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First 2015 Chevy Corvette Z06 engine blows up at just 891 miles

You've waited and watched and waited some more for the arrival of your 650-horsepower, $78,000 Chevrolet Corvette Z06. Finally, that joyous day arrives and you eagerly, but gingerly, begin to break-in the 6.2-liter supercharged V8 monster under your hood. Then 900-odd miles after delivery, your excitement grinds, quite literally, to a halt. That's what the owner of one 2015 Z06 claimed happened to him when a simple break-in drive resulted in a lunched engine. The owner, known as Lawdogg149 on Corvette Forum, says he was out breaking-in his car ahead of a January track event when it happened. "While making a pull from 35 miles per hour, I accelerated and shifted short of redline, and boom - the car began knocking. I pulled over and popped the hood. I could hear a loud knock coming from the No. 6 cylinder area along with a serious, grinding, metal-on-metal sound coming from the supercharger area," Lawdogg wrote. A subsequent trip to the dealer confirmed his concerns, with the service facility telling Lawdogg that the No. 6 valvetrain had failed. The dealer couldn't research the issue further, though, as General Motors requested the engine be returned for a more thorough evaluation. The good news for the Z06's unlucky owner, at least, is that GM will be covering the engine replacement under warranty, an expense that Corvette Forum estimates is a nearly $24,000 procedure. At this point, the two leading theories behind the engine's detonation involve a manufacturing defect – which could be why GM is so keen to tear the blown powerplant down – or a mistake on the part of Lawdogg. As Motor Authority points out, such an error could be something as simple as the Z06's owner accidentally shifting to first rather than third during his 35-mph pull. If, however, there's a deeper manufacturing problem with the Z06's engine, this might not be the only case we end up hearing about.

OnStar to offer 90-day driving assessment, possible insurance discount

General Motors has announced a brace of new features for OnStar, two of which could help you save money assuming you're willing to sign over some (more) personal details. The first is a driving assessment program in which OnStar takes note of certain driving parameters for 90 days, then provides the driver feedback on their driving, both individually and when compared to other drivers in the program, as well as driving tips. Think of it as OnStar's ICE version of the Nissan Leaf's CARWING feature that compares how efficient your electric driving is compared to other BEV drivers. In this case, though, certain drivers will have the chance to share their assessment with Progressive Insurance, and if the numbers are right they might get a "driving-based" discount from the insurance company. The assessment program is voluntary, and requires opting in. It will be available this summer on all new GM cars and some GM vehicles back to 2013. In case this sounds like Big Brother, let's not forget that Big Brother is already here and moved in so long ago that he's a member of the Kiwanis club and is hosting neighborhood block parties. Progressive already has a million enrollees in a program called Snapshot that tracks OBD II data to offer usage-based insurance to provide annual pricing based on how much you drive your car, with discounts of up to 30 percent. The OnStar effort is just another way to do that. The second feature is proximity offers through AtYourService, which notifies drivers to deals and information on their driving route and provides coupons from RetailMeNot and Entertainment Book. Beyond that, a deal with Priceline will let OnStar agents book hotels for you starting this year, there's a tie-in with Dunkin' Donuts, too, but we're fuzzy on those benefits, and third new feature lets Chevrolet owners know when certain parts need replacing. News Source: Detroit NewsImage Credit: AP Photo/Carlos Osorio Chevrolet GM Technology

GM Recalling 370,000 Trucks For Fire Risk

DETROIT (AP) - General Motors is recalling 370,000 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups from the 2014 model year to fix software that could cause the exhaust components to overheat and start a fire. The recall includes 303,000 trucks in the U.S. and 67,000 in Canada and Mexico. All of the trucks involved have 4.3-liter or 5.3-liter engines. GM said eight fires have been reported, but no injuries. One garage was damaged, the company said. All of the incidents occurred in cold weather. The company is asking customers not to leave their trucks idling unattended. GM dealers will reprogram the software for free. The company will inform owners starting Jan. 16. The major recall announcement, which came on Saturday, marred the Silverado's winning of the 2014 North American Truck of the Year Award at the Detroit Auto Show on Monday. Related Gallery Our Favorite Cars For Winter View 11 Photos Recalls Chevrolet sierra