2008 Buick LUCERNE: complaints, problems and recalls

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BUICK LUCERNE. AFTER PURCHASING THE VEHICLE, THE CONTACT REALIZED THAT THE BATTERY WAS LOCATED UNDER THE REAR PASSENGER SEAT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT IF A CRASH OCCURRED, BATTERY FUMES AND ACIDS COULD BE RELEASED INTO THE PASSENGER COMPARTMENT. THE DEALER AND MANUFACTURER HAVE NOT BEEN NOTIFIED. THERE HAD BEEN NO FAILURE TO DATE. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 25.

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10204154 at NHTSA ↗

THERE IS A CLUNKING OF THE DRIVERSIDE FRONT BRAKES FOLLOWED WITH A SCRAPING SOUND IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT ACCOMPANIED WITH A HESITATION IN MAINTAINING DRIVING SPEED. THE CAR WILL THEN SHOW A WARNING TO SERVICE THE STABILITRACK SYSTEM. WHEN THIS OCCURS BRAKES FEEL LIKE THERE IS SOMETHING LOOSE THAT IS BETWEEN BRAKE PAD AND DISC. DEALERSHIP SAID IT NEEDED TO REPROGRAM THE MODULE. THEY DID BUT PROBLEM PERSISTS. NOW MODULE NEEDS REPLACING. THE VEHICLE IS A HAZARD SHOULD BRAKES FAIL OR LOCK UP. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 46 miles reported. Look up ODI 10233185 at NHTSA ↗

I PURCHASED A NEW 2008 BUICK LUCERNE AND UNABLE TO READ INSTRUMENT PANEL GAUGES ESPECIALLY SPEED, GAS, ETC DURING DAYLIGHT PERIODS WITH BRIGHT SUN AND/OR HAZY WHEN AUTO RUNNING LIGHTS ARE ON. DRIVER IS UNABLE TO OBSERVE THE AUTO'S SPEED, AMOUNT OF FUEL AND OTHER INSTRUMENTS ON PANEL. THIS IS CAUSED BY THE INSTRUMENT PANEL BEING INSTALL TO FAR BACK INTO THE CONSOLE , THEREFORE IN DEEP SHADOW . ALSO THERE IS NO BACK LIGHTING WHEN THE AUTO RUNNING LIGHTS ARE ON. THIS IIS A MAJOR SAFETY DAY TIME CONCERN AS DRIVER IS UNABLE TO PROPER JUDGE HIS SP…

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10233291 at NHTSA ↗

THIS IS A REPORT OF A DESIGN FLAW THAT MIGHT RESULT IN A SAFETY ISSUE. I RECENTLY TOOK DELIVERY OF A 2008 BUICK LUCERNE CXL. I PURCHASED THE OPTIONAL SIX-PASSENGER VERSION WHICH MEANS THAT THE GEARSHIFT LEVER IS MOUNTED ON THE STEERING COLUMN INSTEAD OF ON A FLOOR CONSOLE, LIKE MOST OTHER CARS. WHEN THE GEARSHIFT LEVER IS IN THE "DRIVE" POSITION, THE VIEW OF THE RADIO DISPLAY IS OBSCURED, CAUSING ME TO MOVE MY HEAD TO LOOK AROUND THE GEARSHIFT LEVER TO VIEW THE DISPLAY. AS A RESULT, MY ATTENTION TO THE ROAD IS MUCH MORE DISTRACTED THAN IF…

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10238469 at NHTSA ↗

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BUICK LUCERNE. THE CONTACT NOTICED THAT THE LIGHTING ON THE INSTRUMENT CONTROL PANEL HAD A CONSTANT LOW INTENSITY, RESULTING IN POOR ILLUMINATION. AS A RESULT, HE WAS UNABLE TO SEE THE WARNING LIGHTS AND OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION ON THE INSTRUMENT CONTROL PANEL. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT IT WAS A CHARACTERISTIC OF THE VEHICLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 90 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 1,300. UPDATE 10/01/08 *CW UPDATED 10/02/08. *JB

