FaultScore

Buick Lesabre transmission problems

267 of the 4,865 complaints filed about the Buick Lesabre are about the transmission — 5% of everything owners reported. The worst model year for it is 1993.

267

Complaints

5%

Share of all complaints

2

Crashes

15

Fires

Transmission & Drivetrain complaints by model year

1986 Lesabre 1 0.4%
1987 Lesabre 2 0.7%
1989 Lesabre 3 1.1%
1990 Lesabre 2 0.7%

Median failure at 186,000 miles

1991 Lesabre 2 0.7%
1992 Lesabre 23 8.6%

Median failure at 140,000 miles

1993 Lesabre 36 13.5%

Median failure at 111,427 miles

1994 Lesabre 5 1.9%
1995 Lesabre 9 3.4%
1996 Lesabre 7 2.6%
1997 Lesabre 33 12.4%

Median failure at 75,000 miles

1998 Lesabre 22 8.2%

Median failure at 98,000 miles

1999 Lesabre 15 5.6%

Median failure at 42,000 miles

2000 Lesabre 24 9.0%

Median failure at 63,165 miles

2001 Lesabre 32 12.0%

Median failure at 50,000 miles

2002 Lesabre 13 4.9%

Median failure at 50,874 miles

2003 Lesabre 18 6.7%

Median failure at 48,946 miles

2004 Lesabre 12 4.5%

Median failure at 87,497 miles

2005 Lesabre 8 3.0%

Median failure at 48,000 miles

What owners said

2003 Buick Lesabre La Valle, WI

POWER TRAIN

The transmission doesn't shift correctly even after it's warmed up it is erratic and rough while connecting the transmission gears and jerks very hard at most times. The power steering is not working correctly and makes it difficult to drive at all with the combined issues I'm very concerned about my and my family safely

NHTSA complaint #11661927 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2004 Buick Lesabre Selma, OR

POWER TRAIN

Car has hard shift's that get worse when the car is up to temperature. Fuel gauge show's false reading. Two window regulators failed.

NHTSA complaint #11493411 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2005 Buick Lesabre Selma, OR

POWER TRAIN

Fuel gauge false reading. Hard shift's

NHTSA complaint #11493412 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2004 Buick Lesabre Wilmington, OH

POWER TRAIN

Drove to the store, transmission was hard shifting and then wouldn't hardly move at all. Almost got hit three x!! Very tramatized. How is it that on just one of many web pages 400 people had this problem 140 complained about it! that's just one website! how has this problem not been fixed and recalled?

NHTSA complaint #11437729 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2004 Buick Lesabre Maysville, KY

POWER TRAIN

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 BUICK LESABRE. THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 50 MPH, THE VEHICLE STALLED WITH SEVERAL WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS RESTARTED HOWEVER, THE FAILURE RECURRED INTERMITTENTLY. THE CONTACT BELIEVED THAT THE FAILURE WAS RELATED TO THE POWER TRAIN. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO A DEALER OR AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED AS OF YET. THE MANUFACTURER HAD NOT BEEN INFORMED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA complaint #11397606 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2005 Buick Lesabre at 92,000 miles Lewiston, ME

POWER TRAIN

THE TRANSMISSION RARELY SLIPS CAUSING A DANGEROUS SITUATION. I MUST PULL OVER SHIFT OFF THE VEHICLE AND START IT AGAIN.

NHTSA complaint #11390782 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2002 Buick Lesabre at 100,000 miles East Saint Louis, IL

POWER TRAIN

THE FRAME OF MY CAR FELL OUT WHILE I WAS DRIVING ON A HIGH WAY AFTER I HAD ALREADY REPORTED THE PROBLEM AND HAD BEEN DENIED SERVICES TO GET IT FIXED.

NHTSA complaint #11376540 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2004 Buick Lesabre Cleveland, OH

POWER TRAIN

I CONTINUE SMELLING AN OIL-BURNING SMELL AND MY RIGHT TURN SIGNAL CONTINUE TO GO OUT AND I HAVE REPLACED TO BLUB OVER AND OVER

NHTSA complaint #11319438 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2003 Buick Lesabre at 116,000 miles Tacoma, WA

POWER TRAIN

WHEN THE VEHICLE GETS WARMER DURING TRANSIT, THE TRANSMISSION BEGINS TO SLIP. IT GETS WORSE AND THE DURATION OF THE SLIP BEGINS TO. LAST LONGER.

