1.9

hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
86,470 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2009 Buick Enclave:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #13

Jun 282015

Enclave

  • 36,650 miles
I had taken the car to Buick dealer for an oil change. I asked them to check if they saw a possible oil leak because I saw a few spots in the garage. They said there was a leak from a rubber bearing and the cost to fix that was 2700. Tool the car sears to have them double check. Sears said there was not leak. There was residual oil from oil change. This was on 06/20. Checked every day after that to see if the oil leaked again and it did not. On 06/28, while coming home with my kids, hear sudden noise, and in a few seconds smoke coming out from left front side of the car...lot of smoke. Got the kids and dog out safely. Tried to turn off the car...I had the key out but the car was still on. It just would not turn off. Tried taking it our of the garage and the steering would not turn. Somehow got the car on the curb and after trying a few time, the car did turn off. Noticed all the coolant had flushed on the floor. Got it towed to the dealer. Dealer said power steering gear and power steering pump burned and needs replacement. Also said it was because of a minor oil leak that was under the engine that caused it. Coolant flushing was covered and GM will pay for the fix but I will need to pay 2500 for the steering gear and pump replacement. This could have been a disaster and life threatening if it had happened at high speed. GM least concerned about it and not supportive or standing behind their cars. I have only 36K miles on it and would not have expected something like this. I read on some forums where a lot of people have had similar issues. For the safety of other Buick Enclave holders, I please request you to have Buick act on this and send a recall.

- Bloomington, IL, USA

problem #12

Jun 202015

Enclave 6-cyl

  • 91,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Buick Enclave. While driving 40 mph, the vehicle failed to shift into fourth or fifth gear. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 91,000. MA 10/19/2015 updated 10/26/2017

- Shelby, NC, USA

problem #11

Apr 012015

Enclave

  • 88,000 miles
While driving, vehicle misses occasionally, engine light blinks and transmission has a hard time shifting, then will run fine for a few minutes and do it again, this happens daily and every few minutes.

- Corbin, KY, USA

problem #10

Mar 162015

Enclave 6-cyl

  • 69,952 miles
My dealership identified a significant problem with the power steering gear on my vehicle that constituted a significant safety issue. Had it not been caught, my power steering inevitable would have failed while driving and resulted in a crash. I was also advised by the dealer and have learned through research that this is a very common problem affecting Buick Enclaves and other similar GM SUVS and crossovers. The repair work to correct this manufacturer defect is over $1500 and conveniently not covered by warranty. This is a significant and unacceptable issue and should result in a recall of all affected vehicles and reimbursement of repair costs to affected owners.

- Matwaan, NJ, USA

problem #9

Mar 032015

Enclave

  • 140,000 miles
No sound, just quit when I tried to increase speed. Onto highway I.had to pull over and went slowly into garage. The car has complete transmission failure, bad bearing on transfer case shaft, which is leading to 7 thousand dollars in repairs. I take great care of my cars and am very disappointed in the performance of this vehicle. I am surprised there are no recalls. Why would a transmission fail at this mileage? I am looking at another car manufacturer for my next vehicle. I have always purchased GM products.

- Stoughton, WI, USA

problem #8

Aug 012014

Enclave

  • 45,000 miles
In August of 2014, around 60K miles, I noticed a moan when I steered as well as a "knock" that I had heard previously and taken into the dealership under warranty (they said it was a tire rod; clearly it was not). I was aware the moan may be my power steering pump, so I brought it in for diagnostic appointment to a local repair shop. Not only did I find my power steering pump needed replacement, but that was the cause and effect of a much large issue- my steering rack was loose, and was disengaging from the mount, which in turn, caused the corruption of my power steering pump. I was told it was worsening very quickly and if I lost my steering rack from the mount, I could lose steering, which could result in a crash. I was informed this type of repair is highly unusual for a car this new, with no accident history, and otherwise in excellent condition, and is likely an "engineering issue." I am appalled at not only the price of these repairs which I paid out of pocket ($1,968.51), but after some research, how common this particular problem is with 2008 & 2009 Buick Enclaves, especially around 60K miles. The mileage on my vehicle now is 65,342.

