engine failure was apparently due to metal particles breaking loose from the oil filter (likely from tapping the filter’s threads) and causing the failure of a rod bearing.
The implosion called for a complete replacement of the LT1 V8 (under warranty), and General Motors says that they are currently reviewing their manufacturing processes, to ensure that this fluke won’t affect other models. While that piece of the story comes as a relief, murmurs of similar engine failures exist within the C7-driving community. And though the issue is (thankfully) covered by warranty, engine failure coming that prematurely is at the very least inconvenient, and at the most, certainly disconcerting to owners of the car.
Here’s to hoping that the Car and Driver C7 makes it the remaining 30,000 miles without suffering another aneurysm.
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Bummer. I was reading this article the other day, along with the user comments. About half of the community over at Car and Driver and Motortrend seem to be forgiving of this issue. The C7’s incredible value along with its world class performance seems to make up for it. Nevertheless the other half of the community just found a bullet to launch at GM, and the skeptics and critics are singing about it. There are even reports about owners of the C7 having similar issues. Looks like the road to rebuilding consumer safety confidence just got a bit longer.
All in all, here’s to hoping this issue is limited to but a few Vetted and longterm reliability is attainable.
This is the second one to fail at C&D.
I would hope that GM does some kind of forensic analysis of any major engine/transmission failure at this mileage — not just on a Corvette on loan to a car magazine. It would be money well spent.
The problem is not the oil filter… It’s determining where the metal shavings came from to begin with. There is a much bigger problem here than just an oil filter… It’s GM lack of quality control on a wide scale…. Recalls n all.
GM is already at work on this as they really do follow up on this stuff on the new cars. I had an intake tube that blew out on my turbo and the engineer at GM got it days later. Jus a bad plastic weld. I just happen to speak to the engineer on a tuning deal and when I said something about the tube he asked for my vin and had It right there. It was nice to know what they found.
I would have to assume this was an isolated case as lets face it there are no major reports on this happening with so many C7 models out.
Too soon to panic but it still needs checked out.
@Greg: I apologize for my lack of clarity in the above article. I was saying that, in fact, the origin of the metal particles was likely from the tapping of the oil filter’s threads, i.e. shavings and/or smaller “crumbs” that were produced when tapping the threads that hold the filter onto the adapter. This is, of course, speculative, but it also seems like the most likely source.
Who and where was the oil filter manufactured?
What happened to the one they blew up in lightning lap 2014 the yellow one ?
Sure, blame the oil filter! Most likely engine assembly issues, but Government Motors has been a joke for a long time now.
So what’s the verdict? Oil filter made in China or is it engine internals?
Well,at the end of the day,it’s a CHEVY. Let’s hope GM stands behind this vehicle a little better then prior year VETTES. The c5’s notorious COLUMN LOCK ISSUES,although known to GM,was carried into the 2005 c6 new generation Vette…and they took forever to lift a finger to help.The HARMONIC BALANCER ISSUE that is still an issue in c6 Vettes that they’ve known about for years and haven’t recalled, is another fix they refuse to acknowledge after the warranty runs out,you’re screwed if it fails…..and grenades your engine with it. The VETTE’s got great performance but IT’S NOT SO CHEAP anymore and the price cannot be justified on performance alone when all these other issues are left unresolved.
Having worked at a filter plant in the past, (WIX Filters) I can almost assure you that any metal shavings found in the engine did not originate from the filter. The deburring tumblers that the plate goes through after stamping and threading is VERY efficient. If there was metal shavings found it came from within the engine itself. I think there a much bigger problem with the LT1 engine. I have read about several engine failures in C7 cars. In most cases GM has replaced the engines. But that, to me destroys the car’s longterm value. Think about the current collector car market. A matching numbers car can demand up to three times the price of an equally restored car with non matching numbers. Besides the blown engines, I think the C7 falls way short of the claims made by the marketing department. They talked about the weight saving aluminum frame construction, but the car is the heaviest Corvette ever built? And for some reason they haven’t exactly been forthcoming on performance numbers. And, now there’s overheating issues with the new 8 speed slush box, prompting them to add a second transmission cooler, which also adds even more weight to an already over weight car.
OVERWEIGHT?
If it was a bmw there would be a lot more problems ! I know a german mechanic and he told me that the cars he sees in his shop most of the time are bmw’s and mercedes! The corvette is the the best performance sports car for the money!
Completely Disagree Don! Drove my 2011 M3 like I stole it. Had approx. 4 track days a year for three years. Drove across the country, never one issue, noise, rattle. You pay more for German engineering, but worth it! I am done with GM. Plus can’t beat the 4 year warranty…that includes brake pads and oil changes, and customer service at the dealership is superior to any of the Chev/GM dealerships I’ve visited.
When they change the body style as well as anything else on a corvette they always have issues to work out! In 68 when the corvette changed they rushed it through and had a ton of issues with that year!
My 2014 C7’s #7 and #8 pistons let loose at 950 miles. After new engine swap, the drive shaft bearing let loose at 2800 miles and ruined the entire drive shaft.
omfg. did you track the c7 ?