NHTSA complaint #11297290 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2003 Buick Lesabre Calverton, NY

POWER TRAIN

BUICK 2003 LESABRE TSB I NEED THE SERVICE BULITONS ON THE TRANSMISSION FOR SHUDDER ,HARSH SHIFTING WHILE DRIVING AND HEATED UP PROPERLY

NHTSA complaint #11218010 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2003 Buick Lesabre at 45,000 miles Calverton, NY

POWER TRAIN

TRANSMISSION BUMPS SOME TIMES

NHTSA complaint #11217974 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

1997 Buick Lesabre at 49,000 miles Baltimore, MD

POWER TRAIN

TRANSMISSION SHUDDERS BETWEEN 30 TO 40 MPH. ALSO AT 50 MPH ON THE HIGHWAY. HAVE BEEN TOLD MAY NEED TRANSMISSION. CAR ONLY HAS 56,000 MILES. TRANSMISSION FLUID HAS BEEN DRAINED. DID NOT HELP. PLEASE ADVISE

NHTSA complaint #11109928 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

1997 Buick Lesabre at 190,000 miles Saint Cloud, MN

POWER TRAIN

SUB FRAME IS COMPLETELY ROATED OUT ON THE BACK DRIVE. COMPLETE SAFTY HAZARD NEEDS RECALL

NHTSA complaint #10928836 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2004 Buick Lesabre at 75,000 miles Clifton, NJ

POWER TRAIN

WITHIN THE PASSED 2 MONTHS I HAVE BEEN EXPERIENCING "HARD SHIFTS". VERY PRONOUNCED JOLT/JERK WHEN ACCELERATING AFTER A FULL STOP OR DECELERATING TO COME TO A STOP. JUST RESEARCHED ON THIS SITE AND FOUND MANY OTHER CONSUMERS WITH 2004 LESABRE'S EXPERIENCING SAME SITUATION. HAS TO DO WITH INFERIOR PRESSURE CONTROL SOLENOID AND/OR SHIFT SOLENOIDS. APPARENTLY GM HAS REFUSED TO RECALL AND REPLACE DUE TO THE COST. CAN CAUSE PREMATURE FAILURE OF TRANSMISSION AND THEY SAY THEY ARE UNDER NO OBLIGATION TO MAKE IT RIGHT!!! ALSO HAVE HAD PROBLEMS WITH SPEEDOMETER AND TACHCOMETER. MY TACH IS FROZEN AT 2 AND SPEEDOMETER STARTED GIVING FALSE READINGS ABOUT 3 YRS. AGO. DID NOT ADDRESS BECAUSE MY MECHANIC TOLD ME ITS VERY COSTLY. I HAVE TO USE MY GARMIN TO TELL ME HOW FAST I AM GOING. HAPPENED FIRST TIME IN EXTREME HEAT TRAVELING ON HIGHWAY. THEN AGAIN WHEN IT W AS RAINING. VERY UNSAFE SITUATION AND AGAIN A VERY COSTLY FIX THAT GM WILL NOT ADDRESS.

NHTSA complaint #10846233 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2001 Buick Lesabre at 102,000 miles Spofford, NH

POWER TRAIN

CAR HAS TWICE SHUTOFF DURING DRIVING. LAST TIME IN MIDDLE OF TURN, SON RAN OFF ROAD BECAUSE STEERING WHEEL WAS LOCKED. IT IS NOT INCLUDED IN ANY GM RECALL FOR THE IGNITION SWITCH, BUT SYMPTOMS ARE IDENTICAL. DEALER HAS NO IDEA HOW TO REPAIR EXCEPT TO 'TRY' THINGS. PROBLEM IS, IF GUESS IS WRONG AND PROBLEM PERSISTS, SERIOUS ACCIDENT COULD HAPPEN.

