2003 BUICK PARK AVENUE Complaints

MY 2003 PARK AVENUE ULTRA HAS A VIBRATION AT 65 - 70 MPH THAT SEEMS TO BE IMPOSSIBLE TO DIAGNOSIS AND FIX; BUICK DEALER CAN NOT FIX. *NM

DT*: THE CONTACT STATED THE REAR WINDOW DEFROSTER DOES NOT ALWAYS DEFROST THE ENTIRE WINDOW. THE DEALERSHIP DETERMINED THE REAR WINDOW AND DEFROSTER UNIT NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. UPDATED 3/9/2006 - *NM

WHILE DRIVING 30 MPH DRIVER NOTICED THAT THE STABILITY SYSTEM LIGHT APPEARED ON THE DASHBOARD AND REMAINED ON. VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR INSPECTION, BUT MECHANIC COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. THIS INFORMATION WAS PROVIDED BY KELLY'S WIFE ALICE JOHNSON. *AK

PROBLEMS WITH VEHICLE'S AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM.*MR DURING A NORMAL 15000 MILE SERVICE A CHEMICAL WAS INTRODUCED IN THE A/C SYSTEM. THE OWNER IMMEDIATELY EXPERIENCED ALLERGIC REACTIONS THAT IMPAIRED HER DRIVING. THE REACTION HAD CONTINUED AND IS AN ON-GOING DANGER. AFTER FURTHER INFORMATION WAS OBTAIN FROM THE DEALER IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE A/C FOGGER HAD A SLIGHT HEALTH RISK LISTED ON THE MSDS SHEET WHICH INDICATED "...HARMFUL IF SWALLOWED. MAY IRRITATE EYES, SKIN AND RESPIRATORY TRACT......". THE GARAGE MANAGER STATED THAT THE CHEMICAL WAS USED TO ELIMINATE A MOLD AND MILDEW PROBLEM. NO ODOR OR MILDEW PROBLEM HAD BEEN EXPERIENCED BY THE OWNER, SO THE CONSUMER WANTS TO KNOWN WHY THE CHEMICAL WAS USED AND WHY WASN'T THE CONSUMER INFORMED OF IT'S USE. *NM

SINCE PURCHASED THE HORN DOES NOT BLOW WHEN YOU PUSH ON THE DESIGNATED SPOT ON THE STEERING WHEEL. YOU MUST 'SEARCH' FOR A SPOT TO PUSH THAT THE HORN WILL THEN BLOW. THIS IS 'HIT OR MISS'. IT MAY BLOW AND IT MAY NOT. THE DEALER HAS DONE ALL THAT HE CAN DO TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM WHICH IS TO PUSH ON VARIOUS LOCATIONS ON THE STEERING WHEEL AND SAY YOU SHOULD PUSH THERE. THE BEST HE CAN DO. I HAVE LODGED STRENUOUS COMPLAINTS WITH BUICK AND THEY ASSIGNED IT "REQUEST NUMBER 1-200878647 AND IT HAS BEEN HANDLED GENERALLY BY A MR. SEAN ARMSTRONG. MY LAST CORRESPONDENCE WITH THEM THEY SAID THEY HAD DONE ALL THEY COULD DO, WHICH SO FAR HAS BEEN NOTHING, AND FOR ME TO TAKE OTHER STEPS. I ASSUME THEY MEAN TO GO TO COURT. I BELIEVE THAT THIS 'UNDEPENDABLE' HORN FUNCTION COULD LEAD TO AN ACCIDENT AND POSSIBLY DEATH TO SOMEONE. IT SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED AND I SHOULD NOT HAVE TO RESORT TO THE LEGAL PROCESS TO GET IT TO WORK AS IT SHOULD. BUICK HAS MANH COMPLAINTS ON THIS FUNCTION I HAVE LEARNED. YOUR EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE SHOULD PROVE MOST HELPFUL IN MY MAKING A DECISION AS TO WHAT TO DO. IF YOU CALL PERRY BUICK SERVICE MANAGER (MR. TIMOTHY PERRY) HE CAN EXPLAIN. PERRY BUICK IS OUTSTANDING AND I AM NOT COMPLAINING ABOUT THEIR SERVICE. THEY DO NOT DESIGN THE AUTO. THIS BUICK PARK AVENUE ULTRA HAS EVERYTHING YOU COULD POSSIBLY WANT IN A TODAY CAR EXCEPT A HORN THAT WILL BLOW WHEN ASKED TO BLOW. YOUR KNOWLEDGE WILL BE GRATEFULLY RECEIVED. KIND REGARDS, JOHN MESICK. *JB

MY 2003 BUICK PARK AVENUE WITH LESS THAN 6000 MILES ON IT HAS HAD BRAKE FAILURE TWICE. BOTH INCIDENTS OCCURED AT SPEEDS LESS THAN 10 MPH. BOTH INCIDENTS INVOLVED TOTAL BRAKE FAILURE WITH THE PEDAL GOING CLEAR TO THE FLOOR AND NO STOPPING ACTION AT ALL. THE FIRST INCIDENT IN AUGUST 2003 RESULTED IN A CRASH IN WHICH THERE WAS NO FIRE AND NO INJURIES. THE MOST RECENT INCIDENT REPORTED TODAY DID NOT RESULT IN A CRASH BUT COULD HAVE EASILY HAD I NOT THROWN THE TRANSMISSION INTO PARK. DEALER REPORTS HE "CAN NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM", AND DOESN'T KNOW WHAT TO FIX. ONGOING NEGOTIATIONS CONTINUE BETWEEN ME AND THE DEALER AS I FEEL THE CAR IS DEFINITELY UNSAFE AS IS, AND IF THERE IS "NOTHING TO FIX", THEN OBVIOUSLY THE CAR WILL REMAIN UNSAFE AND COULD RESULT IN SERIOUS INJURY OR FATALITIES NOT ONLY TO MYSELF BUT TO OTHERS. I STRONGLY URGE NHTSA GET INVOLVED BEFORE ANY LIVES OR LOST OR SERIOUS INJURIES OCCUR.

