Serious ZL1 Defects

[HDRDTD]

I've been a feild service tech for a whole lotta years (not on cars), and one thing I've discovered many, many times, is that the harder the problem is to find, the simpler the fix is once you find the problem.

Glad to hear they finally tracked down the problem.

Must be mighty embarassing for GM to replace an entire engine for a bad grommet.

[2001ragtop]

It's amazing how many people here called out the "PCV system" saying PCV valve is stuck/blocked/faulty/system isn't working.

This story will go down in lore.

NEW TSB FOR ANY GM V8 ENGINE: IF CUSTOMER SAYS OIL IS LEAKING, DISASSEMBLE THE PCV SYSTEM. CHECK AND VERIFY NO BLOCKAGE.

This discovery alone will save the company lots of money.

[george]

Dear CAM ZL1:
I wonder if this may be the issue with the SS models. Can you take a picture of the PCV "can"? Thank you in advance.

[Blast]

Sorry to bump a thread but what's the latest news ?

Did they get it running without issues in the end or did new things pop up to ruin your day?

// Stefan

[qniknam]

Originally Posted by SteeleRS/SS

Im surprised they didnt say "can not duplicate" typical dealer answer. glad to see you got a new one though. the first one would have never been the same to you.

LOL! Can not replicate and operating as designed are my favorite, the dealer saw how awesome I am when I won the lemon case on my 2011 haha

[qniknam]

Originally Posted by CAM ZL1

The Service Technician and the Service Manager had to consult an engineer via a telephone call and they all came to the conclusion that it had to be the PCV System. They checked that all the hoses were not blocked and in fact functioning, but inspected where they come together. They noticed the hoses come together at a metal can and after inspecting this they found that a rubber grommet which connects this can to the intake manifold had a mis-punched hole. The blocked grommet caused pressure to build in the engine which caused oil to leak passed the main seal in both motors at high RPM's.

The sum of this entire repair is approaching a month long and a hair under $17,000 in parts of warranty work caused by one mis-manufactured rubber grommet which probably cost $0.40 and a PCV System that could've been replaced by popping the hood in twenty minutes if properly diagnosed.

It seems to me like this could be a sporadic issue with the ZL1 PCV System, if it is ZL1 specific, and if in fact this mis-manufactured grommet was not a one-time error. So if anyone finds that after driving the car at high engine RPM's there is noticeable oil leaking, I would definitely check the PCV System before assuming anymore serious repairs. Those of you who had called out the PCV System as a likely source of the problem, you called it correctly.

It's kind of funny to me that, something so simple is the case 90% of the time with lemon cases. I had 6000 miles on my 2011 Camaro SS when my problems started and they first said its operating as designed, refused to change the transmission fluid to see if that was a problem, then they pulled the plug and saw shards which is a clear indication gears have been grinding, then they replaced synchros and all kinds of stuff. But nobody bothered to check to see if the clutch/brake fluid was okay since it was shared in the same resavoir. At the end of the battle and numerous phone calls to General Motors and a BBB Auto Line claim and the car getting lemon'd they finally heard me out and checked the fluid and it was black... They replaced it and the problems went away, and I still got a refund.

[Norm Peterson]

Originally Posted by qniknam

It's kind of funny to me that, something so simple is the case 90% of the time with lemon cases. I had 6000 miles on my 2011 Camaro SS when my problems started and they first said its operating as designed, refused to change the transmission fluid to see if that was a problem, then they pulled the plug and saw shards which is a clear indication gears have been grinding, then they replaced synchros and all kinds of stuff. But nobody bothered to check to see if the clutch/brake fluid was okay since it was shared in the same resavoir. At the end of the battle and numerous phone calls to General Motors and a BBB Auto Line claim and the car getting lemon'd they finally heard me out and checked the fluid and it was black... They replaced it and the problems went away, and I still got a refund.

Unfortunately, not listening to a reasonably intelligent enthusiast customer seems to be a common occurrence these days . . . and the situation isn't any better over on the Blue Oval side of the street.


Norm

[qniknam]

Originally Posted by Norm Peterson

Unfortunately, not listening to a reasonably intelligent enthusiast customer seems to be a common occurrence these days . . . and the situation isn't any better over on the Blue Oval side of the street.


Norm

Don't forget the Pentastar, but the manufacturer isn't to blame. It's the dealers, especially those with technician/foreman and service manager egos (no, we are the professionals and we know best - well way to go professional, you just cost GM a full refund for a car they probably re-sold at auction for 14k, and in this guys case 17000 + a full refund for a ZL1 that will go at an auction for 30k max)... But then again it's simply not our fault the people we came across were incompetent.

[Norm Peterson]

Now that you mention it, yeah, go ahead and add them too.

It's been a few decades now, but any outfit that finds a way to make an arc strike on a steel tranny cooling line and lets it go back to the customer that way deserves their turn in the barrel.


Norm

[qniknam]

Don't worry I'm currently beating the crap out of them... The Pentastar that is...

[Blast]

The timing of the latest post is bad. Look at this thread to see why :

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=248327

No I don't blame you for posting it slaka8. Just timing feels bad cause we haven't yet heard from CAM ZL1.

I do (as we all do) hope he's ok.

// Stefan

[djxrated81]

Originally Posted by Blast

The timing of the latest post is bad. Look at this thread to see why :

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=248327

No I don't blame you for posting it slaka8. Just timing feels bad cause we haven't yet heard from CAM ZL1.

I do (as we all do) hope he's ok.

// Stefan

thats scary stuff right there, just got done reading this whole thread, and felt like i was watching a movie or something and to see this video really gets to me especially seeing that thats his plate!!! i hope he posts up and says everything is ok!!

[james347]

CamZL1 posted a response to the Youtube video, his update:

The Camaro in this video is mine and has already been accepted as a lemon claim from GM; you can refer to my forum on Camaro5 (Serious ZL1 Defects). Already a submitted issue with GM, the ZL1 experienced electric steering loss and made a quick veer across two lanes and into a ditch. If anyone cares, I walked away from the accident, and I think some of the comments made are a bit ignorant. I would appreciate if you took this video down, as the issue is still an ongoing matter with GM.
CAMZL12012 12 hours ago

[djxrated81]

thank god!!!! good news, now he needs to get that 2013 Z and put all of this garbage behind him....now i can start my day..GO GGGGGGGGGMEN!!!!!!