2005 Buick LaCrosse CX from North America - Comments

"Why do people keep buying Buicks? I had a '98 Century for 5 years that my son (Who is a foremost expert in the field of cars) told me to get rid of. The Buick wasn't giving me any trouble, but he told me to get rid of it before it does. He had me purchase a new 2003 Accord to replace the Buick. The brakes needed replacement twice, and the front driver's seat came loose, but this pales in comparison to the troubles I would've endured had I kept that Century. My son is right. Buicks are garbage, and he says the LaCrosse does not improve that situation any."

You got rid of the Buick, which was apparently a good car for 5 years and was still problem free, and now you're saying that you would've had big problems if you had kept it. How do you know that? You conclude that Buicks are garbage based not on research or your personal experience (which was the opposite), but on the "advice" of your "expert" son? With all due respect, your comments make it sound like you have no mind of your own. The Buick would give you big trouble later because your son said so. You got rid of the Buick and bought an Accord because your son told you to. Buicks are bad because your son says so. The LaCrosse will be a bad car because your son says so. Why not think for yourself? This "expert" son of yours sounds pretty biased and it doesn't sound like he's done any research at all... it only sounds like he's bought into the "Foreign good, American bad" brainwashing that's become so prevalent. That does NOT make him an "expert" in any way. Well, at least you did the next owner a favor... they now have a reliable Buick while you have a not quite as reliable Honda. The Buicks I've had have been great. My 1991 LeSabre has had far fewer problems than many of the new and late model cars I've read about on this site, and I'd buy another one in a heartbeat. And the 1990-91 LeSabres have *never*-that's right, NEVER-been recalled. Keep in mind these cars are 15-16 years old! Back in 1989 and '90, the LeSabre ranked in the top 10 in initial quality according to J.D. Power, right up there with Mercedes and Lexus. Buicks were also in the top 10 in terms of reliability back then. Buicks continue to rank highly in quality and reliability. Your Century was proof of that! Your son is flat out *wrong*. Buicks are not garbage. You'd do well to research these things for yourself and actually learn a thing or two instead of blindly following someone else's biased "advice."

"Bulletproof 3.8? HA! That's a joke. The 3.8 is total junk."

This is the most ridiculous, uninformed comment I've ever seen on this site. That engine IS bulletproof. I should know, I've owned two Buicks with that engine. Both have been very sturdy, requiring only regular maintenance. The old Buick 3.8 (prior to 1988) wasn't terrific, but the newer "3800" 3.8 is an amazing engine in spite of its dated technology. The Series I 3800 (1988-1994, was also installed in a few '95 models) is probably the best engine GM has ever made and will easily match or even exceed any Honda or Toyota engine in terms of durability. Plus it's cheaper and easier to maintain. The 3800 in my old 1990 LeSabre had 169,000 miles on it and still ran like new when I sold it. My 1991 LeSabre has this engine as well and it currently has 139,000 miles. Still runs like new! I've seen these engines go over 200,000 miles with no major problems. GM redesigned the 3800 engine in the mid '90's and made the mistake of using a plastic intake manifold on it, which has caused some issues. Other than that, it's still basically a good engine. The latest Series III 3800 has an aluminum intake manifold. The 3800 engine itself has been ranked highly by independent organizations.

I'm getting really tired of the American car bashing that goes on among the uninformed and the biased. Every automaker, domestic and foreign, has made some mistakes at some point. Honda and Toyota make mistakes, too. Go do some research and learn the facts instead of chanting "Foreign good, American bad!" I don't hate Hondas or Toyotas, but I don't think they're the only great cars. Many of them are fine, but there are some great American cars, too.

As for the LaCrosse, my opinion is going to differ from most of the others that have commented here. The first time I saw it, I was underwhelmed and it still hasn't impressed me. I think it looks too much like a Ford Taurus in some ways. I must confess that I've never driven one, but it just doesn't seem like my kind of Buick. But it may well be another very reliable, competent car. I think the outlook for the LaCrosse from the standpoint of reliability is good, considering that Buick has (with a few exceptions) been on the right track over the past 15 years, and it's built from proven reliable components. And hopefully, it will draw younger customers to Buick.

2005 Buick La Crosse. Fantastic automobile. Pleased, in general. A few quirks. Control buttons on interior temperature adjustments require too much pressure to obtain desired target. Must actually 'push' the button to get results (not 'touch' sensitive). More annoying is the outside ambient temperature gauge. Requires 2 miles of driving before the external temperature adjusts, and then, very slowly. Eventually the correct temperature will display, but no other car has ever responded so poorly in this function. 2 Buick dealerships advise this is normal.??? Not a 'good normal', when any other make will display, virtually, instantly.