THE HORN IS EXTREMELY HARD TO OPERATE; HAS BEEN FROM DAY ONE! I MUST TAKE EYES OFF ROAD FOR TOO LONG WHEN TRYING TO FIND RIGHT SPOT TO MAKE HORN BLOW. IT DOES NOT OPERATE AT HORN DECAL ON AIR BAG COVER, NOR AT CENTER OF COVER AS MANUAL SUGGESTS. HORN BLOWS SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN DECAL AND CENTER, SOME OF THE TIME. AND WHEN I FIND THE SPOT I HAVE TO PUSH TO HARD TO MAKE IT BLOW. THIS PARTICULAR MODEL OF BUICK IS BOUGHT AND DRIVEN MOSTLY BY RETIRES. A LOT OF WHOM HAVE ARTHRITIC HANDS. THE HORN IS A SAFETY FEATURE AND THEREFORE SHOULD NOT BE THIS DIFFICULT TO USE. I HAVE BEEN TO THE DEALER THREE TIMES ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND EACH TIME THE MAN BLOWS THE HORN AND SAYS THE AIR BAG IS THE REASON FOR THE HARD TO BLOW HORN. HE SAYS NOTHING CAN BE DONE TO FIX PROBLEM. I BELIEVE A NEW REDESIGNED AIR BAG ASSEMBLY CAN FIX THIS SAFTEY DEFECT. BEFORE BUYING A NEW CAR AGAIN, I WILL BE SURE TO CHECK FOR EASE OF OPERATION OF HORN ASSEMBLY FIRST!!! MY 1996 OLDS 98 DID NOT HAVE THIS PROBLEM AND THEY ARE BASICALLY THE SAME CAR.*AK

MY 2003 BUICK PARK AVENUE (ULTRA) HAS LESS THAN 19,000 MILES AND TWICE HAS HAD THE BRAKES FAIL ON IT. TODAY, I AM HEARING THE FAMILIAR BRAKE FAILURE SQUEAL AND KNOW THAT MY BRAKES WILL BE FAILING AGAIN. IT IS A VERY DANGEROUS CAR AND HAS GREAT DIFFICULTY STOPPING AT HIGH SPEEDS AND SHIMMIES AT LOWER SPEEDS WHEN STOPPING. *LA

AFTER PURCHASING THE VEHICLE AND DRIVING IT OFF THE LOT, THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED A VIBRATION WHILE DRIVING. THE VIBRATION FELT LIKE SOMETHING WAS LOOSE OR BROKEN. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR THE PROBLEM SIX TIMES. *AK DEALER STATED VEHICLE COULDN'T BE REPAIRED AND AGREED TO REPURCHASE THE VEHICLE FROM THE CONSUMER. *PH *JB

I RECENTLY RECEIVED A LETTER FROM GM STATING THAT THERE MAY BE A PROBLEM WITH COOLANT LEAKS AROUND GASKETS AT THE UPPER INTAKE MANIFOLD OR AT THE LOWER INTAKE MANIFOLD WHICH MIGHT "CAUSE HIGH ENGINE TEMPERATURES". THE LETTER SAYS IT IS A "VOLUNTARY CUSTOMER SATISFACTION PROGRAM". THE SUGGESTED FIX IS TO TAKE THE VEHICLE IN TO THE LOCAL DEALER AND HAVE THEM CHANGE SOME OF THE FASTENERS AND THEN "ADD COOLING SYSTEM SEALANT" TO THE RADIATOR. IT SEEMS TO ME THAT PUTTING COOLING SYSTEM SEALANT IN A BRAND NEW CAR (AND THUS REDUCING THE LIFE OF THE RADIATOR) IS AN UNACCEPTABLE FIX FOR A POSSIBLE GASKET PROBLEM. I WOULD THINK THAT THE COMPANY NEEDS TO REPLACE THE INTAKE MANIFOLD GASKETS INSTEAD, IF THEY ARE THE FAULTY PART. HOWEVER, WHEN I CALLED THE NUMBER THAT GM SUPPLIED THEY SAID THAT THEY WOULD NOT REPLACE THE GASKET AND THAT IF WE DID NOT HAVE THE REPAIR DONE AS STATED IN THEIR LETTER AND THE GASKET SUBSEQUENTLY FAILED AFTER THE WARRANTY PERIOD WAS OVER, WE WOULD HAVE TO PAY THE FULL COST OF THE REPAIRS. IT APPEARS THAT THIS MIGHT BE SOMETHING THAT NHTSA NEEDS TO CHECK INTO AS A POTENTIAL RECALL FOR ALL OF THE CARS WITH THIS TYPE OF ENGINE SOLD THROUGH GM AND PROVIDE THE CUSTOMER WITH AN ACCEPTABLE FIX FOR THE PROBLEM WITHOUT GUMMING UP THE RADIATOR ON A CAR WITH LESS THAN 7,000 MILES ON IT. PLEASE ADVISE ME OF MY OPTIONS WITH THE ABOVE PROBLEM. I MADE MY BEST EFFORT TO SOLVE IT WITH THE COMPANY AND GOT A POOR OPTION AS A SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM. I DON'T KNOW WHO ELSE TO TALK WITH. THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR LOOKING INTO THIS SITUATION.