(Adds lawsuit, quotes)
By Michael Ellis
DETROIT, Nov 14 (Reuters) - General Motors Corp. has quietly repurchased dozens of full-size pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles, its most profitable models, after customers complained about knocking noises from the engines, lawyers for the owners said on Friday.
GM, the world's largest automaker, confirmed that it has received a small number of complaints of engine noise when starting the vehicles, which include the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups. Also affected are the Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban and GMC Yukon and Yukon XL SUVs from the 1999 to 2002 model years with 4.8 liter, 5.3 liter and 6.0 liter V8 engines and the 2002 Cadillac Escalade SUV.
GM spokeswoman Debbie Frakes said only a small percentage of the millions of GM pickups and SUVs sold over those years had engines that made a knocking noise during the first few seconds after starting, especially during cold weather.
"The only known effect of this condition is an audible sound that typically occurs during the first five to 30 seconds of start-up," Frakes said. "The condition does not create any degradation of durability, performance or safety."
She said that GM has encouraged consumers who have knocking engines to take their vehicles to a dealership. Frakes said GM is handling consumer complaints on a case-by-case basis. She declined to say whether GM has bought back any vehicles.
However, two lawyers who specialize in so-called state lemon laws, which give consumers legal recourse for faulty vehicles, said that GM has bought back many of the pickups and SUVs when they couldn't repair the problem.
"Numerous people have had these things bought back, because of the engine problems," said Brian Parker, a lawyer based in Bingham Farms, Michigan, who represented some of the GM vehicle owners. "They've got a lot of problems with their engines, for whatever reason."
Adam Krohn, a partner of the Chicago-based law firm Krohn & Moss, which handles "lemon law" cases in nine states, said GM has bought back more than 100 of the Silverado and Sierra pickup trucks from his clients alone, most for the engine-knock problem.
"I would say from '99 to present, these two models, I can safely say we've had probably over 100 repurchased," Krohn told Reuters.
ROAD TO REDEMPTION
Parker's law firm filed a class action lawsuit against GM on Friday, seeking $1 billion in damages, in Detroit federal court.
John Lott, named as one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said GM told him that the knocking noise in his 2001 Silverado pickup truck can't be fixed.
"It's very annoying, it's embarrassing," Lott told Reuters. "My neighbors ask me, hey, what's wrong with your vehicle."
Lott, a 27-year who works at a GM car dealership south of Detroit, said he would still buy another Chevrolet truck. "I stand behind Chevy," he said. "I just don't want to pay for a brand new engine down the road," after the warranty expires.
Frakes said that GM has fixed the problem with the faulty engines, which was first reported by The Detroit Free Press on Friday and was caused by carbon buildup.
"We're always concerned if a consumer experiences any engine noise whatsoever," Frakes said.
Earlier this year, GM launched its "Road to Redemption" ad campaign, acknowledging its past quality problems while asserting its recent improvements in closing the gap with its Japanese competitors, notably Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. Ltd.
Frakes said that the engine knocking noise did not warrant a recall by the U.S. National Highway Transportation Safety Administration because it did not cause any safety problems.
Buying back faulty trucks is sometimes cheaper than a recall, Krohn said. "They could easily put me out of business. But it's cheaper for them to pay me and not do the right thing."