Annnnnd, we're back. Massive Lifter Knock in my 5BW

[ATL_Bwing]

Well, here we are again. Had the oil changed in my 5BW on Friday at a Cadillac dealership (yes, same as previous dealership and the joyride issue. Lesson definitely learned). Drove the car Saturday, no issues. Drove the car again today, did a pre-trip inspection and checked the oil, clean and no issues. Drove ~25 miles to a meet up and when I got off the freeway I noticed a massive lifter tick. The car did not display any warning lights...check engine, low oil, none at all. But I immediately shut it down to be safe, waited an hour and checked the oil. Levels were fine so I fired it up, tick immediately returned and I noticed my oil pressure was spiking. I had it towed to Cadillac and am waiting for their diagnosis tomorrow AM. Inspected the undercarriage of the car when it was on the flatbed, and my garage when I got home, no signs of leaks or drips.

In doing my own research, all signs point to a mistake by the service team...either wrong oil weight, over-filled oil, or filter issue. Fingers crossed no long-term damage was done to the engine. What are your thoughts? And what should I be leery of when the dealer calls me tomorrow with their update?

Appreciate your thoughts and perspectives.

 

[RDATLTE]

Check your invoice for the oil and filter part numbers that they used. You can google them to see if they used the correct ones.

 

[thefleshrocket]

Spiked oil pressure suggests a restriction somewhere--my guess is in the filter--which caused oil starvation.

 

[BigShark]

Definitely sounds like they either double-gasketted the oil filter or used the wrong filter causing that pressure spike and starving your lifters.

 

[marcmac]

Well, here we are again. Had the oil changed in my 5BW on Friday at a Cadillac dealership (yes, same as previous dealership and the joyride issue. Lesson definitely learned). Drove the car Saturday, no issues. Drove the car again today, did a pre-trip inspection and checked the oil, clean and no issues. Drove ~25 miles to a meet up and when I got off the freeway I noticed a massive lifter tick. The car did not display any warning lights...check engine, low oil, none at all. But I immediately shut it down to be safe, waited an hour and checked the oil. Levels were fine so I fired it up, tick immediately returned and I noticed my oil pressure was spiking. I had it towed to Cadillac and am waiting for their diagnosis tomorrow AM. Inspected the undercarriage of the car when it was on the flatbed, and my garage when I got home, no signs of leaks or drips.

In doing my own research, all signs point to a mistake by the service team...either wrong oil weight, over-filled oil, or filter issue. Fingers crossed no long-term damage was done to the engine. What are your thoughts? And what should I be leery of when the dealer calls me tomorrow with their update?

Appreciate your thoughts and perspectives.

My lifter tick just popped up out of nowhere one morning. No CEL, misfire or loss of performance. Took it to the dealership, and after the full teardown the lifter failure bent a rod and tanked the engine.

Engine was replaced with no issues from GM.

 

[fr33lancr]

I just got my new 5 BW and reading this makes me sad. I came from a Genesis G70 and the one thing I really liked about service at Genesis was their all glass service center. I would sit and eyeball the tech the entire time doing my oil. Now I have to go back to some lube tech servicing my car in the back and then keeping my fingers crossed they did their job right. SMH.

 

[VBhak]

I just got my new 5 BW and reading this makes me sad. I came from a Genesis G70 and the one thing I really liked about service at Genesis was their all glass service center. I would sit and eyeball the tech the entire time doing my oil. Now I have to go back to some lube tech servicing my car in the back and then keeping my fingers crossed they did their job right. SMH.

Don’t worry… someone on this thread said it best — if there’s an issue, you’ll get a brand new engine with a new warranty period.

I’m on my 3rd V (2013, 2016, now 2023). My 2016 LT4 had 74000 miles on it when I traded it in. Not a single problem with the engine.

I’m staying with GM V8’s due to the long history of RELIABLE GM V8’s. Unfortunately COVID and supply chain appear to have messed it all up.

In summary, I was worried too, but in the small chance anything happens, you’ll get a free new engine and reset the clock.

 

[CB34]

Any update on this? Was it a blown motor due to manufacturer defect or dealer mess up?

