BREAKING: GM is officially recalling the L87

[cornicekurt]

I think THEY should be telling YOU what they’re going to do. But it sounds like they should be “inspecting” your engine to see if it requires replacing (or “just” requires different weight oil and a new filler cap). Now how they’re going to inspect the engine, I have no idea. I don’t see what they can learn without physically getting into the engine— and that sounds involved.

Yea this is where it gets tricky. Who’s deciding the depth of these inspections? Who’s deciding what the allowable deficiencies will be? Some vehicles will have a lot more miles on them yet the same year as another. Who decides what constitutes normal wear and tear degradation? If someone isn’t watching and or dictating the guidelines GM is going to get away with EVERYTHING they possibly can.
This is going to be a MESS!

 

[Lonny]

I'm mystified at the risk GM is taking on - and the risk they are expecting their customers take on!

So let me get this straight...

1. The dealer service departments don't have parts or materials and say they are therefore unable to do anything at all right now,

YET

2. GM's bulletin says to inspect and check for the error code because the vehicle won't pass inspection?!?!?!?!!?!?!?!?

So because the dealers haven't been given anything tangible for repair work, they're not even checking for the damned codes to see if the damned motor is gonna explode? THIS IS RIDICULOUS.

 

[rizzuto]

Safety Recall Report

 

[KMeloney]

Yea this is where it gets tricky. Who’s deciding the depth of these inspections? Who’s deciding what the allowable deficiencies will be? Some vehicles will have a lot more miles on them yet the same year as another. Who decides what constitutes normal wear and tear degradation? If someone isn’t watching and or dictating the guidelines GM is going to get away with EVERYTHING they possibly can.
This is going to be a MESS!

Hey, it’s a START. Let’s see what happens next.

 

[KMeloney]

I'm mystified at the risk GM is taking on - and the risk they are expecting their customers take on!

So let me get this straight...

1. The dealer service departments don't have parts or materials and say they are therefore unable to do anything at all right now,

YET

2. GM's bulletin says to inspect and check for the error code because the vehicle won't pass inspection?!?!?!?!!?!?!?!?

So because the dealers haven't been given anything tangible for repair work, they're not even checking for the damned codes to see if the damned motor is gonna explode? THIS IS RIDICULOUS.

I can understand GM putting something out prior to all of the dealerships being prepared to do whatever the bulletin says to do. I imagine GM was “forced” to get something out to the public asap and didn’t have the luxury of informing and ramping up all of the dealerships beforehand. So here we are. It’s obviously not helpful to those of us who are on the list — but I can understand this roll-out going this way.

As for your #2, I’m not sure what you’re saying. Your truck’s engine will be inspected, and if it passes THAT inspection, then you just get the different oil and filler cap. If you fail the engine inspection, then you get a new engine (or your engine is repaired). The bulletin/notice on the GMC app doesn’t mention anything about just checking for a code. And if the dealers don’t have the filler caps (nor the 0w-40 oil) on hand now, then why would they have owners bring in their trucks now if they don’t have the supplies to get you back out the door? (No one is going tolerate them doing the inspection then keeping your truck or requiring you make another appointment for when they do the oil change nonsense.)

…And if it’s determined that you need a new engine, well, you’ve made it this long, so you can wait a little longer for a proper diagnosis and some action toward engine replacement or some peace of mind.

 

[KMeloney]

For anyone who hasn’t seen it, this is what the GMC app says:

 

[jfoj]

My wife totes kids to and fro all day every day. All short trips within our area. She drives 3 miles to work and 3 miles home. Soccer, lacrosse, hockey, swim meets. 2023 High Country Tahoe. I’m certain that motor is toast.

Ouch, you need to change the oil by at least the 50% OLM.

Hopefully you are not in a colder climate.

In this case I would probably consider implementing the REVERSE WARM UP. Start the car and drive the short distance to the event, then in some cases leave it idle as it is at least partially warmed up. This is where an Oil Temp gauge like the 2025 units would come in BIG TIME HANDY. It is not about the engine temperature, it is all about the oil temperature.

