GM Transmission Lawsuit Targets Four Popular Family Cars

General Motors is at the center of a new nationwide class-action lawsuit proposal targeting alleged transmission defects in four Chevrolet and GMC vehicles. According to the proposal, these transmission issues are at risk of dangerous power failures on the road. That includes hesitation, slipping, delayed acceleration, or even a full-on loss of power. 

The complaint was filed September 15, 2026 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. It names the 2019-2025 Chevrolet Malibu, the 2021-2025 Chevrolet Trailblazer, and Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain models from 2024 or later, all equipped with continuously variable transmissions (CVTs). Many drivers warn against CVTs, and this formal complaint surely won't help. 

The plaintiff, John Williams, is an Equinox owner himself. His proposed class would include U.S. buyers and lessees of the affected vehicles, plus various California subclasses for certain state-law claims (where Williams resides). The filing seeks damages and asks a court to require GM to issue a safety recall. To be clear: None of these allegations have been established in court, GM has not answered the complaint, and no judge has certified the proposed class. However, GM has already recalled hundreds of thousands of other Chevys this year alone.

Unlike an automatic transmission with fixed gear ratios, these four specific models specified in the complaint use a CVT that changes its ratio using a system of chains/belts and adjustable pulleys. As explained in the suit, the system also relies on hydraulic controls, including a valve body and clutch regulator, to engage the vehicle's forward drive.

Plaintiff John Williams says GM Service Bulletin 24-NA-009 identifies a sticking clutch regulator valve, which could be one potential cause of the issue in these models. He also includes other similar GM documents in the complaint addressing chain slip, judder, hesitation, damaged pulleys, bearing problems, and loss of motion. The complaint also cites a total of 1,494 similar NHTSA complaints across the four vehicle lines, including 358 classified by the filing as CVT- or powertrain-related. it should be noted, however, that those submissions are individual owner reports and have not been independently established as evidence of a defect.

According to his filing, several of these conditions can happen without a warning light and may also go away before a dealership can effectively reproduce them in the shop. Williams' complaint accuses GM of knowing about transmission problems for years, concealing information about them, and improperly treating some symptoms as normal operation or problems that could not be reproduced. For now, the proposed class action is still at an early stage; its eventual scope and outcome will all ultimately depend on the court's rulings, which could take years.