FaultScore

Plymouth Acclaim vs Buick Lucerne

Both cars' complete complaint records, side by side.

Read the totals carefully. NHTSA publishes no sales figures, so the car that sold more collects more complaints regardless of quality. The rows worth weighing are the proportions — the share of complaints that involved harm, and which part dominates.

Measure Plymouth Acclaim Buick Lucerne
Complaints on file 538 1,332
Model years covered 1988–1996 2006–2011
Worst model year 1994 2006
Best model year 1995 2010
Crashes reported 72 119
Fires reported 29 79
Injuries reported 51 77
Deaths reported 4 3
Most complained-about part Engine & Cooling Electrical System
Share of complaints involving harm 29% 20.9%

Plymouth Acclaim by year

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Engine & Cooling 86 16.0%
Suspension 65 12.1%
Airbags 62 11.5%
Seat Belts 32 5.9%
Brakes 22 4.1%

Buick Lucerne by year

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Electrical System 405 30.4%
Fuel & Propulsion 137 10.3%
Engine & Cooling 106 8.0%
Body & Structure 103 7.7%
Steering 84 6.3%
Airbags 79 5.9%
Brakes 56 4.2%