General Motors Faces Class Action Lawsuit Over “Shift to Park” Problems

According to allegations raised in a class action lawsuit filed against General Motors, several different Chevrolet models contain a defect which may not allow drivers to shut them off, even when the shifters are placed in the PARK position.

The complaint (PDF) was filed on August 17 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan by plaintiffs James Bertagnolli, Gregory Fladeboe and Juanita Crawford.

The lawsuit seeks class action status for hundreds of thousands of owners of General Motors model year 2016 through 2019 Chevrolet Malibu, 2016-2019 Chevrolet Volt, 2018 through 2019 Chevrolet Travers, and 2019 Chevrolet Blazer vehicles.

According to the lawsuit, all of the vehicles have a defect which occasionally prevents drivers from turning the vehicles off, giving them a warning that they need to move the shifter into the PARK position, even when they have already done so. When this happens, a “Shift to Park” warning appears on the instrument panel.

Affected owners say they must then wiggle the gear shifter, or shift through different gears and back to PARK, before the vehicle acknowledges it is in PARK. Sometimes this works, but sometimes it does not, according to the lawsuit.

“GM had knowledge of the defect, issuing the first in a series of service bulletins on January 9, 2017 alerting its Chevrolet dealerships of the Shifter Defect,” the lawsuit alleges. “Yet despite these notices, GM, through its Chevrolet dealerships, refuses to acknowledge the Shifter Defect. When customers press the issue, GM, through its Chevrolet dealerships, refuses to honor its contractual promises to fix the defect, forcing owners and lessees of the Class Vehicles to pay for the repairs at their own expense or forgo servicing the issue.”

The lawsuit claims the issue substantially affects the value, safety and use of the vehicles, which not only prevents them from shutting the vehicles off, but also prevents them from locking the doors, causes additional and unnecessary battery discharge, and have left Plaintiffs repeatedly stranded inside their vehicles at their workplace, at home, school and children’s day care because they cannot shut the vehicles off and exit.

The complaint includes testimonials from several owners of affected vehicles, who detail the inconvenience and concerns over the “Shift to Park” defect, as it is known among vehicle owners.

“The 2017 Volt, when put into park, does not detect it’s in park and gives a ‘shift to park’ message,” one testimonial from a Chevrolet Volt owner states. “The car will not turn off. I cannot leave the car. I am stuck rolling the car forward and back multiple times until it finally registers it’s in park and turns off. This happens intermittently and unpredictably.”

The General Motors class action lawsuit presents claims of violations of the Magnusun-Moss Warranty Act, breach of warranty, violation of the consumer protection acts In Maryland, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, fraud by omission or fraudulent concealment, and unjust enrichment. Plaintiffs say they want GM to be forced to notify all affected owners of the shifter defect, an order preventing the company from further deceptive distribution, sale or lease practices involving the affected vehicles, and damages and restitution.