Product Description

Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation that the Detroit Diesel 71 Series family — the inline 6-71 and the V-configuration 8V-71 and 12V-71 two-stroke diesels produced by GM’s Detroit Diesel Division from 1938 through the mid-1990s — was assembled with, and repeatedly repaired using, compressed asbestos-fiber sheet gaskets at every hot-side and forced-induction sealing surface.

Litigation records describe alleged chrysotile-bearing gaskets at the exhaust manifold-to-cylinder-head flanges, at the water-jacketed exhaust riser and elbow joints on marine installations, at the Roots-type blower housing mounting flange (the defining feature of the 71-series scavenging system), at turbocharger mounting pads on turbo-blown variants, and at cylinder head-to-block interfaces on certain build variants. The 71 series ran through commercial fishing boats, tugs, ferries, Coast Guard patrol craft, standby gensets, tractor-trailer highway trucks, and thousands of GM city buses — meaning the population of workers who allegedly disturbed these gaskets during service is enormous.

The mechanism of alleged exposure is uniform across trades: two-stroke exhaust runs hot, gaskets bake onto the mating surfaces, and every overhaul requires the mechanic to scrape, chisel, or wire-wheel the residue off — allegedly releasing respirable chrysotile fiber directly into the worker’s breathing zone.

Workers Exposed

  • Marine engineers and boat yard mechanics repowering fishing boats, tugs, ferries, and small workboats around 6-71 and 8V-71 installations
  • Diesel truck mechanics overhauling 8V-71 and 12V-71 highway tractors and dump trucks
  • Municipal bus and coach mechanics rebuilding 6V-71 and 8V-71 city bus engines through the 1970s and 1980s
  • Standby generator technicians maintaining 71-series gensets at hospitals, telecom sites, and municipal facilities
  • Coast Guard and Navy small-craft engineers on 71-powered patrol boats and landing craft
  • Pipefitters and welders removing and reinstalling water-cooled exhaust piping around 71-series marine engines