Originally Posted by ekpolk
I've reviewed the Hamilton class-action complaint in the Georgia case. Interesting and alarming stuff. Pretty crazy that the Chinese took aggressive, consumer protective action far ahead of the US. Hmmm....
I'm sure my questions sound theoretical and perhaps even unsympathetic to or unbelieving of, those who are caught in this mess. That's not my intent. I've owned a troubled vehicle or two, though not at this level.
Two things remain unclear, to me anyway. First, at what point does fuel dilution actually "go critical?" I get that no amount is truly tolerable. The article that is cited in the footnote on page 7 of the Hamilton complaint seems to suggest that the amount is somewhere between 5-10%, though I imagine the "magic" number might differ between applications. By "go critical," I mean the point where the oil, so diluted, can no longer "absorb" the fuel and continue to perform. Malfunction and real damage are happening NOW.
The second question, is the frequency of actual catastrophic failure as a result of FD. Obviously, Honda isn't being too forthcoming about the issue, and some percentage of engines must be totally failing because of this problem. But how many? Anyone got some info on this? In Hamilton, the lawyers cited a bunch of NHTSA complaints about odors and overfilling, but not one that said, "FD actually killed my engine...". The intent in asking, by the way, is not to punch holes in the assertion that this is a problem -- it obviously is; rather, it's to get some understanding of where this broader FD issue is taking all of us. GDI with turbo is not just a Honda thing, it's getting more and more common, and so to perhaps is the FD issue.
On a lighter note, you just had to know that as soon as some marketing clod decided to tag the engine with the "Earth Dreams" name, something was bound to go horribly, terribly wrong. . .
I have wondered about these issues, too. I think it's ludicrous that Honda is sticking to "no damage is occurring" as a public stance. Especially when some of these 3.7 quart capacity engines are adding a full quart of oil/fuel level in a few hundred miles.
I think someone else mentioned it further up the thread, but IIRC Honda has replaced some engines and valvetrains, mostly when the issue first reared its head. I believe in the interests of liability deflection, they have stopped. I get the feeling that some dealers, either on their own or at Honda's behest, are doing frequent oil changes when the level rises alarmingly. Which pretty much destroys the light environmental impact of the engine, and of Honda's reputation.