Buick Lesabre Problems by Model Year
NHTSA recorded 3,720 consumer complaints across the 22 model years of the Buick Lesabre (1984–2005) that have at least 5 complaints. 2000 has the most, with 669. Across all years, the part named most often is engine cooling (664 mentions). Pick a model year below to see its parts, mileage, recalls and service bulletins.
Best and worst Lesabre years →
All Lesabre model years
Years with fewer than 5 complaints are not listed. The score compares years of the same model, allowing for the era and for how long each year has collected complaints: 50 is a typical year, lower means fewer complaints. It is not adjusted for sales volume.
| Year | Complaints | Median mi | Recalls | TSBs | Score (50 = typical) | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 77 | 52,000 | 0 | 516 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2004 | 162 | 63,450 | 0 | 402 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2003 | 164 | 50,000 | 1 | 379 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2002 | 310 | 60,000 | 2 | 336 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2001 | 328 | 61,000 | 0 | 290 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 2000 | 669 | 59,515 | 5 | 255 | Not compared (before 2008) | Falling |
| 1999 | 209 | 73,353 | 2 | 24 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1998 | 400 | 69,100 | 1 | 23 | Not compared (before 2008) | Rising |
| 1997 | 394 | 97,000 | 2 | 19 | Not compared (before 2008) | Rising |
| 1996 | 98 | 92,500 | 2 | 16 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1995 | 178 | 100,000 | 1 | 16 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1994 | 158 | 101,261 | 0 | 4 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1993 | 194 | 109,714 | 1 | 1 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1992 | 189 | 130,000 | 2 | 1 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1991 | 30 | 93,300 | 0 | 1 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1990 | 46 | 179,000 | 0 | 0 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1989 | 27 | 101,500 | 2 | 0 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1988 | 21 | 54,122 | 3 | 0 | — | Stable |
| 1987 | 40 | — | 4 | 0 | Not compared (before 2008) | Stable |
| 1986 | 16 | — | 2 | 0 | — | Stable |
| 1985 | 5 | — | 1 | 0 | — | Not enough data |
| 1984 | 5 | — | 2 | 0 | — | Not enough data |
Parts named most often, all years
Counts add up complaint mentions across the listed years. A complaint can name several parts.
- Engine cooling664 20%
- Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)576 17%
- Electrical system515 16%
- Brakes418 13%
- Fuel system302 9.1%
- Air bags288 8.7%
- Body and structure287 8.7%
- Transmission and drivetrain254 7.7%
Example complaints
One per model year, chosen for length and detail. Personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
2000: “I turn the ignition over didn't it did not even start yet a loud went boom and up under the hood was blazing with fire than my doors locked I could not get out I had to kick the opposite side and then I got out I had to call sleep fire rescue squad the fire was so bad it was going up under my carport and almost caught my roof on fire and almost did and did a little bit”
NHTSA complaint #11331285, filed 2020-06, 130,000 miles2002: “When I was getting ready to stop, I took my foot off of the gas pedal and was moving my foot over to the brake, the car suddenly speed up; I had to step on the brake extra hard to stop it. This has happened to me more than once. It doesn't happen all the time. I had one parking lot accident because of this issue.”
NHTSA complaint #11350443, filed 2020-08, 200,000 miles2001: “There was an oil smell while my car was running and the passenger side of the defrost stopped working. I took the vehicle into my mechanic. My mechanic told me that there was a lot of oil leaking onto the engine and it was not safe to drive it until this leak was fixed. I left the car at his shop while the parts were ordered. …”
NHTSA complaint #10924380, filed 2016-11, 144,000 milesOther Buick models
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About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Methodology