Consumer Complaint Detail

BUICK / LESABRE / 1998

Recalls
0 Injured
Investigations
0 Death
Complaints
No Fire
Components - Details
NHTSA Complaint Number: 004260753 Incident Date: Feb, 11 2004
Consumer's City: WEST TRENTON Consumer's State: NJ
Vehicle Transmission Type: AUTO Manufacturers Name: General Motors, LLC
Model Name: LESABRE Model Year: 1998
Vehicle Involved in a Crash: No Component's Description: Engine and engine cooling
Vehicle Involved in a Fire: No Persons Injured: 0
Vehicle's VIN#: Date added to File: May, 25 2021
Date Complaint Received: Feb, 18 2004 Complaint Type: IVOQ
Incident Reported To Police: No Purchase Date: Dec, 29 1998
Was Original Owner: No Anti-lock Brakes: Yes
Number of Cylinders: 6 Date of Manufacturer: -
Was Vehicle Towed: - Description of the Complaints: Purchased new, this well maintained, garage kept vehicle failed with 44,500 miles. i changed the oil & filter after the first 500 mile break-in period & every 1k miles. on 2/12/04, there was a rough unexpected engine knock upon startup. placed in reverse, there was a shaking sensation & the check engine lamp eventually lit. i drove to the dealer. i was told that the radiator coollant leaked into the oil portion of the engine. it was an unpleasant situation, however, a decision had to be made & i opted to replace the vehicle with a 2004 lesabre. i drove it off the lot the same day and tried to put my 1998 problem behind me. i have owned lesabres in the past, a park avenue & other gm products where i clocked over 250,000 miles each on most of them. two days after the purchase of my 2004, the burning question was why my 1998 bit the dust? i felt drawn to my computer & searched: "buick lesabre plenum failures" to see what i might find. i viewed several hundred complaints at this site and many others describing the very same problem. all i could help but wonder, was if this same defect prone part was in the car i just purchased? i called gm and spoke to a rep. i told herabout my 1998 model and then asked if she could let me know if it had been changed on my new 2004 model? yes, my 2004 has the same defective intake manifold, so without any warning, the same situation will arise in the future. what will they do for me about my new car? nothing. beware the ticking time bomb if your gm vehicle has the 3800 series ii. a loud pop, followed by hesitation & by the time the ser engine light glows -- it is already too late. many fires have been reported along with this problem. sources indicate that it is on approximately 35 mill assorted gm cars manufactured from circa 1994 to present.