To the Dec. 24 comment: last I heard, Honda was still a Japanese company. With Japanese owners. The fact that they have built factories over here to build their cars does not change that, something you seem to be unaware of.

Be wary of criticisms that start with "I don't own one, but..." In the 3.8's defence, I've had two Olds 88's that both racked up 200K plus miles without any engine work and returned decent gas mileage. The big 'car magazines' are now so spoiled and foreign-friendly that they wouldn't give an American car a good review unless it was a two-seater, had 500 horsepower, all-wheel-drive, and a dashboard drink dispenser with a crushed ice option. And even then they would say "well, the engine's a little thrashy at 12,000rpm..."

I have owned a '92 Regal with the 3800 engine and now have a 2005 Lacrosse with the 3800. The Regal was a great car and from what I have seen of the Lacrosse it will be the same. There are little things GM could change, but that is the way it is with all makes (and I drove them all when buying new). The 3800 is a strong durable engine that I would pit against any of the foreign built engines. At least with the Buick I don't have the huge mandatory maintenance schedules the foreign have. If you maintain any vehicle with the rigor that the foreigns suggest (or demand) then most vehicles would have the long life. I think I'll continue to help the american auto companies make good cars and also keep the profits at home. Let's face it there are few "real bad" vehicles out there today.

I recently purchased a 2006 Lacrosse. The decision was based primarily, but not entirely on the ratings and reviews that I had read about Buick's, and the Lacrosse specifically. A good deal of positive commentary was said about the 3800. I would like to say that I have owned mostly Japanese and German made cars. They are not necessarily overrated, but, I feel that some American made cars are underrated. I still have my 1977 Dodge Power Wagon, 318 CID. Accompanying the truck, you will find three GM cars, 2 Corvettes, and the Lacrosse. After 14 imports, the proof is in the garage. The Toyota Supra I owned had more serious and expensive repairs than any American vehicle I have ever owned, starting with the timing belt at 60K, then the rack & pinion at 65K, front seal, rear seal leaks, and a variety of other issues. The car DIED at 100K. The Dodge has 150K, and, to date, NO major problems. The Corvettes, (03, 04), nothing, but, the Lacrosse?? I expect this car to outlast them all!!What a ride for 20K. I do maintain my cars as specified. True, maybe the American cars need a bit more TLC, but, for THOUSANDS less, I have no problem with changing the oil a bit more frequently. No make is bulletproof, but one has to weigh the pros & cons. And, lo & behold, there still remains four American cars in my garage!!

This is response to the "Buick Basher's" comment.

I own a 1996 Buick Regal with 220,000 + miles on it.

I have never had and real problems with it or the transaxle. It still runs and drives great.

It has more get up and go than most of the other engines out there.I have driven most of them.

Other than the normal maintenance items that go along with any car brand, I have never had to do major work to it such as rebuilt engine or transaxle problems which are inherent with "other" brands.

I bought this one used of of the GM dealers lot where I worked for a very good price.It was 4 years old and had "high miles" on it at that time.GM designed this engine to go 300,000 + miles with normal maintenance done to it just like any other brand.

I am a Master Automotive repair technician and have been in the business for over 20 years and have worked on just about any make that is out there and some that are not any more ; both foreign, domestic or even the "foreign owned" domestics.

Yes, every make of manufacturer has had its own problems.

Perhaps we should start looking at the service track records of the cars and their recall rates including their affected numbers, you would all be surprised at the numbers from one brand to another.

Yes, so Buick Series 2 had a problem with their plastic upper intake plenum being eroded away after time from the hot EGR gasses and creating a coolant leak. A design error.

The fix was simple enough although not cheap to replace the plastic manifold and install one of those replacement "smaller " or necked down tubes into the lower manifold instead of replacing the whole lower manifold.

I fixed mine before it happened as soon as I found out about the TSB for it.

I made my own part and installer on a turning lathe.

There are other issues with ALL engines in general such as the new "permanent" antifreeze/coolant no names mentioned.

After 100,000 miles flush the cooling system anyway.

The same goes for the the transmission fluid. Just do it as a preventative measure.

If you treat your car right it won't let you down.

This is a response to the Master Automotive repair technician:

AMEN! I'm so glad that somebody finally gets it; that is, that all automakers have made mistakes at some point. Reading other comments around this site made me start wondering if I was the only one who held that point of view. Too often I see people bashing American cars without really looking at the cars themselves. There are some fine American cars out there, many of them Buicks.

