Horrible Investment. Used 2011 Chevrolet equinox
My husband and I bought a certified used 2011 Chevrolet equinox. Probably one of the worst decisions ever, however hein sight is always 20 20. Recently the car has been running tough at idle. It will loose rpm and then it will recover and rev way up. The ses light never came on. Also when stopped the vehicle wants to lerch forward. We took our car into the dealership where we purchased the vehicle and have done all maintenance and come to find out there was only 1qt of oil remaining in the oil pan. The vehicle needs 5qts at all time to keep the engine operating. The vehicle did have knock sensor codes now here is where it gets really good. Our vehicle has an extended warranty, in addition we had a chevy care plan where it covered oil changes for the first two years of ownership. The dealership has been the only one to work on this car we paid $119.34 for a oil change and for them to tell us everything I just posted. THEY DID NOTHING TO FIX THE PROBLEM... According to the dealership the warranty does not cover low oil issues and until they can pin point the exact problem of where we are burning oil the warranty does not cover. We have taken the vehicle in for scheduled maintenance on time and even early where we were turned away because it was not at a certain percentage now tell me something is not right here. In addition there is no warning lights to alert the driver you are out of oil or low on oil so who knows what kind of damage has been done to my engine... Also reading other posts this is not just a one car problem there has been many cases of people burning oil and engine problems so why is nothing being done to fix this?????
Comments
Okay, what needs to happen I think is that the dealer has to conduct an oil consumption test, where they monitor your oil consumption and keep records each time you bring the car back. Also, your complaints of oil consumption should appear on repair orders so that if there is an engine issue, this could be covered under your warranty. (depending upon what type of warranty you are currently under).
As for the rough running, what needs to happen here is that a scan tool needs to be in place as the problem is occurring--then the tool can "freeze" the results it is recording and the various inputs from sensors on the car can be examined and diagnosed.
These problems can be worked out but you're going to have to be very pro-active and insistent on getting attention.
One thing people overlook is simple maintenance. Checking oil levels is one.
Thank you I will go back and have them start the oil consumption test. Also will have them attempt to recreate the error so the scanner picks it up. We thought we were doing great maintenance on the vehicle we brought it to a reputable dealer for all oil changes on time and some we were even early and they turned us away. The vehicle before never smelt hot or burning or any signs we might have a problem until when we brought it in and were down to 1qt oil. Now we are checking the oil daily and recording the oil loss so we are covered on all parts.
Hi jefreyca,
Please keep us posted on the oil consumption testing with your dealership. If there is anything we can look into for you, please feel free to message us your VIN, mileage and contact information. We can also be reached via email at socialmedia@gm.com [attn Amber].
Amber N.
GM Customer Care
If they are the only ones to do the oil changes, and you recently got an oil change, then you seem to have a pretty open and shut bulletproof case against them.
jefrey-california, given the symptoms and the apparent cause being 4 quarts low on oil it sounds like the dealer sold you a vehicle that burned oil, possibly within normal range of burning oil, probably topped off with oil when you bought it. as you now know, it is prudent to check oil at every refuel stop, until you know the burn rate. obviously selling dealer would not tell you this, else you would know you were being sold a car thirsty for oil as well as gasoline.
fwiw, new cars can be considered 'operating within designed range' even if they burn a quart every 1000 miles.
if the oil was at 1qt due to being underfilled at a shop, the oilchange/selling/whichever shop will get to purchase a new head/whatever-is-damaged. if oil ran low due to not being checked, owner gets to fund all the work. it may be difficult to know which happened at this point. possibly look closely at tailpipe and nearby on rear bumper for evidence of burning oil .
well, i'm heading out to check my vehicles' oil levels immediately...