GM Dex-Cool Class Action Settlement

On October 23, 2008, the California Superior Court granted final approval to the class action settlement reached with General Motors in the GM/Dex-Cool class action lawsuit. The case was filed on behalf of owners of GM vehicles filled with Dex-Cool coolant, which allegedly degraded certain vehicles’ intake manifold gaskets and other engine parts. The lawsuit also alleged that Dex-Cool could form a rusty sludge that could clog vehicles’ cooling systems and cause them to overheat.

The GM/Dex Cool settlement is one of the largest automobile settlements of all time, covering dozens of GM vehicles spanning ten model years, and providing cash reimbursements ranging from $50 to $800 to eligible class members.

GM bankruptcy and outstanding claims

On June 1, 2009, General Motors filed a Chapter 11 Voluntary Petition in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. Since that time, all matters relating to the GM bankruptcy filing, including the wrap-up of the Dex-Cool class action settlement, have proceeded before the bankruptcy court in New York.

Counsel for the class has negotiated the resolution of the outstanding Dex-Cool class claims with the bankruptcy counsel for GM, and the bankruptcy court has approved the settlement between the remaining Dex-Cool class members’ claims and the GM liquidating estate. Because the claims will be paid out of bankruptcy, they will be paid at a reduced amount, expected to be approximately 30% of the value of the claim.