NHTSA complaint #10790036 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2002 Buick Lesabre Camden, NJ

POWER TRAIN

TRANSMISSION SHIFT SOL AND PRESSURE SENSORS ARE MELTING ON VALVE BODY TRANNY HEAT IS FRING THE CONNECTORS AND DAMAGING THE TRANNY . U CAN SMELL THE PLASTIC BURNIGBURNING

NHTSA complaint #10764363 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2004 Buick Lesabre at 131,000 miles Killeen, TX

POWER TRAIN

MY 2004 BUICK LESABRE KEEPS LOSING POWER WHILE I AM DRIVING. THIS IS THE 4TH INCIDENT IN 2 MONTHS! THE VEHICLE DIES AND THE POWER STEERING LOCKS. THIS IS A DANGEROUS SITUATION AS I WAS ON HWY 190 AND THERE IS MAJOR WORK BEING DONE. I WAS DRIVING OVER A BRIDGE AND THEIR ARE BARRIERS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE HIGHWAY. EACH TIME THE INCIDENT OCCURS I GET A CRANK BUT NO START. MY VEHICLE IS THEN TOWED TO A MECHANIC AND I'VE BEEN TOLD THAT THE CRANK SHAFT SENSOR AND IGNITION MODULE ARE BAD. THE SENSOR HAS BEEN REPLACED TWICE WITHIN A WEEKS TIME AND NOT THREE WEEKS AFTER THE MODULE WAS REPLACED IT IS BACK AT THE SHOP TODAY. I HAVE NO LEVERAGE UNDER TEXAS LEMON LAWS BECAUSE IT IS USED VEHICLE AND UNFORTUNATELY I HAVE TO PUT MY JOB BEFORE MY SAFETY BECAUSE I HAVE RESPONSIBILITIES. I AM IN A DANGEROUS SITUATION RIGHT NOW!

NHTSA complaint #10693121 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2003 Buick Lesabre at 102,225 miles North Port, FL

POWER TRAIN

WE BOUGHT THE CAR DECEMBER 29,2015, THE CAR HAD 102,0215, AND DROVE IT TO THE DOCTOR ON OUR WAY BACK, THE WOULD MAKE A "CLUNKING" SOUND FROM TRANS-AXLES, AND WE NOTICE THAT THE DASH BOARD CAME UP AND IT HAS HARDWARE SCREWS ACROSS THE DASH AS IF TO HOLD IT DOWN.

NHTSA complaint #10679870 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2003 Buick Lesabre at 65,000 miles Floyds Knobs, IN

POWER TRAIN

AUTOATICE TRANSMISSION SLIPS

NHTSA complaint #10667424 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

2003 Buick Lesabre Philadelphia, PA

POWER TRAIN

WHEN THE LESABRE WAS RELIABLE; IT WAS RELIABLE. HOWEVER, WHEN ISSUES STARTED TO OCCUR, THEY WERE MASSIVE. AT APPROX 90K MILES THE TRANSMISSION WENT WITH NO WARMING AND WAS INSTANTLY. AFTER THAT THE CAR STILL HAD ISSUES WITH THE DRIVE, TRANSMISSION AND GEARS. THE FUEL PUMP AND INTAKE MANIFOLDS HAVE BEEN REPLACED. AS OF 2014 I CONTINUE TO HAVE ISSUES WITH THIS VEHICLE. IT CURRENTLY RUNS VERY HARD AND WHEN IDLE AND IN TRAFFIC (VERY SCARY) WILL RANDOMLY CUT OFF WITH ZERO WARNING OR EVEN BEGIN TO SMOKE. THERE IS THE CORRECT AMOUNT OF OIL AND ANTIFREEZE. THE CAR WILL RANDOMLY SMOKE AS WELL. I HAVE BEEN TO THE MECHANIC SEVERAL TIMES TRYING TO FIGURE OUT THE MAIN ISSUE SO THAT IT CAN BE REPAIRED. THIS IS EXTREMELY FRUSTRATING. ANYONE HAVE ANY SOLUTIONS? I KEEP READING PLENTY OF OWNERS WITH THE SAME ISSUE(S) SO I FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE THAT GM/BUICK HAS NOT DONE A RECALL ON PARTS FOR THE ENGINE, TRANSMISSION, ETC.

NHTSA complaint #10641358 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

Other Buick Lesabre problems