GMC Canyon and Chevrolet Colorado 6L50 transmission problems have caused a class-action lawsuit that alleges the transmissions jerk, slip, chug, shudder, experience delayed downshifts and suffer from sudden acceleration.
According to the lawsuit, the GM 6L50 transmissions in 2015-2017 Canyon and Colorado trucks wear prematurely and cause dangers while driving.
The 6-speed automatic transmissions allegedly slip, buck, kick, jerk and shift hard while driving. In addition, the lawsuit alleges the transmissions wear out prematurely and eventually fail completely, requiring replacements that owners are sometimes stuck paying for.
The lawsuit alleges General Motors knew about the alleged 6L50 transmission problems before the first truck was ever sold because Cadillac CTS owners had long been complaining about the same 6L50 transmissions.
The plaintiff claims those complaints started in 2008 when CTS drivers complained about delayed acceleration incidents followed by a sudden increase in speed. Those Cadillac owners also allegedly complained for years about premature catastrophic failures of the transmissions.
As for the Colorado and Canyon trucks, drivers have complained about the transmissions to GM, the government and to CarComplaints.com.
"Transmission and engine are not synchronized through shifting and acceleration. Engine is overloaded and shudders at low speeds when transmission does not downshift. Acceleration is very poor unless aggressive accelerator is used. Often, engine revs to 4500 to 5000 RPM but there is no acceleration until transmission catches up - dangerous situations occur." - 2015 GMC Canyon owner
"I spent a ton of money for this truck. Seems as it does not know what gear to be in. Driving in Atlanta slow and go traffic is painful. Stays in high gear even when you slow to turn and try to give it gas. It is by far the worst driving car / truck I have even owned. Not sure how anyone picked this as 'truck of the year'?" - 2015 Chevy Colorado owner
Plaintiff James McKee purchased a new 2015 Chevrolet Colorado in Florida around March 2015 but took the truck to a dealership allegedly because of transmission problems. The Colorado had about 5,300 on it at the time and the plaintiff says he was having trouble getting the transmission to downshift, especially when going up hills.
The lawsuit says the dealer reprogrammed the transmission control module and engine control module based on technical service bulletin (TSB) 5303. McKee says the repairs didn't stop the transmission problems.
In Feburary 2017 when the odometer had about 16,400 miles on it, the plaintiff took the truck to another GM dealer complaining about the truck shuddering when accelerating from a left turn or on an incline. McKee also says the transmission was having power problems, but the dealer allegedly returned the truck to him without making any repairs.
McKee filed the lawsuit because the Chevy Colorado transmission was never adequately repaired.
The GMC Canyon and Chevrolet Colorado 6L50 transmission lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan - James McKee, et al., vs. General Motors LLC.
The plaintiff is represented by the Miller Law Firm, P.C., Sauder Schelkopf LLC, and Capstone Law APC.
CarComplaints.com has complaints about GMC Canyon and Chevrolet Colorado trucks.