2001 BUICK PARK AVENUE Complaints

The contact owns a 2001 Buick Park Avenue. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, the hood exploded and caught on fire. The fire was extinguished with 3 buckets of water. There was no property damage. It was unknown whether warning lights illuminated after the failure. There was no injury sustained; however, the contact stated that the incident was traumatic. The vehicle remained at the contact's residence, pending evaluation. No police report was filed. The contact related the failure to an unknown recall. The dealer and the manufacturer were not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was unknown. The failure mileage was approximately 200,000.

THE MOTOR CAUGHT ON FIRE EVERYTHING IN THE HOOD CAUGHT ON FIRE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET. ORLANDO STREET FRESNO CA 93706.

UPPER INTAKE MANIFOLD EXPLODED INTO AT LEAST 10 PIECES DURING START UP. STATIONARY . HAD NOT BEEN STARTED FOR TWO DAYS. IN DRIVEWAY.

OUR 2001 BUICK HAS HAD A ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRE IT IS THE SAME CAUSE AS THIS RECALL- [XXX] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -CLOSE INVESTIGATION SUBJECT : ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES , 1 RECALL(S) DATE INVESTIGATION OPENED: OCT 22, 2002 DATE INVESTIGATION CLOSED: MAR 09, 2004 NHTSA ACTION NUMBER: EA02030 COMPONENT(S): FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

ANY TIME THE THE BATTERY IS DISCONNECTED THE GAS NEEDLE GOES ON THE WRONG SIDE AND WILL NOT COME BACK IN PLACE UNTIL THE DASH IS REMOVED AND THIS PROBLEM IS FIXED AT A DEALERSHIP AND THIS COST.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 BUICK PARK AVENUE. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS IDLING, THE CONTACT NOTICED FLUID LEAKINF ON THE GROUND. APPROXIMATELY A YEAR AGO, THE VEHICLE HAD AN ABNORMAL ODOR. THE FAILURE OCCURRED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS CONFIRMED THAT THERE WAS AN OIL LEAK THAT LEAKED ONTO THE MANIFOLD, WHICH CAUSED THE ABNORMAL ODOR. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE. THE CONTACT WAS MADE AWARE OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 15V701000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING); HOWEVER, THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 135,000.

A 2001 BUICK PARK AVENUE WAS PURCHASED ON APRIL 27, 2014. IT RAN GOOD UNTIL SEPTEMBER 19, 2014. ON THAT DAY MY SON WAS DRIVING THE VEHICLE. SUDDENLY THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT STARTED FLASHING AND THE CAR LOST ALL POWER ON A SIDE ROAD. HE WAS ABLE TO START IT AFTER HAVING TO PULL OVER WITH NO LIGHTS, POWER BRAKES OR STEERING. I TOOK IT FOR A TEST RIDE AND IT DID THE SAME THING. WE GOT IT HOME AND FAILED TO REPAIR IT BY OURSELVES. WE TOOK IT TO A REPAIR GARAGE AND THEY SAID THE PROBLEM WAS THE MAF SENSOR. THE TECHNICIAN SHOWED ME HOW TO TAP ON THE ENCLOSURE (WITH A SCREWDRIVER) WHICH HOUSED THE PART AND THE ENGINE WOULD SPUTTER AND MISS. AFTER INSTALLING A NEW MAF SENSOR IT NOW RUNS FINE. WE LOOKED AT THE VEHICLE HISTORY AND IT NEEDED A NEW MAF SENSOR TWO OTHER TIMES. ONCE AT 9/2013 AND ANOTHER AT 6/2012. IT IS SURPRISING AND SHOCKING THAT THE FAILURE OF THIS PART CAUSES THE ENTIRE ENGINE TO SHUT DOWN, CREATING A DANGEROUS SITUATION. A BRAND NEW MAF SENSOR FROM THE BUICK DEALER COSTS $430 WHICH IS OBVIOUSLY GEARED TOWARDS SELLING TO REPAIR SHOPS VS. DO IT YOURSELF MECHANICS. THIS RIDICULOUS HIGH PRICE HAS CREATED A MARKET FOR CHEAPER MAF SENSORS WHICH MAY OR MAY NOT BE OEM PARTS. THE PART REMOVED WAS A DELPHI SENSOR WHICH ONLY LASTED ONE YEAR. GM HAS GOT TO COME UP WITH A SOLUTION TO THIS POTENTIALLY DEADLY PROBLEM. IT IS PUTTING PEOPLE AT RISK. SIMPLY BUYING AN AUTHENTIC GM PART IS NOT ENOUGH BECAUSE IT STILL EVENTUALLY FAILS AND THE CAR TOTALLY SHUTS DOWN, WHICH IS UNACCEPTABLE. A SEARCH ON THE INTERNET REVEALS OTHERS WITH THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM. *TR

MY DAUGHTER HAD A HEAD ON ACCIDENT WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE AIRBAG DID NOT DEPLOY IN OUR 2001 BUICK PARK AVE. SHE DIED FROM HER INJURIES. SHE WAS 17 YEARS OLD. *TR

DRIVING DOWN THE EXPRESSWAY, THE CAR JUST SHUT OFF. MY DAUGHTER WAS ABLE TO GET IT TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD WITHOUT WRECKING (LUCKILY), IT WOULD NOT RESTART, WE HAD THE CAR TOWED. THE CODE READER INDICATED A PROBLEM WITH THE ANTI-THEFT SYSTEM. IF YOU CLEAR THE CODES, OR DISCONNECT THE BATTERY, THE CAR WILL START. THIS HAS HAPPENED MULTIPLE TIMES. MY DAUGHTER HAS LEARNED HOW TO CLEAR CODES WITH A CODE READER, BUT THIS IS UNSAFE. THE DEALER SAYS THEY HAVE NOT HAD A RECALL ON THIS, BUT IT SOUNDS EXACTLY LIKE THE OTHER IGNITION SWITCH PROBLEMS ON THE OTHER GM VEHICLES. THEY NEED TO BE RECALLED!! *TR

ON 4 SEPARATE OCCASIONS AND WHILE TRAVELING AT SPEED AROUND 50-65 MILES PER HOUR MY CAR WOULD JUST SHUT OFF. I WOULD LOOSE POWER STEERING AND IT WOULD BE HARD TO OPERATE THE VEHICLE. THE LAST TIME THIS HAPPENED I WAS ON A MAJOR FREEWAY AND HAD TO PULL OVER AS CARS WOULD JUST DRIVE BY AT 60 MILES PER HOUR OR FASTER. I THINK IT IS RIDICULOUS THAT MY CAR IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE AND IF I OR MY FAMILY WOULD HAVE BEEN HURT OR KILLED I AM SURE GM WOULD ADD MORE CARS TO THE RECALL. WHY SHOULD I HAVE TO WAIT FOR A TRAGIC INCIDENT TO HAPPEN. I TOOK MY CAR TO A SHOP AND THEY INFORMED ME THAT IS WAS THE IGNITION ISSUE DUE TO THE PK3 SECURITY SYSTEM GM HAS ON THIS CAR. *TR