I think I may need to look back in my Logs to see if I can somehow map Transmission Temperature to expected Oil Temperature. At least this would give the driver some idea if the engine oil still needs to simmer some more.

 

[fredtufts]

2024 Yukon Denali - 6.2L L87 engine: My engine failed at 13K miles in late March. I was on the interstate, and it felt like it was sputtering like it was running out of gas. The dash said "Not safe to switch gears". Then I see the vehicle went into Neutral on its own. Pull to side, try to engage Drive and would not switch gears. Turned off vehicle, restarted, was able to put in Drive, but I was only able to travel another 50 yards and the same thing happened. This time the vehicle would not restart. Had to be towed to the dealer. The dealer said the "crank seized", they ordered a new engine under warranty, and it will be ready this week. I was able to get the engine sooner (5 weeks) by engaging with GM special customer support dept. that handles "delayed parts". If you vehicle is revenue producing or you need for work, they accelerate the delivery of the new engine to avoid more damages in a lawsuit/class actions. Other issues in the class actions will be lost of resale value for all those affected.

Questions: Other than confirming the date of manufacture of the new engine and the proper oil to use in the new engine, please advise me on what other questions/areas of inquiry I should discuss with service manager. Your help is appreciated!

 

[viven44]

Safety Recall Report

Wow nice find !! If I am understanding this correctly, the contamination issue (Sediment in oil galleries) is one of the root causes and clearly like any issue, it was on a spectrum. Some engines got hit harder than the others and failed early. Essentially the bearings (rods and mains right ?) got clearanced by the contaminants and heck it didn't help the crankshaft was also out of spec supposedly at the same time... hmm how did 2 bad things happen at the same time ??.... the survivors are likely clearanced more than they ought to be, but GM's hope is that the thicker oil will prolong the inevitable.... sounds about right ? There is too much similarity to the toyota engine recall... except Toyota replaced all engines involved, but GM wants to only take care of the ones failed, and apply a band aid to the survivors... hmmm... not fair I think unless GM can explain why just the oil change is expected to keep the survivors on the road for 300,000 miles.

Chronology :
On January 16, 2025, GM opened a product investigation following notification from NHTSA of its investigation into alleged engine failures in GM vehicles equipped with the L87 V8 engine. GM closed three prior investigations into this condition in February 2022, June 2023, and July 2024 based on the available safety field information.

GM’s updated field data analysis identified a build period from March 1, 2021, to May 31, 2024, with an increased rate of potentially related engine failure claims. GM’s investigator reviewed findings from teardowns of field engines and data from a study of new, unused crankshafts. Supplier manufacturing and quality issues were identified at intermittent periods within the suspect build period, including (1) rod-bearing damage from sediment on connecting rods and crankshaft-oil galleries; and (2) out of specification crankshaft dimensions and surface finish. These issues can cause or contribute to bearing damage that can lead to loss of propulsion and engine failure.

GM’s investigation identified 28,102 field complaints or incidents in the US potentially related to failure of the L87 engine due to crankshaft, connecting rod, or engine bearing failure, of which 14,332 involved allegations of loss of propulsion. These field complaints were received between April 29, 2021, and February 3, 2025. GM identified 12 potentially related alleged crashes and 12 potentially related alleged injuries in the U.S.; all specifically alleged injuries were minor or non-physical, and most were not crash related. GM also identified 42 potentially related fire allegations in the U.S., but in the majority of these cases (a) the causation of these incidents is unclear and (b) the alleged fire damage is contained to the engine compartment and consistent with damage that can occur, in rare instances, during engine failure. On April 17, 2025, GM’s Safety Field Action Decision Authority (SFADA) decided to conduct a safety recall.

 

[Stshack]

It popped up on my Cadillac Phone App this morning under Recall and Warranty in the Help Center
It says "Required" L87 Engine Loss of Propulsion - Contact Dealer Service - Dealers will inspect and as necessary, repair or replace the engine. Vehicles that pass inspection will be provided a higher viscosity oil, which will also require a new oil fill cap and oil filter replacement and an owner's manual insert. It says 2021-2024 and no mention of 2025 vehicles.

