The current-generation Chevrolet Corvette Z06 is sold as a 650-horsepower supercharged track weapon, yet that hasn’t been the case for owners who have had the car go into limp mode on track. More Z06 owners have brought a fourth class-action lawsuit against General Motors over this issue, complete with claims that a 2017 redesign didn’t fix the problem.
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District court Michigan by Hagens Berman, the same firm behind the first class-action lawsuit about the Corvette Z06's issues on track. As with previous lawsuits over this issue, the owners claim that a cooling system defect forces the car to go into limp mode after as little as 15 minutes of track use.
This limp mode only enables the car to travel at very low speeds, which can be terrifying when you’re sharing the track with drivers who are actively pushing the limits of their cars, and potentially something they don’t expect to have to dodge.
That’s the exact opposite of the kind of performance that GM promised in its advertising, as Hagens Berman managing partner Steve Berman told Carscoops:
Instead of building a car that could live up to the hype it created, GM chose to pour its resources into an onslaught of deceptive marketing, touting to would-be buyers that the Corvette Z06 had ‘track-proven structure and technologies
What Z06 owners received from GM – a car that peters out after 15 minutes of track driving – is anything but ready for the track.
Up to 30,000 2015, 2016 and 2017 Corvette Z06s could be affected by this defective design, the lawsuit claims. While General Motors redesigned several key components for the 2017 Corvette Zo6, the lawsuit alleges that this fix didn’t actually work:
GM is aware of the defect and suspended production of the Z06 for a period of time to find a solution to the overheating issue, which it intended to incorporate in the 2017 Z06. GM claimed to have fixed the problem in the 2017 model by switching to a new hood with larger vents and a new supercharger cover. However, this attempted fix does not help consumers with previous models and does not fix the problem. The 2017 still overheats and GM’s only answer is to, after the fact, warn owners that automatic transmissions have the potential for overheating.
By failing to repair Z06s that are prone to the limp mode issue on track—a design defect that the lawsuit claims should be covered by GM’s warranty—these owners claim that GM is violating its own warranty agreement.
You can view the full text of the class-action lawsuit below.
Fourth Class-Action Lawsuit Over Corvette Z06 Limp Mode Issues by GMG Editorial on Scribd