oil light failed to illuminate...blown engine!

[buckeyefans]

I was fortunate enough to be able to buy my daughter a 2012 Sonic when she graduated from college. I picked the Sonic because it is a US made car and I thought it looked like a good value. So here's the engine story:

The car now has about 28,000 miles on it. She took it to WalMart for an oil change (I cringed at the time, but she's an adult). Shortly after, she noticed "steam" from the engine compartment. She lives in a different city then me, so I couldn't check it out. she is not mechanically inclined. It wasn't real persistent, but there. She took it to her local dealer and the dealer said that oil might be leaking from the oil filter cap, but the dealer wanted $95 an hour to determine the problem since walmart likely caused the problem. So, my daughter reasoned that since WalMart caused the problem, she'd take it back to WalMart to get it addressed. However, two days later before she got to WalMart, without warning, such as an oil light illuminating, the engine started clunking and banging -- it was out of oil! The car was towed to the dealer and the dealer says the engine is no more.

I looked at the, and somehow, it appears that WalMart didn't seat the O ring on the oil filter cap properly. So, the oil leaked out. BUT, the low oil light never illuminated.

We have filed a claim with WalMart -- we'll see if they step up. The Chevy dealer says this issue is not covered under warranty. However, after thinking about it, shouldn't have the oil light illuminated to warn my daughter of low oil??? Didn't this apparent fault contribute to this situation?

What do you think?

 

[Chevy2012sonic]

I was fortunate enough to be able to buy my daughter a 2012 Sonic when she graduated from college. I picked the Sonic because it is a US made car and I thought it looked like a good value. So here's the engine story:



The car now has about 28,000 miles on it. She took it to WalMart for an oil change (I cringed at the time, but she's an adult). Shortly after, she noticed "steam" from the engine compartment. She lives in a different city then me, so I couldn't check it out. she is not mechanically inclined. It wasn't real persistent, but there. She took it to her local dealer and the dealer said that oil might be leaking from the oil filter cap, but the dealer wanted $95 an hour to determine the problem since walmart likely caused the problem. So, my daughter reasoned that since WalMart caused the problem, she'd take it back to WalMart to get it addressed. However, two days later before she got to WalMart, without warning, such as an oil light illuminating, the engine started clunking and banging -- it was out of oil! The car was towed to the dealer and the dealer says the engine is no more.



I looked at the, and somehow, it appears that WalMart didn't seat the O ring on the oil filter cap properly. So, the oil leaked out. BUT, the low oil light never illuminated.



We have filed a claim with WalMart -- we'll see if they step up. The Chevy dealer says this issue is not covered under warranty. However, after thinking about it, shouldn't have the oil light illuminated to warn my daughter of low oil??? Didn't this apparent fault contribute to this situation?



What do you think?

Your best bet call Walmart cooperate and fight with them. Have the dealer write a letter stating that yhe o ring on the filter cap wasn't on correct. But with the light situation that's something the dealer would have to figure out. It never happened to my car but when I blew my 03 dodge neon the light didn't come in either


2012 chevy sonic

 

[mitdr774]

Last I knew we didnt have a low oil light, just a low oil pressure light. If the oil gets low enough that you loose pressure you are probably screwed. Even if you dont loose pressure it is possible to have insufficient oiling to all parts of the engine and as a result things go wrong in a hurry.

If its leaking, keep an eye on the oil level. It is the drivers responsibility to check fluid levels. GM has no responsibility in this failure, just the repair facility that did the oil change and the driver. After being advised by the dealer that it was leaking oil, she should not have continued to drive for two days without at least checking the fluid level.

 

[Chuck Schick]

So the "steam" was burning oil...Well hopefully WalMart will step up to the plate. Keep the GM receipt in case you go to court.

My father always told me never to rely on gauges...of course this one has none.


Please keep us posted.

 

[Dirkdaddy]

Ugh hate to hear this story. While you don't want to overpay for services, unfortunately the dealer would have been a good place to look at it. I've been semi-pro mechanic and seen some pretty dodgy repairs from all sorts of shops including Firestone, Jiffy Lube and other vendors. I suggest y'all check CarTalk.com's site and there's a section for trusted shops in about most cities in USA.

On the plus side, Walmart is a deep pockets company who you would think and do the right thing since she took it there and it is pretty well iron-clad that they screwed up. That Oring isn't going to mis-seat itself.

 

[Papasonic]

It is true that there is no oil level indicator in a Sonic except the dipstick; if and or when the oil pressure light were to come on, it's already too late, the damage is done. There is a somewhat shared responsibility for the engine failure. The owner for not following up on an observed potential problem, but mostly the service facility that failed to do the job properly. There should have been evidence of a problem early on with a visible oil leak on the ground, and the odor of oil in and around the vehicle.
Hope this turns out well for the OP. There is an abundance of irresponsibility in the service industry: Getting someone to assume any liability or responsibility these days is rare.

 

[illsonic]

i agree hate to hear this too and hope walmart steps up and takes care of it , ive heard so many bad experiences of people getting oil changes at quick lube places .

 

[ahtoxa]

Correct, we don't have a low oil light, we only have a low oil pressure light. The oil pressure light may come on when the oil is now, but not necessarily.

 

[buckeyefans]

Thanks for the thoughts. Agreed, the oil light is pressure activated, or should be activated, when the oil pressure drops below a predetermined pressure, not volume of oil. i.e. 10psi will trigger the light, etc.... The sending unit on most engines is typically positioned toward the top of the motor, often in the head, because this is furthest from the oil pump and the most likely location to see a decline in pressure providing the greatest warning. While there are a several reasons for a change in oil pressure, the most typical reason for a reduction in oil pressure is low oil volume in the crank case and bingo, the light should come on. Change your oil viscosity, your pressure may change, new filter, etc... but, without an accurate gauge, these minor variations are not typically observed. However, the crankcase being nearly depleted of oil should trigger the "idiot" light.

