Very interesting.. so what is it that fails in the engines? I didn't see any mention of that? Is it a bearing that goes bad or something that breaks due to the balance of the engine being screwed up because one or more cylinders isn't firing? Simply removing the combustion engine from certain cylinders generally leads to worse vibrations and harmonics which is bad for engines. I remember Honda had this issue with v6's, and had a special mount I think to handle extra vibrations but the best solution is turning the cyl deactivation crap off.

 

The quarter ton and above vehicles from all the domestics for the large part always had long term durability issues, but usually with the transmissions (diesels not withstanding). Dealers as a whole are terrible, but domestic dealers tend to take the cake so not surprised all this is going on.

From what I understand with the modern Toyota engine issues, it was a supplier issue and they've mostly corrected it. The issue I have with GM products is that when there is a problem trend, it tends to be a poor design situation. Everyone is guilty of it, including the JDMs (especially lately), but I'm not terribly surprised by any of this. Considering how many Escalades and Navigators there were in the late 90s and early 2000s, there's almost none of them on the road now. I was remarking about how much I like the bulbous F150s of the late 90s (like the Lightning) which were literally the #1 selling vehicle in the world almost exclusively sold in the US, and you see next to zero of them anymore. Meanwhile I see a crap ton of Tacos/Tundras that lived hard lives, and despite their well documented rust issues (from the 90s), they're still on the road.

 

See below from google. Basically oil pressure and lubrication from deactivated cylinders causes excessive, premature wear. So, it becomes this bad rattling sound in the engine that is not pleasant.

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Lifter failure in GM trucks is primarily caused by issues related to oil pressure and lubrication, particularly due to the Active Fuel Management (AFM) system which can lead to inadequate oiling of the lifters when cylinders are deactivated, causing them to wear down and fail prematurely; other contributing factors include contaminated oil, incorrect oil type, infrequent oil changes, and general wear and tear over time.

 

Sounds a lot like "user error" to me! /s

 

I can't name a single auto manufacturer that doesn't have major ICE engine failures these days.

 

I kind of wonder if trying to milk 1/16th of a mile per gallon out of manufacturers using the thinnest oil possible is a major contributing factor or if it is all design flaw. 0w20 is pretty common for Euro makes. I have not had a domestic for a few years.

 

Well to be fair to all the OEMs of today, engines are now producing far more power than ever before, and doing so far more efficiently as well. Many of us can remember when 300hp from the factory seemed like a world beater, and now rental Mustangs have that, I mean how many luxury OEMs even offer a car with 1xx hp anymore? How about <250hp? Not to mention cars have gotten so damn heavy. I mean shoot my little three banger is making 300hp, lol.

 

I can’t disagree. But like in business, the devil is in the details.

I have 2 Honda vehicles in my fleet. A compact truck, and a 1200cc sportbike, or actually sport-tourer. Both have recalls on them now. One is a 2010, the other a 2019. Both recalls are for the fuel tank propeller. LMAO. No issues with either. Neither has enough mileage on the ODO to warrant any real concern. My point is Honda stepped up, on both vehicles, and issued a factory recall where I take both to the stealer, and the recall work is $0 out of pocket. Bike is quoted at a 1 hour fix. Truck I think 2-3. My point is one is 5.5 years old. The other is 15 years old. And Honda is taking care of both, out of warranty. So your statement is 100%. But how it’s dealt with is a much larger conversation. GM, in this case, is acting like some bitches. Some hoe arse bitches. Honda, OTOH, has stepped up. My truck’s recall replacement part has been back ordered for 4-5 months but in stock now. Bike is whenever I feel like scheduling it. So in my opinion and my money, Japan > Domestic. All 8 of my vehicles are JDM, because the Japanese have honor, and fix their shit.

 

I think it's the engine stress more than anything - high compression and small displacement make an engine work hard. Big loping engines aren't the ones being recalled - its almost all the four-bangers strapped to a turbo.

 

My buddy's wife has a Yukon Denali that had the engine fail. Dealer has been trying to get GM to warranty it, as it was just out of warranty (less than 120K kms). He's also got an AT4 pickup with that motor and he's worried it'll also fail. Big problem, big cost, and unless they (GM) flash them to turn of DOD, they're going to be hooped. Problem is, then you have to pay people for the "loss in economy" or something, since they may have bought based on that feature.