A second class-action lawsuit over Corvette cracked and deformed wheels has been filed. The first one was filed in California last April. This most recent class-action lawsuit was filed in Michigan by a different group. The consolidated class-action lawsuit was brought by 18 2025-2019 Corvette C7 owners. 

It specifically calls out Z06 and Grand Sport models of Corvette. The plaintiffs are seeking millions of dollars over wheels that are “prone to deforming and cracking without impact damage.” It blames the problem on the wheels being cast rather than forged according to the Detroit Free Press. Because they are “cast rather than forged they are of insufficient strength and insufficient quality to withstand the torque and power output from the drivetrain.”

The lawsuit says that these Corvettes are not safe to drive

Casting is where the molten metal is poured into a mold and then ambient temperature cools down the part. Forging involves power hammering, pressing, or rolling the casting to change the molecular structure making for a more dense, resistant, and stronger part. Because of what is alleged the lawsuit says that these Corvettes are not safe to drive because the compromised wheels could puncture the tires. 

These allegations are almost identical to those brought forth last April in the first lawsuit. But in that lawsuit, the plaintiffs also claimed that Chevy denied there were problems with the C7 wheels. Chevy is said to have refused to cover any repair costs even though in many of the cases the Corvettes were still under warranty. Chevy responded by saying the wheels are not defective and that the damage was caused by hitting potholes or other types of impact. 

GM only will comment that there have been no safety recalls for the 2015-2019 Corvette

GM only will comment that there has been no safety recalls for the 2015-2019 Corvette. It stands behind earlier comments that the damage is caused by normal wear and tear. But this latest lawsuit has extra information that backs up their claims.

In it, they name Car and Driver magazine. Back in 2017, the publication drove a Grand Sport Corvette for a long term review. After over 40,000 miles of use, the magazine had to replace six damaged wheels. The publication spent over $4,000 to have the wheels replaced. 

If you take just one year of affected Corvettes about one-quarter of them were Grand Sport or Z06 models. So, for 2019 out of almost 18,000 Corvettes about 4,500 were Z06 or Grand Sport models. If four wheels and tires replaced cost roughly $4,000, then that amount of Corvettes adds up to approximately $18 million per model year. 

Especially vocal has been Corvette chief engineer Tadge Juechter

Especially vocal has been Corvette chief engineer Tadge Juechter. He maintains that potholes are the cause. But many owners have fired back in forums. Some say they only drive their cars in good weather on good roads. Many say they baby their cars or are otherwise not putting enough miles on the Corvette for the amount of damage they are seeing. 

It remains to be seen whether GM will cave and just manufacture forged wheels for the Corvettes. Or will they go to trial and spend a lot of money for lawyers, discovery, and ultimately a trial. Ultimately, it could cost them more than to just quietly make these owners happy.