1990 Buick Century from North America - Comments

Replaced muffler.

Starter went 2 days ago; replaced yesterday.

Driver side power window sometimes struggles to close.

This car was given to me 2 years ago while I was a full time college student and my previous car died on me. The Century has been seriously reliable, it handles great, and the interior is very comfortable.

The body looks horrible. It is faded yellow and covered with rust spots. You would never guess what a reliable car it is. It's funny, but I have seen a few other Centuries on the road and they have the same faded, yellow color. And almost the exact same rust spots on the body! Must have been a design flaw of the time.

I have noticed that the ride is not as smooth as it used to be. The shocks or struts are old and I feel the road much more than I did last year. It's not worth it to replace them, the KBB value is only $545.

Not very good gas mileage. I have not measured specifically, but I guess under 20 miles/gallon. It would cost me quite a bit if I had a long commute. But short commutes are fine.

Tire wear has been uneven. I had the alignment checked, but they could find no problems. So I just have my tires rotated each time I have the oil changed every 3K miles.

I expect to get a different car in the Spring or Summer and replace my rust bucket. But I have to say that this has been a great, reliable car based on my needs. Running strong at 19 years and 173,000 miles; who could complain?!?

I am the writer of this review and I wish to update:

I was completely wrong with my comments on gas mileage. I started to keep track of the car's mileage this year. In my usual driving which is a combination of long and short trips, my Century typically gets between 24 and 29 mpg.

I recently drove from upstate NY to Montgomery, AL and back. The trip total over 4 days of driving was 2,334.5 miles. I used 67.89 gallons of gasoline. Average MPG for the entire trip was 34.386. For some stretches of highway driving I was getting over 37 mpg! I kept the speed between 65 and 85 mph.

The struts are shot so rough roads were uncomfortable, but the car performed admirably throughout the trip and gave me absolutely no problems. I kept up with everything else on the highway. The 3300 V6 engine is bulletproof. At 181,000 miles, what more could I ask for?

At this point I am no longer expecting to need to replace this car. I want to find out how far this car can go.

It will go all the way to the salvage yard... after you grandkids are your age, these engines are one of the best designed. With regular maintenance, the engine will outlive you.