I'm the one who posted the lengthy comment above about my 1990-91 LeSabres. I'd drive my LeSabre forever if I could. I'm still lukewarm about the LaCrosse, but who knows... maybe there'll be one in my driveway someday. And I do hope that it and the new Lucerne will draw more people to Buick. I'd hate to see Buick suffer the same fate that Oldsmobile did.

The 3.8? You HAVE to be kidding! One of the best V6's GM produced. I've had mechanics who have worked on cars for 40 years tell me they are great engines. Not to mention, I had a 93 Buick Riviera with 160k on it run like NEW the day I traded it off. NO PROBLEMS AT ALL! None. Zero. The interior held up with almost no wear at all, aside from a broken lighter. The exterior had one paint chip from someone hitting the car. Buicks? Garbage? These words do not belong together. Do a little research. I drove mine through hell and back without a whimper and it purred like a kitten the whole time. Of course, I maintained it according to the manual. The Japanese cars are great cars, as well, don't get me wrong. But Buick is not "garbage". Not even close.

Not enough? OK, I have an Oldsmobile Toronado with a 3.8 in it. It's close to 20 years old, and it still runs like new. Again, no problems. Do a little home work. Who's had recalls? Who hasn't? How many miles have people typically put on the cars, and what problems have they had? That sort of thing. have your mechanic check a used car before buying and ask advice on common problems. And above all, remember, the previous owner might have taken horrible care of the car, and that might be the reason for problems. Not the car itself.

I have been reading the posts with much interest concerning the comments about the 3800 engine. I own a 98 Buick La sabre with over 91K miles on it. For the most part it has always been a trouble free car.

However last year in 05 things started to go down hill. The intake manifold that has been mentioned in other posts had a crack in it. Causing the engine to run verry bad. That was an expensive repair. And even though there had been a recall on this which I did not know about. The local dealership in which we had purchased the car had refused to refund any of the close to $600 repair.

Recently on a trip to the beach, luckily we were only 30 miles from home when the transmission decided to go.None of the gears will engage.Imagine being on a major interstate, the car going from 65 down to about 40 almost instantly and the car taking a nose dive. I believe I can find a used trans from a salvage yard or from a wreck and get out under a grand. But if I take it to a trans shop, I'm sure its going to cost around 2K to fix.

However we still love the car and plan to keep it.

To the person with the '98 LeSabre:

Before you replace your transmission, make sure you check out some other things first. Did your orange "check engine" light come on when your transmission acted up? If so, there might just be a sensor somewhere that went bad. I've also heard of some electronic solenoids on these transmissions that can go bad causing erratic shifting or no shifting. This transmission is computer controlled, so there may be an electronic issue and nothing wrong with the transmission itself. Something similar happened to my grandparent's Mercury Sable. The transmission acted up in a major way. They had the transmission replaced with a used one only to find out that one acted the same way. The problems they were having are similar to what you describe with your Buick. Turns out there was a problem with the computer that controls how and when the transmission shifts. If you're out there still reading this, I hope this helps you out and (hopefully) it might even save you some money and hassle. Good luck!

1998 Buick Le Sabre, been there, done that last time. I have 149,000 miles fixed the plenum once, the fan in the heater/air conditioner 4 times, plenum busted again hauling to the shop tomorrow. Will it be fixable? Fan has been out for the 5th time since August 12, 2005. These are expensive repairs. Tried Buick and they said they could not help me. So no more Buick for me.

Look at the link below. This is a part that doesn't use plastic so you shouldn't have the problem anymore.

http://ken-co.com/manifold/default.htm.

How can you refer to a car as a "heap", when you have not even driven one?! I have ridden in Camry's and Accords, news flash, they are NOTHING SPECIAL! In my opinion, they are just very bland and ugly. GM on the other hand, makes cars that actually look good, inside and out. Do some research, Buick has higher reliability marks then Honda AND Toyota. So before making unfounded statements about a car, you should have statistics backing up your claim, and I have yet to figure out why people can claim a car is so bad, but have not even driven one.

What heaps? Certainly not heaps for sure. Why don't you drive one? In fact, try mine, you might like it, instead of comming on websites like these, bashing cars.

I have a 91 LeSabre, 3800 of course, gotta have the very best. 270,000 kms, original tranny too!

I tell you, the 3800 has a lot of low end torque you don't find in many cars. At 80 KPH, OD is in, and the engine is coasting at 1300 rpm. It still has pick-up at that speed! Impressive!

I love the exhaust note when the engine goes near its red-line, its quite unique and pleasant.

I've had nothing, but minor problems associated with cars of this mileage, and am pleased with it. Particularly with its 30-35 MPG mileage. Pretty impressive for a heavy 3000 (arounds there) pound car.