Owner-reported narrative. 90 miles reported. Look up ODI 10239786 at NHTSA ↗

ON A SUNNY DAY IT IS NOT POSSIBLE TO READ THE INSTRUMENT PANEL UNDER THE COWL. MOST IMPORTANT : ONE CANNOT READ THE SPEEDOMETER SO THAT YOU CAN ONLY JUDGE YOUR SPEED BY WHETHER YOU ARE PASSING EVERYONE OR THEY ARE PASSING YOU. NOR ARE ANY OF THE OTHER INSTRUMENTS READABLE. AT NIGHT THERE IS NO PROBLEM AS THE INSTRUMENT LIGHTS ARE FINE, BUT THE INSTRUMENT LIGHTS DO NOTHING TO HELP THE DAY PROBLEM. THESE ARE ALL ACCIDENTS WAITING TO HAPPEN. I SPOKE WITH BUICK IN DETROIT AND ALSO MY LOCAL BUICK DEALER. DETROIT SAID THEY WERE AWARE OF THE PROB…

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10240829 at NHTSA ↗

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BUICK LUCERNE. THE VEHICLE WAS PURCHASED NEW WITH EXCESSIVE SCRATCHES ON THE EXTERIOR PAINT. THE SCRATCHES COVERED THE ENTIRE BODY OF THE VEHICLE. THE SALES REPRESENTATIVE OBSERVED THE DEFECTS DURING THE NEW VEHICLE INSPECTION. IMMEDIATELY, THE AUTHORIZED DEALER COLLISION CENTER INSPECTED THE VEHICLE AND STATED THAT THE SCRATCHES WERE DUE TO FAULTY PAINT WORKMANSHIP. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE DEFECTIVE EXTERIOR PAINT AND REFUSED TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT WAS DISPLEASED TO KNOW THAT THERE WAS …

Owner-reported narrative. 456 miles reported. Look up ODI 10248259 at NHTSA ↗

DEFROSTER VENTS IMPROPERLY POSITIONED TO KEEP FRONT WINDSHIELD CLEAR IN NEAR ZERO CONDITIONS. WINDOW WIPER BLADES PARK IN AN AREA BELOW THE HEATED PORTION OF THE WINDSHIELD. WIPERS FROZE TO THE WINDOW, DURING THE DELAY IN THE INTERRUPTED OPERATION, WHILE DRIVING IN A SNOW STORM AT 3 DEG. TEMP. WINDOW ACTUALLY BECAME TOTALLY FROZEN OVER AND VISIBILITY BECAME IMPOSSIBLE. ON THE PASSENGER SIDE, ICE ACCUMULATED IN THE WIPER PAVE IN THE LOWER RIGHT CORNER, ABOUT 3 X 6 X 1/4 THICK AND THE WIPER HAD TO NAVIGATE UP AND OVER THIS FROZEN MASS. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 18,600 miles reported. Look up ODI 10255443 at NHTSA ↗

Reported: 2008-08-28 (August 28, 2008)

GM IS RECALLING 857,735 MY 2006-2008 BUICK LUCERNE; CADILLAC DTS; HUMMER H2; MY 2007-2008 CADILLAC ESCALADE, ESCALADE ESV, ESCALADE EXT; CHEVROLET AVALANCHE, SILVERADO, SUBURBAN, TAHOE; GMC ACADIA, SIERRA, YUKON, YUKON XL, SATURN OUTLOOK; AND MY 2008 BUICK ENCLAVE VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A HEATED WIPER WASHER FLUID SYSTEM. A SHORT CIRCUIT ON THE PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD FOR THE WASHER FLUID HEATER MAY OVERHEAT THE CONTROL-CIRCUIT GROUND WIRE.