Thanks again for the productive and the less than productive thoughts.

 

[ChrisJ]

My first question would be why did your daughter continue to drive the vehicle knowing there was a fairly severe oil leak?

Also, why did she wait 2 days before trying to bring it back to Walmart? Was she driving the vehicle these 2 days?

I'm just trying to view this the way Walmart is going to. I know if it was my vehicle I would've figured out what the leak was ASAP and kept a close eye on the oil level.

 

[Papasonic]

My first question would be why did your daughter continue to drive the vehicle knowing there was a fairly severe oil leak?

Also, why did she wait 2 days before trying to bring it back to Walmart? Was she driving the vehicle these 2 days?

I'm just trying to view this the way Walmart is going to. I know if it was my vehicle I would've figured out what the leak was ASAP and kept a close eye on the oil level.

She's a girl. Not to be condescending, but someone not familiar with the systems under the hood of their vehicle would not realize the urgency of the situation. Some operators know where the gas goes, and where to insert the key, and rely on others expertise for the rest.

 

[ChrisJ]

She's a girl. Not to be condescending, but someone not familiar with the systems under the hood of their vehicle would not realize the urgency of the situation. Some operators know where the gas goes, and where to insert the key, and rely on others expertise for the rest.

This will NEVER be an excuse in my book.
Girls can be just as knowledgeable as any guy when it comes to machines if they choose to be.

It's her engine now and she has no one to blame but her self in my opinion.


That said, I don't wish anyone pain and I hope it all works out in the end.

 

[sonic_braaappp]

This really does suck to hear about. OP, the best way i would say to describe it to your daughter for future reference is to say this, "Cars in a sense are like people, they need gas to run, oil to lubricate the parts etc., Gas to a car is like your food you eat everyday, the energy required to move about, and the oil is your level of hydration i.e. how much water you drink. Dont eat food (no gas) cars not going anywhere, Dont drink water and stay hydrated (check oil etc.) you can die from dehydration." thats how i explain it to people who have no mechanical sense at all and they always understand it right away

 

[wbjones]

really hate it for your daughter … but this will probably fall under the heading of "life is a continual learning experience"

getting Wally World to pay for this will take some kind of miracle

 

[buckeyefans]

My first question would be why did your daughter continue to drive the vehicle knowing there was a fairly severe oil leak?

Also, why did she wait 2 days before trying to bring it back to Walmart? Was she driving the vehicle these 2 days?

I'm just trying to view this the way Walmart is going to. I know if it was my vehicle I would've figured out what the leak was ASAP and kept a close eye on the oil level.

She did not believe that the leak was significant nor did the dealer indicate that it was a serious concern. I guess like my old 1970 VW Bug -- it just marked it's spot! In fact, I think what ultimately happened is that a small leak eventually became a significant leak when the O ring that was not seated correctly eventually failed to offer even a poor seal.

She took two days because of necessity and it did not really seem like an emergency situation. She had driven several weeks and the dealer did not characterize it as a serious issue. Also, she knows very little about cars -- it ran fine, no warning lights, and the dealer didn't characterize it as a critical issue.

With hind sight, I do think that the dealer probably could have done a better job explaining the issue and offering an easy solution. Frankly, a simple oil change by the dealer would have fixed the leak -- assuming they installed the filter cap correctly! When the dealer said they would charge her $95 an hour to diagnose the problem, it scared her! But really, any mechanic could easily identify the problem in about 30 seconds!

 

[Kuntryboy865]

Another reason for me never to take my car to walmart.

 

[Dirkdaddy]

This will NEVER be an excuse in my book.
Girls can be just as knowledgeable as any guy when it comes to machines if they choose to be.

It's her engine now and she has no one to blame but her self in my opinion.


That said, I don't wish anyone pain and I hope it all works out in the end.

I hope this has a happy outcome as well. FWIW, my daughter checks the oil on my push mower every time before she mows the lawn. I've shown her how to change the oil on my other car. I don't have a choice, I had all girls! Someone's gonna inherit a lot of tools, they may as well know how to use them!

 

[Hdmanny]

Oil leaking from a car should mean that you should check the oil level no matter what your gender. If the person does not know about cars they can find the information in the owners manual. Walmart may be blamed for not replacing the filter properly but at the first sign of oil leaking it could have been corrected and not resulted in a blown engine.
I had Walmart change my oil once and when I read the receipt it had that they had put 4.5 qts in my Mustang. I asked them where they get that 4.5 qts was what my engine (302) took and they showed me in their maintenance manual. I explained that it took 5 qts and showed them in the owners manual, they went to my car and added another .5 qts. I don't think I have been back to Walmart for an oil change since.

 

[wbjones]

shoot … that's a better result than I would have expected from WallyWorld

 

[krakenredbeard]

Walmart will ultimately end up paying for it. I used to manage the automotive department at one of the stores we had claims monthly sometimes weekly and sometimes more than one in a week.

This is why walmart had what most people call dumb policies but it's ultimately to protect the company from such things.

Unfortunately this was not one of those thing they couldn't refrain from touching being a oil filter.

Ultimately it sucks at the same time I'm fairly confident walmart will eat the cost.

The thing people don't seem to know is a Walmart tle technician is nothing more than certified to do a few specific jobs. They are certified by other certified techs. So like a copy of a copy of they where not trained properly from the get go that knowledge just passes on.

The store I work for now only had one person I'd trust to change my oil but he is a personal friend that id allow to work on my car outside of work as well.

If he isn't there. No one else touches my wife's car.

Mine however I'll do myself.