angryBits

I had posted earlier that I was experiencing a delicious rattle coming from my engine. I suspected rod knock and so I took it to the dealer and they confirmed.

I wanted to post a thread to keep a log of the on goings here for others that may have a similar experience in the future.



2017 Corvette Grand Sport A8
Purchased Oct 2016
100% stock, no mods.
Proper break-in, and 500 mile oil-change.
23xx miles


on Jan 12th @ 2300 miles:
I began to experience knocking noises between 2k - 4k rpm on the way home from work. I put the car in the garage and left it there. I then recorded the above youtube video the following weekend. I made an appointment with Abel Chevrolet for Jan 24. The sound was not audible below 2k, it was most audible at 3k and gone again by 4k -- this was very repeatable and consistent.


on Jan 24th @ 23xx miles:
Dropped my car off at Abel Chevrolet (75 miles from my house). The whole drive there, rattle rattle rattle, same repeatability as mentioned earlier. This was my first experience at Abel Chevrolet -- they were awesome, very friendly, they took good care of me and no B.S. about my car. They agreed rod knock was likely and gave me a loaner car. Their plan is to replace the engine but that depends on GM. Estimate was "less than a month" depending on what actions GM wants to take -- tear down and inspection etc.

### UPDATE Jan 29: ###

on Jan 25th:
I got a call from Abel, they let me know they had the engine pulled and were starting to investigate - lots of communication with GM.


on Jan 27th:
I got a call from Abel, the confirmed a bad rod bearing on cyl #5. Nailed it! They said normal practice here is to attempt to repair the engine but since this is a brand new car and clearly a manufacturer defect, they pushed to get me a brand new engine. So GM will be sending a brand new engine, nothing will be reused. They expect to have the work completed around Feb 8. So we'll see how it goes.

Since I'm getting a new engine, it was recommended that I not use the conventional oil that comes with the Corvette LT1 and do the 500 mile oil change, instead use the oil that comes with the Camaro LT1 and change the oil around 700 miles. Has anyone heard of this or have any experience with this?

I gotta say, Abel has been awesome -- they fought to get me what I needed, I feel well taken care of, and they're not keeping in the dark, I'm getting just the right amount of update. 5 Stars!


### UPDATE Feb 13: ###

on Feb 6th:
I got a call from Abel letting me know my car was ready to go, new engine installed.
I made arrangements to pick the car up on Tuesday the 7th.


on Feb 7th:
Picked up the car, everything seemed great, engine is running smooth, they even fixed some annoying sounds I hadn't even complained about. I had a complementary doughnut and headed home.

About 25 miles into my 75 mile trip home, I noticed the check engine light came on. I noticed the engine was feeling a bit rough (but I'm re-breaking-in so I couldn't push it). I pulled over and smelled gas. The friendly OnStar lady gave me a code: P015B. I called Abel Chevrolet and gave them the code and they said to bring it back.

Another 30 minutes of driving and 20 minutes in the shop and I was ready to head home again. Something about a fuel line popped off. Heading home had no more issues.


on Feb 8th:
Driving into work, check engine light came on. OnStar gave me the same code: P015B. I plan to take it back to Abel 75 miles away even though its likely just a fuel line again -- but I want it fixed right.


on Feb 13th:
Got the car back. Turns out this P015B was not the same as the last P015B. This code was a bad O2 sensor. Seems unrelated. They replaced it free of charge. No problems on the drive home.

Other than having to re-break-in, car seems to be better than was prior to the bad rod bearing.
Hopefully this is my final update for this issue


Update for anyone still listening.

After my new engine, I did a re-break-in to 1000 miles. The last 200 miles of that break-in I started hearing the same noise again. It could have been injector noise + paranoia, but I didn't want to deal with it anymore, so I traded the car in on a Z06.

...

More to come...


Separately -- I'm interested in any input anyone can give on how this happened so I can avoid it with my new engine as I do (eventually) plan to mod it. Was it random luck, 1 in 1000?

23/C8Z

hey, sometimes we win the "unlucky lottery" maybe it is your turn???????

good luck, hopefully it's just a defective bolt or maybe backed off a tiny bit on some rod?

Rooster OG

You brought it to the right place, hopefully they'll get it running right for you.

Dads dream

Sorry to hear this.......best of luck with your Vette. Hopefully they install a new engine.

LucaBrasiAZ

you are definitely in good hands at abel.

revilingfool

you should have towed the car, you just sent metal through everything by driving it and odds are you will be re-using most of that motor.

OVR60

I would trade it in for another car.

WhiteDiamond!

hello! exactly this.

NSC5

The metal debris was already going through the engine by the time the rod knock became obvious to the owner so much of the damage was already done. By driving it there the OP probably slightly increased the odds of getting a replacement engine but that was already highly likely. If this was to be a "cheapo" repair on the owner's dime then I would worry more about minimizing damage but in warranty it will be fixed correctly and if there was a significant failure (as it sounds by the description) then the dealership isn't going to be attempting an in-house engine rebuild.

robert miller

To the OP here I would make sure are tell them you want a new replacement long block for the car. Are they for sure would take every part out and redo every part of the short block. Then you are hoping that the builder really knows what he is doing. Robert

ersatz928

That's what oil pick-up screens and oil filters are for......

23/C8Z

and when the pressure builds in the filter, the bypass opens and Bam! you have a nice metal flaky soup...

no thanks..

too bad it didn't blow up so you assure yourself of a new engine. just don't settle for the rebuild. AND MAKE SURE THEY REPLACE THE COOLER AND LINES AS WELL..

now it may be a fight.. is what it is..

rkhegler

I would take this as far as you can to get a new engine. Do not accept "no" for an answer, if that is the first response you get. Not worth the time or the money to repair the damage. Likely, it cannot be repaired correctly by the shop mechanic. Rod knock is essentially either a material part malfunction or a factory install problem. Either way, you should get a totally new engine. JMO.

jknox

Mine did that and then grenaded. Took it to the dealership when I originally thought it was a bearing warbling and they inspected it and found nothing wrong... A week or two later the motor let go at 70mph on the highway. My dealership took the car in, and a week later I had it back with a brand new motor. This happened at 9000 miles btw.

robert miller

Keep telling your self that. Have you seen a motor when the rod and main bearings start going out. That small shaving of fine metal gets all in the oil..

djnice

OP, see if you can take pictures if they tear down the block. Probably won't have to after they talk to GM.

Randy G.

I've seen plenty. The metal almost looks like mud. Everywhere.

WhiteDiamond!

Have they offered you a new engine? If not why does the header say new engine?

yeller z06

I know that a lot of folks have had problems with Chevy service, but I don't think it's right to just assume that everyone that works there is an incompetent fool. Lots of very talented, very capable technicians work at these places. You just have to hope (or ask) that the senior guy works on your car, and has done something like this before.

I also disagree. Most of the damage was already done by then. Unnecessarily harsh this comment was.

Yoda.

Jim Barker

[QUOTE=yeller z06;1593953412]

I know the sound quality of a U-tube video may not be accurate but sounds a bit more like a rattle or clicking than a rod knock. So much stuff in the top of the motor to go bad. lifter deactivation stuff, fuel pump under the manifold failures, and springs and rockers. The fact that you could drive it that far is also make me think top of the motor. Always hope there is good follow up here so we all can learn. Thanks for the video. Keep us in the loop!