Consequence: THIS MAY CAUSE OTHER ELECTRICAL FEATURES TO MALFUNCTION, CREATE AN ODOR, OR CAUSE SMOKE INCREASING THE RISK OF A FIRE.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL A WIRE HARNESS WITH AN IN-LINE FUSE FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 12, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT BUICK AT 1-866-608-8080; CADILLAC AT 1-800-982-2339 OR HTTP://WWW.CADILLAC.COM; CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438; SATURN AT 1-800-972-8876 OR HTTP://WWW.SATURN.COM, GMC AT 1-866-996-9436; OR HUMMER AT 1-800-732-5493; OR THROUGH THEIR WEBSITE AT <A HREF=HTTP://WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM>HTTP://WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM</A> .

Reported: 2010-06-04 (June 4, 2010)

GM IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2006-2009 BUICK, LUCERNE; CADILLAC DTS; HUMMER H2; MODEL YEAR 2008-2009 BUICK ENCLAVE; CADILLAC CTS; MODEL YEAR 2007-2009 CADILLAC ESCALADE, ESCALADE ESV, ESCALADE EXT; CHEVROLET AVALANCHE, SILVERADO, SUBURBAN, TAHOE; GMC ACADIA, SIERRA, YUKON, YUKON XL; SATURN OUTLOOK; AND MODEL YEAR 2009 CHEVROLET TRAVERSE VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A HEATED WASHER FLUID SYSTEM (HWFS). A RECALL WAS IMPLEMENTED IN 2008 TO ADD A FUSE TO THE CONTROL CIRCUIT HARNESS TO ADDRESS THE POTENTIAL CONSEQUENCES OF A PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD (PCB) ELECTRICAL SHORT. HOWEVER, THERE HAVE BEEN NEW REPORTS OF THERMAL INCIDENTS ON HWFS MODULES AFTER THIS IMPROVEMENT WAS INSTALLED. THESE INCIDENTS RESULTED FROM A NEW FAILURE MODE ATTRIBUTED TO THE DEVICE'S THERMAL PROTECTION FEATURE. THE SIGNIFICANCE VARIES FROM MINOR DISTORTION TO CONSIDERABLE MELTING OF THE PLASTIC AROUND THE HWFS FLUID CHAMBER.

Consequence: IT IS POSSIBLE FOR THE HEATED WASHER MODULE TO IGNITE AND A FIRE MAY OCCUR.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL PERMANENTLY DISABLE AND REMOVE THE HEATED WASHER FLUID MODULE. AN UPDATED PAGE FOR THE OWNER MANUAL WILL BE PROVIDED AND INSERTED IN THE OWNER MANUAL TO DOCUMENT THAT THE FEATURE HAS BEEN PERMANENTLY DISABLED AND REMOVED FROM THE VEHICLE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 11, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT BUICK AT 1-866-608-8080, CADILLAC AT 1-866-982-2339, CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438, SATURN AT 1-800-972-8876, GMC AT 1-866-996-9463 AND HUMMER AT 1-800-732-5493 OR AT THE OWNER CENTER AT WWW.GMOWNERCENTER.COM.

Reported: 2014-06-23 (June 23, 2014)

This defect can affect the safe operation of the airbag system. Until this recall is performed, customers should remove all items from their key rings, leaving only the ignition key. The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from the key ring. General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2005-2009 Buick LaCrosse, 2006-2011 Buick Lucerne, 2000-2005 Cadillac DeVille, 2006-2011 Cadillac DTS, 2006-2014 Chevrolet Impala, and 2006-2007 Chevrolet Monte Carlo vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the weight on the key ring and road conditions or some other jarring event may cause the ignition switch to move out of the run position, turning off the engine.

Consequence: If the key is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury. Additionally, a key knocked out of the run position will cause loss of engine power, power steering, and power braking, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will install two key rings and an insert in the key slot or a cover over the key head on all ignition keys, free of charge. The recall began on September 23, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors customer service at 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-458-8006 (Cadillac), and 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet). GM's number for this recall is 14299.