 

[Connecticut5V]

Welp! I hate to pile on because Im a gm fan and love my BlackWing but I just joined the forum and this is my first post because I too have a catastrophic engine failure at around 16,000 miles on my 23’ Blackwing. I had a CT6V that I loved and I was hesitant to get rid of. It was a very good car to me… I thought I was upgrading.
I have to say the entire process has been more than disappointing.
You purchase a $100k car and you would expect that you can get a decent loaner vehicle. My car has been at the dealership 2 weeks and 1 day as of this post and after many calls with messages left & calls not returned I finally called today and got to speak to someone and was told that my car has a bent valve and metal flake in the oil. They are waiting to hear back from gm on if they are going to repair the engine or replace it. In my view an engine repair is unacceptable given that the oil is contaminated with metal particles but that is a battle for another day.
2 week out of commission and the dealer says im #6 in line for a loaner vehicle as they don’t have any available. I have a case open with Cadillac customer care and they say I can rent my own vehicle and pay out of pocket and then they will reimburse me $47/day…. I don’t know what kind of rental vehicles you can get in other parts of the country for $47/ day but in Connecticut you getting a Hyundai or a Kia. Don’t get me wrong, im not expecting a Blackwing rental but something half way decent would be nice. My sister has a Volkswagen SUV and she gets a loaner every time her vehicle is in for service short term or long term. I hardly consider VW a luxury brand but apparently the German manufacturers know how to take care of their customers. I hope things improve throughout this process but they haven’t started out or a real positive note.

 

[ATL_Bwing]

We're back up and running, and I have to say...as good as if not better than new? In the end, the issue was a failed lifter on the #1 cylinder.

The dealership that did the initial oil change was the same one I had problems with in the past. I wanted to give them a second chance, plus I had a massive credit with them as a result their prior transgressions. Lesson learned, never try to save a buck! Once the lifter issue developed, I had it towed to them and they claimed it was an issue with the AFM. But I had to call them out and inform their Service Director that AFM isn't active in the LT4 when its paired with a manual. This made me lose all faith in their ability to diagnose and repair the issue properly, so I had it towed to a larger Cadillac dealership in the Atlanta area with far more experience selling and servicing Blackwings. They had the car torn apart, diagnosed and fully repaired in a little under two weeks.

In speaking with a number of professional mechanics, Blackwing/ZL1 owners, and other car experts they all agree this was most likely a mistake by the dealership that performed the oil change. None of them had ever seen a lifter issue on an LT4 when paired with a manual. One career-long race engine builder stopped me before I could even finish the story and said "they used the wrong weight oil".

But it's all in the past now and I couldn't be more thankful to the fellow BW owners that gave me advice, and the master mechanic that ended up rebuilding the engine. If you're curious, the dealership that SAVED THE DAY was Capital Cadillac in Smyrna. The team there was incredibly professional, honest and understands just how special these cars are to their owners. I would highly recommend them. I'll leave you all to do the math on the "other" dealership.

 

[ngoni]

Love a story with a happy ending.

 

[piranha971]

Slightly thinner oil killed the engine under normal street use?

 

[rubberduck]

Slightly thinner oil killed the engine under normal street use?

Hard to tell what they put in there at a dealership. The tech that changes oil knows less about cars than anybody you randomly pick off the street. Probably a big weed smoker besides.

 

[ATL_Bwing]

Hard to tell what they put in there at a dealership. The tech that changes oil knows less about cars than anybody you randomly pick off the street. Probably a big weed smoker besides.

Well, let’s not go down that slippery slope, nothing wrong with some herbs . However, yes, this process has taught me that the people that work at these dealerships often know shockingly little about working on high-performance vehicles. The first time I took my BW in for an oil change. They said oh we’ll be sure rotate your tires as well…

 

[ATL_Bwing]

Hard to tell what they put in there at a dealership. The tech that changes oil knows less about cars than anybody you randomly pick off the street. Probably a big weed smoker besides.

Slightly thinner oil killed the engine under normal street use?

Yes, when you get to this level of high-performance vehicles and engines something as simple as the wrong weight oil or the wrong filter, or double gasket filter can easily cause oil starvation issues

 

[rubberduck]

Well, let’s not go down that slippery slope, nothing wrong with some herbs .

I don’t care what people do on their own time. Just don’t want them flying airplanes or working on my Blackwing while intoxicated.

 

[SIR ICE]

What a great April Fool's Day story ... LOL