- Anchorage, AK, USA

problem #7

Oct 222014

Enclave 6-cyl

  • 52,000 miles
Purchased a 2009 Buick Enclave in September 2014 with 49013, I drove it to Georgia October and noticed on the trip that the vehicle would roll back while in drive on an incline, both forward while in reverse and backward while in drive. After returning I scheduled an appointment with my dealer about the problem and was informed that the roll back was normal, I have driven many vehicles with automatic transmissions and have never encountered this problem. I checked on line and found many complaints about this from 2009 to 2011, I believe they corrected the problem in 2012. I feel this is a major safety problem and should be corrected before someone gets hurt or killed. Are they going to let this safety hazard continue like they let the ignition switch problem with General Motors vehicles continue until people were injured and killed. I have read that if they fix the problem it would increase the fuel consumption, I would rather have a safe automobile that get a little less miles per gallon then an unsafe car that could end up killing someone. This problem should be conveyed to people who are looking to purchase a Buick Enclave with this defect so they can decide if they want to drive a unsafe vehicle. I believe most of these problems began right after the bailouts by the government, could it be General Motors decided to cut back on safety features on its vehicles in order to regain their profitability in the car market and make them look good.

- Lewiston, NY, USA

problem #6

Nov 032014

Enclave 6-cyl

  • 68,140 miles
Battery was completely dead. Electrical system was shorted. Installed new battery. Vehicle started but would not shut off even with key removed. Check engine light stayed on and would not go off even with key removed. Found water leaked into dash. Checking internet brought other reports of other possible water leaks.

- Raceland, KY, USA

problem #5

Dec 022009

Enclave 6-cyl

  • 67,878 miles
In the past I had jerking or slipping of transmission at approximately 40 miles an hour, or the engine was having a coil miss fire. I had 3 new coils installed by dealer under warranty with similar problems before. Took to dealer and they could not determine if transmission was slipping or engine miss firing, but no code on miss firing engine. Slipping or hesitating of transmission is more likely but can not determine since does not act the same consistently. Steering noise started in the winter approximately November 2013, but off and on since; steering seems a little stiff but not failing yet like so many other complaints I have read about here. I was charged $342.81 for dirty throttle body and oil in the air dust tube which might cause misfire, they cleaned and replaced bank 2 value cover and cleared codes, performed idle lean reset. This did not fix problem on 05/19/2014. I returned on 06/10/14 and left car till 06/11/14 the dealer let me use a loaner over night. The dealer said stumble/misfire at times was not acting up enough to diagnose. I had the cars automatic transmission flush service on 02/26/14 and there was no problem at that time. In the course of owning this vehicle I had 3 coils replaced with problems starting 01/05/10 one coil, second coil on 08/11/10. Third coil shortly thereafter, this is after complaining since 12/02/2009 about engine shudder. The misfire/stumble is still happening about 40 mph and sometimes around 20mph if you are slow going but not on a pull or accelerating. We love the car, but the problems are getting expensive and the worry of what else can go wrong is stressful. I did not mention the warranty repairs of water pump going out front motor mount failure, shift lever, airbags, seat belts, left out remote mirror failure, engine and transmission code updates. Dealer seem ok, so GM can not fix or will not due to cost.

- Owasso, OK, USA

problem #4

Jul 272014

Enclave

  • 59,304 miles
While stopping for a traffic signal on a slight incline the vehicle began to roll backward. The engine would not hold even for the amount of time to move my foot onto the brake. Vehicle rolled backwards approximately 1-2 feet in process due to weight of auto and inability for drive train to retain the original position. Upon investigation I found this problem exists and will not be addressed by the manufacturer.

- Johnson City, TN, USA

problem #3

Nov 292013

Enclave 6-cyl

  • 57,000 miles
I took my car in to be fixed again. I needed the running lights and a hesitation in the car fixed. So they fixed the problems, but when they went to test drive it the power steering failed. Now the power steering needs to be replaced. It seems this car is needs to be fixed all the time. I have had a lot of cars and this is the most I have ever had problems with a car. It really scares me that this can be fixed but will most likely fail again due to the problems with GM's steering.

- Westfield, WI, USA

problem #2

Jul 272013

Enclave

  • 85,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Buick Enclave. While stopped and on a slight incline, the contact stated that the vehicle rolled away in reverse. The failure recurred several times. The vehicle was not repaired or diagnosed. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 85,000.

- Philadelphia, PA, USA

problem #1

Nov 152012

Enclave

  • 55,000 miles
Vehicle transmission either, slips, doesn't shift or shifts erratically. The engine misfires at times. Steering issues. Navigation system issues, strut failure, heated seat failure. ## VIN failed ##

- Fayetteville, WV, USA