8.0

pretty bad
Typical Repair Cost:
No data
Average Mileage:
55,500 miles
Total Complaints:
2 complaints

Most common solutions:

  1. not sure (2 reports)
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problem #2

Mar 312011

LeSabre Limited V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 51,000 miles

I noticed the dashboard had slightly separated in the middle area sometime in March of 2011. My husband was severely ill at that time and I did not have the opportunity to call about the problem until June. Due to the illness, we lost our business, home, all vehicles except the Buick, savings and credit. (FYI: Losses were due to new healthcare bill which is horrifically deceptive as to what was promised when the bill was being sold to Americans). I had to move and find a place to live that was nearer to where my husband was hospitalized. It took me some time to find a dealer. I was told to bring the car in to be evaluated which would cost $80.00. I ask what a rough estimate would be to repair the dashboard and was told it could cost $1000.00 to $1500.00 because the entire dashboard had to be replaced and the windshield was subject to being broken which would also have to be replaced at my expense. There could be body damage as well, again repaired at my expense. Since I cannot afford that cost, I found an auto repair shop to get an estimate. I was told that since the government takeover of GM they were no longer allowed to do repair work on GM vehicles because they could not buy the parts since they are not GM dealers. I was also informed that this is a very frequent problem with this Buick model and that it should have been addressed by GM when it first became an issue as far back as the late 1990's. Over the past 2 months, I have been specifically looking at Buick LeSabre's that I see on the highway. We recently took a trip back home to visit, traveling thru 3 states. I have concluded that out of every 4 LeSabre models I saw, 3 of the cars have the separated, bulging dashboards. Apparently we have all been sold a vehicle that had this flaw which the manufacturer knew about. I am concerned now as to whether the airbags will deploy properly in the event of an accident. Since this is the only vehicle I was allowed to keep, it is the only vehicle I have for my husband, Jerry, to get back and forth to rehab. (Obamacare allowed a few in-home rehab visits so we have to go out to a facility and pay for it out of pocket. Another lie that was sold to all of us). I worry that after 376 days in the hospital and another 13 months in rehab, I might see Jerry suffer further debilitating injuries in an auto accident due to the airbags not operating as expected. I have been old that my auto insurance carrier could deny a claim for occupant and vehicle damages or that I could get a traffic ticket for operating a vehicle with faulty equipment. GMAC forced me to pay almost $4000.00 more than what was financed when I paid the loan off early back in 2005. Now I have this problem with the dashboard, and they want to charge me more than the car is worth to fix it. I will never own another GM vehicle and I have been using my power of TEN. Every time I tell 10 people about my experience with GM, they will each tell 10 people and pretty soon, hundreds, maybe even thousands of people will not want to deal with GM. BTW, my son spoke to an auto worker at GM that confirmed that dashboard separation is known to be a very common problem with the Buick LeSabre by the GM executives and that the manufacturer ignored it because they felt it was an issue that would never be reported or confirmed as a safety concern requiring a recall. I wish I had the time, money, and ability to collect the information about how many LeSabre owers have had this same problem so we could all join together to hold GM responsible.

- Jerry H., Danville, VA, US

problem #1

Dec 012010

LeSabre Limited V6

  • Automatic transmission
  • 60,000 miles

Dash coming apart, getting close to airbag, may come out driving down road. This has been reported to the buick dealer and complaint dept, say they're not going fix it. If air bag comes out and causes death or injury, bet the wish they had fixed it. Several Buick owners have reported this.

- jbthing74, Lexington, KY, US