2001 Buick Regal LS 3.8 V6

Summary:

Looking good so far. Absolute steal at $1000.

Faults:

Nothing so far other than the defects I knew it had when I bought it, which were bad muffler, bad front sway bar link bushings, no overdrive, no heated seats, aircon duct fault, possible suspect rear wheel bearings.

The transmission issue is the big one. It has the dreaded/popular 4T65E overdrive failure, which is associated with stripped splines on the 4th gear hub shaft. This necessitates some serious surgery to the car, which I will do in the summer. Meanwhile, it's perfectly happy in third, which is about all it gets to anyways, going to the store, which is my wife's normal routine.

W Body GMs are generally pretty straightforward to fix, so the other issues will go away over the next few weeks. I am still figuring out a strategy for replacing the 4th hub shaft. Any suggestions would be welcome.

General Comments:

I bought this, a 2001 Regal with 195000km on it for $1000. It hasn't got any rust and it's in great overall condition for the year.

Like my other Regal, it pops along the highway and gets from A to B without fuss. It gets 7.4L/100km and is very comfortable.

My neighbour's son calls it "an old man's car". I reminded him of this when he needed to borrow it when his Accord's transmission went south LOL.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 29th October, 2010

21st Jan 2012, 09:01

It's been 13 months since my last comment on this car.

Turns out the wheel bearing were OK, but I have had some work done:

Emergency brake assembly on the offside read hub was broken, and was replaced. A wishbone bushing on the offside front was replaced. I haven't fixed the 4th gear issue as the car is being used as a grocery-getter.

There is one thing I will record here in detail, for the benefit of others. I have seen this problem described a LOT in Buick forums, but never this solution. Here goes.

The heater packed up. No operation at all. The LCD display was dead except for 4 red LEDs along the bottom for the passenger side of the climate control. I tried disconnecting/reconnecting battery, but no joy. Sometimes a clicking would come from the passenger side dash.

Various fora describe things like broken actuators, broken climate modules, blown fuses, dead relays etc. These were not the causes of my problems.

The clue came when I put a voltmeter over my fuse board to the right of the dash. I expected them all to show 12V, which they did, except one that showed 8V.

Experience with my other Regal (2000 3.8, turn signal causing stalls) suggested than low voltage at the fusebox was due to carbon buildup on the contacts in the ignition switch.

So I removed took apart the ignition switch (instructions for this are in various places on the net). Sure enough, all the little contacts inside were carboned up. I cleaned them and put it back together, and the heater has worked like a charm ever since.

This problem (of carbon on the contacts) seems to be very common for older Buicks. The moral is this: If you are having any weird electrical gremlins, test the fuse box for 12V. If any of them are giving less than 12V, then be very suspicious of your ignition switch.

Hope that helps!

In reply to 21st Jan 2012, 09:01

3rd May 2013, 05:41

Hey, maybe you could help me. Hope you know what's wrong.

I bought my Buick Regal (2001) LS about 3 months ago. It ran perfect, but to be honest I didn't do a tuneup or anything, and a couple days ago my power steering went out. I filled it back up, and it was good for a couple days, and then the noise came back, and my brakes started making that squeaky noise as well, but I've fixed them already.

But my main thing is my car started making this noise, like a lawn mower noise, when shifting after 2nd gear.

Don't know if it makes my third gear, because it jumps but doesn't feel like it. I can't tell if it did change or not. I don't go past 70mph and it feels a little forced, but runs great and only does the noise while driving and not while parked. Even if I accelerate, it doesn't make that noise, so I'm hoping it's something to do with my power steering or my brake issues, and not my trans. Hope you or anyone else could help please.

In reply to 3rd May 2013, 05:41

5th May 2013, 23:51

Check the transmission fluid level.

2001 Buick Regal GS Joseph Abboud Edition 3.8 V6 S/C

Summary:

Excellent family sleeper

Faults:

Turn signal switch, right rear turn signal quit working (96,xxx miles).

Coolant level switch inoperative (96,800 miles)

Foglights fill with water (since purchased).

Taillight panel system fail (about 92,000 miles).

Interior trim brittle.

Engine ingested 11.5 lb rat through the serpentine belt about 118,000 miles.

General Comments:

The Regal I purchased is, in short, an excellent sleeper. I love the power the engine makes, the blower just makes driving this car all the more fun. I would like a tighter suspension, but given Buick's targeted audience, I understand. My current best time for the 1/4 mile is 14.9@96.7 mph.

The interior is PLUSH! Heated leather seats, sunroof, a sound system that embarrasses most rice rockets, quiet when I want it to be, roomy, and useful. I keep thinking I stole my dad's car.

Downsides: Besides the fact that everyone and their mother seems to have something that looks like it, you'd never know the car can perform. Electrical nightmare. Bad design on the foglights, I quit trying to repair them.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 10th May, 2007