Can someone tell me the potential damage?

Greetings,

Do not start the car. Have it towed to an independent shop that you trust and have them give you a written report on what happened and what damage was caused. Contact the dealer AND the district office for GM and let them know what happened. You most likely will have to have the car taken back to the dealer for them to verify what happened. Let them know you already have an independent report on the damages so you're already ahead of them if they try to cover it up and blame you.

Depending on if the dealer is forthcoming and willing to make good or not will be the deciding factor if you need to contact an attorney. I'm not sure if you will also have to contact your insurance company, but it couldn't hurt to call your agent and ask some advice.

More than likely even if the dealer pays for any repairs or replacement it is still going to be a major inconvenience for you, so make sure you specify that you insist they give you a rental for the duration of the repairs.

Good luck - Jonathan

What is the potential damage long term ?

If it ran as you describe without oil, I'd insist on a new GM motor.. scoring of cylinders, overheating, all kinds of things.. if it's that new maybe as good will they'd just give you another vehicle.

As the other poster said, have it towed, independent shop verify with happened . Sounds like plug left out or filter not tightened. THEN start dealing with GM. Document IN WRITING all communications.

If they try to do anything via email (not likely), instead, have them fax things to you (or you to them). Email does not stand up in court. Faxes do. You can use your nearby Kinkos as a fax to send or get if you do not have one at home.

"Wayne" wrote:

When the tow truck arrived and checked the oil ... it is still full. So now I have no idea what happened?

Be prepared for a long battle.

The oil light comes on when the engine is off. The steering gets hard when the engine is off. The car slows down when the engine is off. It sounds like it ran out of gas.

HOLY COW! In the most common terms "You Da Man!", because frankly I was stuck hearing hoofbeats and looking for zebras! I think you just pulled the most obvious answer right out from in front of me. I will give you full credit and cudos for your answer.

Very well d>>

I was thinking it just stalled.

But to be safe, read the gas gauge and check the oil. If all is okay, restart car and drive home.

Steve

I some how missed this UPDATE. Check gas gauge, restart car and drive home.

Well of course - you should come to a usenet newsgroup and ask what you should do. Come on Wayne - what do you think you should do? How about contacting the dealer? What makes you so sure they're going to "try and cover their butt"? My bet is the tell you to get the car towed to them and when they look at it and find what is likely your suspicion, they'll be giving you a new engine.

Of course I have to ask - did the oil light come on before the car started to slow down? If it dumped it's oil out then it's almost a guarantee that the light came on earlier than the slowing down. Might have been a clue...

Long term damage? If the motor seized then the long term damage is long term. New motor. But - like I said if it's because the dealer screwed up, they'll probably give you a new motor.

Oh man - I hope for the OP's sake this isn't the case. Can you imagine the embarrassment?

Here is what the problem was .... and I think someone ( only one ) guessed it correctly.

Car get towed back to dealer ... dealer says oil pump failed and replaces pump. That's it. Fixed, and here is your car back.

Question: Should I be concerned about the long term damage to the engine? With a failed oil pump, is it the same as running out of oil and grinding metal on metal?

THANKS

New 2006 Cavalier ... An hour after first dealer oil change the car started to slow on the highway, even with foot on the gas, oil light is on, engine light comes on ... as I pull off the highway the steering is hard to move. Car gets towed back to dealer ... dealer says oil pump failed and replaces pump. That's it.

1.) What happened; did the dealer fail to tighten the oil filter enough so the engine lost its oil?

2.) With a failed oil pump, is it the same as running out of oil and grinding metal on metal? What is the potential long term damage?

_____________________________________________________

From your description, the engine was stopped immediately, so there was probably no damage. If it were run a very short time with no oil pressure, here are some long-term effects possible:

a. Engine power falls as worn rings lower cylinder pressure. b. Oil consumption rises and exhaust smokes from worn rings. c. Oil pump picks up metal flakes from pan. d. Loose rods rattle at startup until oil pressure rises.

The dealer may have failed to tighten the oil filter, but not want to admit the error. Also, the dealer was able to charge the manufacturer for warranty replacement of a "failed oil pump" instead of having to admit its incompetence and to eat the cost of fixing its own stupid mistake.

Yes, either a failed oil pump or a loose filter will cause loss of oil pressure. In the old days, if you saw the oil pressure warning light go on and you kept driving, engine bearings would begin to wear immediately, shedding metal flakes down into the crankcase. You would hear knocking as the rod bearings got looser, and one of the bearings would seize within a few minutes, followed by broken pieces of rods trying to fly through the side of the block.

But if you shut off the engine as soon as you saw the oil pressure warning light go on, there would be no damage.

Many modern cars have an oil pressure interlock that shots off the fuel pump if oil pressure fails. If your car has that interlock, the engine shut itself off automatically when the oil pressure failed and damage was prevented.

Good luck.

Rodan.

Be prepared for greatly reduced engine life. From your description, the engine ran dry until it died or almost died, even with throttle applied. I would have settled for no less than a new engine. Be sure to save any documentation of this episode as you will likely need it in the not too distant future.

Dave

Wayne are you sure you get your story straight? Are you the owner of the car?

9:53 am you send out a message said a problem with your car that you had to pull the car over off the highway after only driven for 1 hr. 10:37am (37 minutes later) you're asking what is the potential damage when we 're still don't know what and thinking there is no oil in engine

11:34 am (almost and hr later) you said tow truck checked engine oil and it is okay

3 days later at 1:23am you said the pump has failed. Dealer repaired and you really don't trust them and you want people here to guess the extent of the damage to the engine. What you really want to hear is.. how can I return this car for a new car?

So the point is.. you were stuck on the highway without a car but with the computer and log on internet to seek for help but for information about potential damage to the engine not how I can get the car going...or talking to dealer..

60 minutes later, you're still online saying there is oil according to the tow truck operator.

Sorry!! maybe it is just me but I can't see how this is possible and where you are going with this.

good luck!!!