General Motors Cutting Back 100K-Mile Powertrain Warranty

Cameron Aubernon
by Cameron Aubernon

Due to lack of interest, General Motors is cutting back its 100,000-mile/five-year powertrain warranty for 2016 Chevrolet and GMC models.

Automotive News reports the new warranty will cover the powertrain for up to five years or 60,000 miles, with courtesy transportation and roadside assistance still available for the period. The new standard matches those of Toyota, Ford and Honda. The coverage’s two-year free maintenance scheme will also be cut from four free visits for oil changes, tire rotations et al to just two.

Though the original extended warranty was meant to give consumers more confidence in GM products when first introduced for the 2007 model year, the memo sent out to dealers this week stated the following:

Through research, we have determined that when purchasing a new vehicle, included maintenance and warranty rank low on the list of reasons why consumers consider a particular brand over another. As a result, we have benchmarked our competitors, reviewed our current offerings and have concluded the following modifications to align closely with our customers’ needs and expectations.

Only the Chevrolet Volt will retain the 100,000-mile powertrain warranty for its battery pack and drive unit; Buick’s and Cadillac’s six-year/70,000 warranty will remain unchanged, as well.

Cameron Aubernon
Cameron Aubernon

Seattle-based writer, blogger, and photographer for many a publication. Born in Louisville. Raised in Kansas. Where I lay my head is home.

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  • Jim brewer Jim brewer on Mar 13, 2015

    According to the company's 10-k, warranty expenses went up about a billion dollars last year, roughly 30%. See note 13. Nothing to see here folks. The consumer WANTS to undertake an additional billion dollar expense.

  • Jim brewer Jim brewer on Mar 13, 2015

    Just Checked Ford's 10-k. They report warranty visits are down 66% since 2005. Their report came out last May, in fairness, but still..... Tells you something about GM. A normal company tries to limit warranty expense by building a better product. GM's approach to unexpectedly high warranty expense is to cut the warranty. Good old GM. Hasn't changed a bit.

  • NN NN on Mar 15, 2015

    well my 2010 Malibu will be adding to GM's warranty expenses as it's transmission (6spd Daewoo automatic) just gave up the ghost this past Friday at 86k miles. It went the first time at 27k. So maybe the 3rd time is the charm?

  • Mictdxxx Mictdxxx on Mar 15, 2015

    In addition to the above comments which I agree with most. I think this is a ploy to boost sales this year, kind of a " better buy your GM car/truck now before the 100k warranty goes away". This might cause hesitant GM loyals to buy a new GM vehicle sooner rather then later. If sales start to fall they could always bring it back if needed. Of course this is just a theory.

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