1998 Buick LeSabre review from North America

Intake manifold melted (aka plenum) as with the other comments. My engine did not blow up, and the problem actually showed up already in 2002 (bought used in 2001) - 1998 LeSabre. But in 2002 or thereabouts, when car was stopping dead on me on I-75 between Toledo and Detroit, the dealers apparently had not yet been notified of the problem. They couldn't find anything wrong (I have all my paperwork from that time plus all the repair receipts). They would drive it brief distances and nothing happened. It was when it was driven for an hour or more that either the engine light would come on or it would stop. I discovered if I waited for about 20 minutes or so, I could get it started again.

Most of my anger is, as with all others, that GM put plastic near the engine when an eighth grade idiot would not to do that. And that they apparently did not notify their dealers about the problem (which had to be appearing all over the place by 1999). In 2004 when my plastic plenum melted, it was a Belle Tire employee who told me what the problem was.

My mechanic and other mechanics in this area (Lucas Co. Ohio) were getting these GM plastic plenum cars in for repairs at the rate of 4 to 6 per week per mechanic. They all told us to save our paperwork. I held off contacting GM for various reasons - for one thing, they know very well how much this has cost customers, as well as how dangerous it is. My car stopped dead on I-75 at least 3 times. Well, so far, no recall, and now the dealership where I bought it in 2001 was recently honest enough to say the plenum replacements being done in 2004 are also plastic, so they will not last a long time either.

So GM will be hearing from me. I'm a legal secretary - what you have to do is be persistent. Don't take the first 15 "no's". Individually might be the best way to approach them, but with all the evidence posted here - I believe persistence will pay off. They have no right to do this to people. Lemon doesn't describe adequately what owners of these pieces of junk now own.

My mechanic says my engine is still good, however. And he only charged me $800 for everything (spark plugs & starter also had to be replaced, as others have posted), but GM has to step up to the plate on this - too many years and car models are involved, not to mention people's lives put in danger.