My 2014 Stingray with 6000 miles is in need of a new enine with spun rod bearings and gouges on main bearing. Local dealer does not know the cuase. Found it on 2nd tear down. Started as a ticking noise that they claimed was caused by the high pressure fuel pump and injectors. Now i have a collectable with mis matched numbers. Thought it was a great car until GM proved it is still GM.
omfg ! tracked ?
My 2014 C7 (bought in March) had a new torque tube installed in August of 2014 with 6k miles on it. At around 9k the same symptoms started to occur but GM did not think it was severe enough to warrant fixing. At 12k it stalled on a highway and the engine was blown. New engine on the way and I am sure the torque tube and flex plate are shot as well. Same story over and over again. Crankshaft end play due to poor torque tube design causing metal shavings to destroy the engine.
Quick update on my situation. So my engine was replaced two weeks back and now the torque tube rattle is back. Turns out it needs yet another torque tube! GM is shipping it out to my service shop. This will be the second time it is getting replaced… along with the entire engine. Really? Is this a car or a prop?
From what I see probably this engine issues will be carried to the 2016 Camaro. I was looking for a new GM sport car, I better stick to the prior engine car. GM what a shame with all those new nice designs that suddenly your V8 engine stops working catching the attention of everybody. No new GM for me.
My 2014 C7 Z51 purchased new (special ordered and waited 5 months for it to be built), was to be my dream car, and has been such a phomeminally fun car to drive, but from a GM quality expectation, my particular car has been the worst example of reliability and quality I have ever experienced. Within a few weeks of ownership, the radiator began leaking which was replaced. Then the AC stopped working and the entire system had to be replaced. At 8000 miles, the engine had a “castrophic failure” and was replaced. Resulting front end alignment issues continued following the engine replacement. Additionally, the front end suspension was not torked correctly and began to slip against the frame. Leather Material near the front defroster vent lifted up and the entire dash was replaced. The drivers side door interior was replaced due to rattling noises. Vent control knobs rattled and were replaced. The removable top seals were replaced due to squeaking. And now there is a water leak into the trunk and left storage bin, soaking the owners manuals in the bin and the entire trunk carpet. The rear bumper skin has been removed uncovering a gap between the inside and outside rear compartment moldings (was missing a bit of sealant). The dealership is doing some sort of fiberglass repair and reassembling the car. And those were the major issues. I have owned the car for 20 months, and it has been in for service cumlatevely for 3+ months of that time. The dealership has been very accommodating and performing all repair work under warranty. However, I have asked for a GM representative to discuss my disappoint with their quality, and time after time (many requests), the GM consumer line will only create a issue ticket and refer me to the dealership for resolution (like they are reading from a script). Quite honestly, the quality issues are not caused by the dealership, but GM… They built it and that’s who I would love to hear from… But so far… Nothing from GM a representative. I have to express my disappointment with GM, their lack of management response regarding my repeated requests, and quite honestly, my excitement for the car has been overshadowed by the seemly endless quality issues with this new vehicle. The cost was over 76k…. I expect more GM! Not because of how much I paid, but because I had placed my trust in the product and the company to build a reliable, quality car. I suppose Car and Driver got a call from a GM representative when their c7 engine failed. I do hope my bad experiences with the C7 is the exception, as the car drives as awesome as it looks… When it’s not in service… Ugh!
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My 2014 C7 Stingray was recently towed in for a seized engine with 7000 miles. Shavings and metal chunks found in oil pan!!! Engine has to be replaced which they estimate takes 2-3 months! Worked for GM/Delphi as an Engineer for 21 years until Mexico took my job in 2009. Quality control is definitely more stringent now than ever but obviously quality escapes continue to happen. My dealer (Jeff Schmitt in Beavercreek, Ohio) took my broken C7 on trade and treated me very fairly on the trade. Bought a new 2016 C7 Z-51 so I’m hoping that GM has fixed the quality issues. Absolutely ridiculous for this to happen to a new vehicle but it’s worse when GM doesn’t even care!!!
Message to GM –> STOP rolling the dice on quarantined suspect parts….I know how it works, I lived it for 21 years!!!!!!!
So I just purchased my 2014 c7 from chevy dealer and 2 months later as i was driving on the freeway my engine started rattling and the car began to shake like hell and a strong smell of burning rubber came about. The car lost all its power and shakes like crazy in idle and carely moves in drive. i had it towed to dealer right away. im waiting to call them tomorrow morning to see whats going on. i hope the engine didnt blow. this sucks. i too thought this was gonna be my dream car. its got 35k miles on it. and i didnt get warranty on it like an idiot, what a huge mistake. this is gonna cost me alot of money and trouble and time. FML
Sorry for your loss. I’m also on the list of getting the nice looking Stingray, but after hearing all those terror tales of malfunctioning engines and transmissions on those cars and oil consuming 6th gen Camaro SS I think I better keep for a longer time my 5th gen Camaro ZL1 that does not give me any trouble at all.
If you just bought it you should have some kind of feeeral or state used car power train warranty on it if you haven’t owned it that long or driven more then 2 or 3 thousand miles. Look into it. Don’t know where you live but in NY with 35k you would have 3 months or 4000 miles.