GM to Make Payments, Extend Warranties for Overstating Fuel Economy on Window Stickers

General Motors will pay as much as $120 million in compensation to nearly 135,000 owners of 2016 crossovers with overstated fuel economy window stickers. The 2016 Chevrolet Traverse, GMC Acadia, and Buick Enclave had labeling that misstated the SUVs’ fuel economy by 1 or 2 mpg.

Customers who purchased their SUV will be offered a choice between a pre-paid debit card and a 48-month/60,000-mile protection plan. The protection plan option is designed for high-mileage customers and those who plan to keep their vehicles for an extended period of time.

People who leased their SUV will be offered a pre-paid debit card.

Most customers will receive debit cards worth $450 to $900, although the range is from $300 to $1,500 depending on the lease terms.

The reimbursement is based on the same assumptions used in the Environmental Protection Agency formula on the window label to calculate expected future fuel costs: a fuel price of $3 per gallon and 15,000 miles of annual driving for five years.

GM will send out letters to affected customers via FedEx starting May 25.

Consumer Reports calculated that the crossovers with a 1-mpg disparity from the EPA window sticker would cost owners an average of $450 in extra gasoline over a five-year period; those with a 2-mpg difference from their sticker will use about $900 more in fuel over five years.

GM said the fuel-economy calculation error occurred due to the 2016 models being equipped with new “emissions-related hardware,” which required emissions tests to be updated for those vehicles.

"That data was not captured in calculations made for EPA fuel economy labels, and caused fuel economy numbers to be overstated by 1-2 miles per gallon," a GM spokesman wrote in an email to Consumer Reports. "As a result, we are reimbursing customers who may pay more for fuel than they expected after viewing the incorrect window label when they purchased or leased their vehicle."

However, GM has taken no action regarding restating the fuel economy of previous years of these vehicles, which were nearly identical in terms of weight and power.

"We are not aware of any new pollution requirements in 2016 that would cause these vehicles to reduce fuel economy by more than 10 percent," said Jake Fisher, Consumer Reports' auto test director. "It just doesn't add up."

Consumer Reports has identified as many as 2 million of these SUVs sold since 2007. If this same settlement basis were applied to the total population of vehicles, GM would have to reimburse as much as $2 billion to owners.

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