FaultScore report
Owners have filed 10 complaints about the 1986 Buick Skylark with NHTSA between 1995 and 2004. The largest single group is the engine & cooling.
10
Complaints
0
Crashes reported
0
Fires reported
0
Injuries reported
Click any bar to open that year's report.
Every complaint is filed against a part. Follow any row for the complaints about that part alone.
Median failure at 135,013 miles
Median failure at 72,060 miles
A spike years after the car went on sale usually means a part wearing out on schedule across the whole fleet — the kind of pattern no single owner can see from inside their own car.
An investigation is the step before a recall: the agency has seen enough complaints to look into a pattern itself. An open one means it thinks something may be wrong and nothing has been fixed yet.
SEAT BELT SEPARATION
SAFETY BELT CUT AT D-RING
A complaint is one owner's allegation. A recall is the point at which the manufacturer or a regulator agreed the defect is real and dangerous enough to fix for free — however old the car is.
Canada runs its own recall programme, and its campaigns do not always mirror the American ones.
Electrical
THE HEADLAMP SWITCH PANEL CIRCUITRY MIGHT EXPERIENCE EXCESSIVE HEAT BUILD UP THAT COULD CAUSE THE HEADLIGHTS TO CYCLE ON AND OFF. SUDDEN LOSS OF HEADLIGHTS AT NIGHT OR UNDER SEVERE DRIVING CONDITIONS COULD REDUCE VISIBILITY AND RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING. CORRECTION: DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND/OR REPLACE THE HEADLIGHT SWITCH AND/OR WINDSHIELD WIPER SWITCH PANELS ON SUSPECTED VEHICLES. NOTE: THE WINDSHIELD WIPER SWITCH PANEL WILL BE REPLACED ONLY TO MAINTAIN STYLING UNIFORMITY WITH THE NEW HEADLAMP SWITCH PANEL.
Recalls cover specific build ranges, so check your own vehicle by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls or, in Canada, Transport Canada.
In the owners' own words, exactly as filed with NHTSA.
STRUCTURE:BODY:HOOD:HINGE AND ATTACHMENTS
I AM A COLLEGE STUDENT. I COMMUTE ABOUT 50 MILES TO SCHOOL AND BACK. I WAS IN BRICK NJ ON RT 70 ABOUT TO ENTER THE PARKWAY WHEN I SAW SMOKE COMING OUT OF MY HOOD. BEFORE THIS HAPPENED I WAS USING GALLONS OF COOLANT IN MY CAR. I PULLED OVER AND GOT OUT AND OPENED MY HOOD SO THE CAR COULD COOL. IT WAS THEN DRIVE ABLE TO THE NEAREST MECHANIC WHERE HE REPLACED MY INTAKE GASKET. DURING THE DURATION OF THIS DAY EVENT I HAD TO MISS 1 CLASS AND HAD TO ASK MY FATHER TO DRIVE ME SO I WOULDNT MISS MY OTHER TWO EXAMS FOR THE DAY. THE INTAKE COST ME 527.35.
NHTSA complaint #10078537 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
EQUIPMENT:RECREATIONAL VEHICLE/TRAILER:LPG SYSTEMS:TANK VALVE/GAUGE
I AM A COLLEGE STUDENT. I COMMUTE ABOUT 50 MILES TO SCHOOL AND BACK. I WAS IN BRICK NJ ON RT 70 ABOUT TO ENTER THE PARKWAY WHEN I SAW SMOKE COMING OUT OF MY HOOD. BEFORE THIS HAPPENED I WAS USING GALLONS OF COOLANT IN MY CAR. I PULLED OVER AND GOT OUT AND OPENED MY HOOD SO THE CAR COULD COOL. IT WAS THEN DRIVE ABLE TO THE NEAREST MECHANIC WHERE HE REPLACED MY INTAKE GASKET. DURING THE DURATION OF THIS DAY EVENT I HAD TO MISS 1 CLASS AND HAD TO ASK MY FATHER TO DRIVE ME SO I WOULDNT MISS MY OTHER TWO EXAMS FOR THE DAY. THE INTAKE COST ME 527.35.
NHTSA complaint #10078537 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
EQUIPMENT:ELECTRICAL
ELECTRONIC DASHBOARD FAILURE.
NHTSA complaint #10071285 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR
SEAT BELT RETRACTORS FOR BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT SIDE INOPERABLE, RENDERING SEATBELT UNUSABLE. THE PLUNGER ACTIVATED BY THE CLOSING OF FRONT CAR DOORS HAS A CABLE ATTATCHED TO RELEASE THE BELTS. THE CABLE FOR BOTH FRONT DOORS IS BROKEN. THIS CAUSES THE SEAT BELTS TO REMAIN LOCKED, THEREFORE DRIVER AND FRONT PASSENGER CANNOT USE THEIR RESTRAINTS. I BELIEVE THIS TO BE A MANUFACTURING OR MATERIALS DEFECT THAT SHOULD BE REPAIRED BY THE AUTOMAKER OR SUPPLIER.
NHTSA complaint #706329 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:12V/24V/48V BATTERY
BATTERY FAILED.
NHTSA complaint #534466 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:COOLING SYSTEM
WATER PUMP FAILED.
NHTSA complaint #534466 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
WHEELS
WHEEL FELL OFF. (OHIO STATE POLICE REPORT)
NHTSA complaint #515872 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD WIPER/WASHER:SWITCH/WIRING
WINDSHIELD WIPERS WILL NOT STAY ON , HAVE TO HOLD SWITCH IN WHEN DRIVING. HAD VEHICLE IN FOR REPAIR OF WINDSHIELD WIPERS AND THEY STILL WON'T WORK.
NHTSA complaint #809860 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
ENGINE FAILURE DUE TO A DEFECTIVE ENGINE HEAD GASKET/ALSO OVERHEATED.
NHTSA complaint #510203 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR
DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT FAILURE, SEAT BELT WILL NOT COME OUT OF ITS HOUSING. TT
NHTSA complaint #968990 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.