Published
July 2, 2025
Updated
July 29, 2026
This settlement resolves claims that the Generation IV 5.3-liter V8 LC9 engine in 2011–2014 Chevrolet and GMC trucks and SUVs burned oil because of a defective piston assembly. It covered owners and lessees in California, Idaho and North Carolina, and payments out of the $150 million fund began going out in December 2025.
Current Status
There is nothing left to file. The court held the final approval hearing on October 6, 2025 and entered an Order Granting Final Class Settlement Approval and Attorneys' Fees and Costs on October 8, 2025. The settlement administrator then began distributing payments on December 23, 2025 to class members with a valid W-9 on file, and on January 9, 2026 to class members without one. The one form any class member had to return — the North Carolina Class Member Identification Form — was due September 15, 2025. As of July 29, 2026, no appeal and no announcement that distribution is complete had been located in public sources.StatusFinal Approval Granted — Payments in ProgressOrder entered October 8, 2025 · distribution began December 23, 2025
Claim DeadlineSeptember 15, 2025North Carolina Identification Form only. The window is closed.
Settlement Fund$150,000,000Floor of $2,149 per class member · reported averages above $3,300 per vehicle
Proof RequiredVaries by SubclassAutomatic for California and Idaho members; North Carolina members had to return an Identification Form.
What Changed Recently
The last substantive development was the court's final approval order on October 8, 2025, two days after the final approval hearing. Distribution followed: December 23, 2025 for class members whose valid W-9 was already on file, and January 9, 2026 for everyone else. Paper checks take additional time to arrive after they are issued. No appeal of the approval order and no notice that distribution has finished had been located as of July 29, 2026.What Was the Case About?
The case is Siqueiros et al. v. General Motors, LLC, filed in December 2016 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, No. 3:16-cv-07244-EMC. Plaintiffs alleged that the Generation IV 5.3-liter V8 LC9 engine — sold as the Vortec 5300 — contained an inherently defective piston assembly whose rings wore prematurely. According to the complaint, that wear let the engine consume oil faster than normal, which allegedly fouled spark plugs and produced rough idling, hesitation under acceleration, check-engine warnings and, in some cases, engine damage. GM denied the allegations.In October 2022 a jury found GM liable on implied warranty claims under California and North Carolina law and under Idaho's consumer protection statute, returning roughly $102.6 million. The parties then negotiated a post-trial settlement of $150 million that resolved the remaining proceedings. Settling is not an admission of wrongdoing.
Who Was Covered?
The settlement classes covered people who were the current owner or lessee, as of May 23, 2022, of a class vehicle that had been purchased or leased in California, Idaho or North Carolina. The class vehicles are:• 2011–2014 Chevrolet Avalanche
• 2011–2014 Chevrolet Silverado
• 2011–2014 Chevrolet Suburban
• 2011–2014 Chevrolet Tahoe
• 2011–2014 GMC Sierra
• 2011–2014 GMC Yukon
• 2011–2014 GMC Yukon XL
Each vehicle had to carry a Generation IV LC9 5.3-liter V8 Vortec 5300 engine manufactured on or after February 10, 2011. Vehicles that had already received an adequate piston replacement — upgraded piston rings — under warranty and at no charge were excluded from the class, as was anyone who asked to be excluded after the class notice that went out around May 23, 2022.
How Much Class Members Received
Payments were made pro rata from the $150 million fund after court-approved deductions. The settlement agreement set a floor of $2,149 per class member. Reporting on the final approval order put the actual average above $3,300 per vehicle, with several outlets citing a figure near $3,380. Treat those averages as reported figures rather than a guaranteed amount — the number an individual received depended on the final allocation.The court also approved about $57 million in attorneys' fees and expenses, a percentage the order acknowledged sat above the Ninth Circuit's usual benchmark, along with service awards for the class representatives. Notice reached roughly 43,000 class members, and no objections were filed.
Was a Claim Form Required?
For most of the class, no. California and Idaho class members did not file anything — the administrator identified them from records and issued payment. That is why this page is marked Automatic Payment rather than Proof Required: Yes. An earlier version of this page listed proof as required, which overstated the burden for the large majority of the class.There was one exception. Class members who received a notice directing them to complete the North Carolina Class Member Identification Form had to return it in order to be paid. The form asked the owner to confirm that they owned the class vehicle as of May 23, 2022 and that it was purchased in North Carolina. It had to be postmarked or received by September 15, 2025 and could be submitted online or by mail. A separate W-9 affected how quickly a payment was issued, not whether someone qualified.
Why Some Coverage Says $175 Million
Figures differ across news write-ups, so it is worth being precise. The fund approved in this case is $150 million, per the settlement agreement and the October 8, 2025 final approval order. A separate Oklahoma case over the same LC9 engines — Hampton v. General Motors LLC in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, No. 6:21-cv-250-GLJ — settled for about $24.8 million on its own terms and has its own official website and its own class definition. Some coverage reports the two together as roughly $175 million. If you are comparing dollar figures, check which case the article is describing, and note that being covered by one does not make you part of the other.GM has faced other consumer cases unrelated to the LC9 engine as well, including a separate matter over brake master cylinders in GM trucks and SUVs.
Key Dates
• Class membership date: May 23, 2022 (current owners and lessees)• Objection deadline: August 8, 2025
• North Carolina Identification Form deadline: September 15, 2025
• Final approval hearing: October 6, 2025
• Final approval order entered: October 8, 2025
• Payments began, valid W-9 on file: December 23, 2025
• Payments began, no W-9 on file: January 9, 2026
What Happens Next
Distribution is the remaining step, and there is no action for class members to take. Anyone who believes they qualified and has not received a payment should use the contact options on the official settlement website, which the administrator identifies as the only authorized site for this litigation. As of July 29, 2026, no appeal, no second distribution and no announcement that distribution is complete had been located in public sources.Official information is posted at GM Engine Litigation.com.
Sources
• Official settlement website and FAQ: GM Engine Litigation.com• Order Granting Final Class Settlement Approval and Attorneys' Fees and Costs, entered October 8, 2025
• Class Action Settlement Agreement (June 2025)
• Bloomberg Law — GM's $150 Million Engine Defect Settlement Earns Final Approval
• Oklahoma GM Engine Litigation.com — official site for the separate Hampton settlement
For more class actions keep scrolling below.
Settlement Fund
$150,000,000
Defendant
General Motors LLC
Case
Siqueiros et al. v. General Motors, LLC
Case Number
3:16-cv-07244-EMC
Court
U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
Class Vehicles
2011–2014 Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado, Suburban, Tahoe; GMC Sierra, Yukon, Yukon XL with a Generation IV LC9 5.3L V8
Purchased or leased in California, Idaho or North Carolina; owned as of May 23, 2022.
Identification Form Deadline
September 15, 2025
North Carolina class members only.
Final Approval Hearing
October 6, 2025
Final Approval Order
October 8, 2025
Payments Began
December 23, 2025 · January 9, 2026
W-9 on file first; all others in January.
Status
Final Approval Granted — Payments in Progress
Official Website
GM Engine Litigation.com