"If the engine fails during the vehicle operation, the vehicle will lose propulsion (no shit) increasing the risk of a crash."

 

[backwaterchile]

Safety Recall Report

Thanks for this. Based on the numbers, there were ~28,000 reports through February out of about 590,000 affected vehicles for a rate of 4.7%

 

[KMeloney]

Questions: Other than confirming the date of manufacture of the new engine and the proper oil to use in the new engine, please advise me on what other questions/areas of inquiry I should discuss with service manager. Your help is appreciated!

If the ‘25s are truly free of this failure issue, then I’ve got to believe that GM knows a) that there was a defective parts problem, and b) knows when those parts were no longer installed in engines. With the issuance of this recall now, GM would have to be [even more] insane to put a new engine in your truck that they know has/could have faulty parts in it. So, I’d feel pretty confident that you’re going to get a reliable engine.

…And if the failure issue is truly a defective parts situation, then it’ll be interesting to see which weight oil they put in your new engine, since sticking with the 0w-20 would be an admission that the heavier weight oil recommendation in the recall is just a stop-gap of sorts.

 

[KMeloney]

but GM wants to only take care of the ones failed, and apply a band aid to the survivors...

If your truck is on the list, then it could very well get a new engine. The ones that had engine failures prior to the recall (and were still under warranty, at least) are already getting new engines. So the recall is for trucks that HAVEN’T failed yet but that GM believes are prone to failure.

What else would you want GM to do?

 

[viven44]

So the recall is for trucks that HAVEN’T failed yet but that GM believes are prone to failure.

There are 3 types of trucks from what I am seeing

- Already failed (engine replacement)
- About to fail and set the P0016 code (engine replacement)
- The ones that haven't set the code yet (survivors). The survivor ones are still a spectrum with ones ranging from "walking wounded" to healthy.

Survivors will get the band-aid with a 0W-40 ... but the "walking wounded" survivors could still fail soon even with 0W-40....

See my concern ?

 

[Aggie76]

Ouch, you need to change the oil by at least the 50% OLM.

Hopefully you are not in a colder climate.

In this case I would probably consider implementing the REVERSE WARM UP. Start the car and drive the short distance to the event, then in some cases leave it idle as it is at least partially warmed up. This is where an Oil Temp gauge like the 2025 units would come in BIG TIME HANDY. It is not about the engine temperature, it is all about the oil temperature.

I think I may need to look back in my Logs to see if I can somehow map Transmission Temperature to expected Oil Temperature. At least this would give the driver some idea if the engine oil still needs to simmer some more.

For those of us who live in cold climates what's your advice? I'm in a small northern MN community, on the Canadian border, with temps averaging below freezing for nearly six months of the year.

 

[KMeloney]

There are 3 types of trucks from what I am seeing

- Already failed (engine replacement)
- About to fail and set the P0016 code (engine replacement)
- The ones that haven't set the code yet (survivors). The survivor ones are still a spectrum with ones ranging from "walking wounded" to healthy.

Survivors will get the band-aid with a 0W-40 ... but the "walking wounded" survivors could still fail soon even with 0W-40....

See my concern ?

I do see your concern. I just haven’t seen info about a P0016 code being a prerequisite for engine replacement yet. Where is this stated? (And have all of the blown engines thrown this code? If so, how soon prior to the failure?)

 

[jfoj]

For those of us who live in cold climates what's your advice? I'm in a small northern MN community, on the Canadian border, with temps averaging below freezing for nearly six months of the year.

That's a tough one. Hopefully you can garage the truck most of the time. They make silicon oil pan heaters that you can stick on the bottom of the oil pan and plug in to warm the oil. Then the question is where you can park when you are out are 120 Volt power outlets available for plugging in? I know some Northern areas this is common.

I would plan on oil changes in the 3k mile range running in the Winter months. One thing I try to do with my vehicles even though I am not it the super cold area, is usually before the cold temps roll in, change the oil if over 1000 miles so I start the Winter out with fresh oil, so it has more of a window to last before getting put to death by fuel and water vapor.

When possible plan trips that are not too short, but if you get somewhere you may not stay long and it is safe, you might leave the engine running after you have driven say the 4-8 miles. At this point the engine oil has warmed up a bit, but not fully and allowing the then engine to idle a while may be better than shutting off and allowing the oil to cool down again. Kind of a judgement call based on how far you had driven, if there is no plug in and if you could safely allow the car to idle. I cannot recall if you can lock these vehicles with the engine running and if you can does the engine turn off automatically after 15 minutes?

On my 2005 Yukon Denali with the 6.0l, I take the dogs with me in the Summer and lock the car with the A/C on and let it idle for a while, but the oil is already warmed up, but with 275,000 on that 6.0l every additional minute or a mile is a bonus from my point of view!

 

[jfoj]

So there is a smoking gun with the crank and rods/rod bearings. I guess the Cold Test Spintron did not pick anything unusual up. But come on, even the engine assemblers should have seen something, I know they are in a Union shop, but maybe Union politics kept staff from speaking up. What happened about pulling every 50th engine and doing a full tear down and inspection? This would have been a bargain at this point.

So here is the real question, what oil will be recommended for replacement engines?? I know this is going to be an interesting conversation.

So 0W40 for vehicles with engines that have not failed, yet. What is put in the replacement engines? 0W20 or 0W40? But hey we have been told that you cannot put a different oil in the engine than spec!

Shake my head. How long with the Recalled engines last that were not replaced and 0W40 was recommended? What coverage do any of us have beyond the powertrain Warranty. Hell GM Warranted the Valve Bodies out to 15 years/150,000 miles. How about at least extending the engine Warranty for folks. If GM thinks the 0W40 will keep them alive then extending the Warranty costs GM $0.00.

I am not changing anything I am doing, I guess I am lucky as my engine build date was July 15, 2024, outside of the magic window where things were "fixed". My vehicle is not likely going to be Recalled, nothing yet. For everyone that does not get a replacement engine, change your oil when the OLM get close to 50% and possibly consider oil samples to determine if you need to dump the vehicle or push for a replacement engine.

What a show, freak show this is. Then all these recalled engine owners need to wait for valve body problems. Such a bad ending to a promising and once fairly reliable product.

Sell any GM stock you have.

 

[viven44]

I do see your concern. I just haven’t seen info about a P0016 code being a prerequisite for engine replacement yet. Where is this stated? (And have all of the blown engines thrown this code? If so, how soon prior to the failure?)

https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/N252494001-Bulletin.pdf

That shows that the P0016 would trigger a quarantine (which means engine replacement I would hope... if not a major rebuild at least)...

Blown engines throw a code prior to complete failure ? GM apparently thinks so as they have investigated presumably enough out of the 10s of thousands of complaints / allegations

GM’s investigation identified 28,102 field complaints or incidents in the US potentially related to failure of the L87 engine due to crankshaft, connecting rod, or engine bearing failure, of which 14,332 involved allegations of loss of propulsion.

 

[viven44]

How about at least extending the engine Warranty for folks.

Yes, all the 'survivors' should be entitled to extended warranty IMO. I think that is a fair compromise... but that would technically signal a "hey we are not sure about this fix" and may not meet NHTSA recall requirements if done as part of the recall. However, if that extended warranty was in response to a lawsuit or done as a "customer satisfaction" program, that would decouple it from NHTSA investigation.

guess I am lucky as my engine build date was July 15, 2024

I hope you are right but I am seeing that cranks/connecting rod manufacturing improvements were done on or before June 1, 2024, so any crank/rod made after June 1st is safe... now we don't know if your engine has that crank or rod.

'A series of crankshaft and connecting rod manufacturing improvements implemented on or before June 1, 2024, addressed contamination and quality issues.'