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Comments
Other brands may be almost as well built as Michelin, but...
Symmetry tires are used on the Celebration models with the 16 in rims. (And on Sevilles.)
The Harmony would be a good replacement if you can't find X-Ones in the size still available in your area.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
One big point is how you drive. If you drive it gently it will last you a lot longer then if you're always seeing how fast it goes from 0 to 60.
Oh and the speakers are average, nice but nothing special.
Thank you.
Mark
Can someone tell me if this is 'normal' or has the seat been subjected to a 'heavy' load to the point it is now sagging (not apparent to me)?
Thanks
The engine noise is almost none existent in ours after about 30 seconds of warmup. There may be a hose touching the firewall or other part transmitting vibration. Ask to try another new vehicle if the dealer says it's normal.
The antenna system is tremendous in ours w/ OnStar present. Best antenna I've had -- something about both front and back windows having antennas. I'd blame the tint.
The force balancer is the way to go. I assume yours has Michelin Symmetry tires too. They seem a little stiff. But the suspension is sensitive to balance. Dealer had to zero out the balancer rather than balancing to nearest 1/4 ounce. The road force variation in tires was 11 and below. 19 is considered the high number measured by the force balancer. There are service bulletins about this which have been changing.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
GM is a terrible company staffed with incompetent and dishonest people. We will never buy another GM car.
My advise will be to go to other dealers and see if one could fix your problems.
Oh come on. Give me a break. You had a problem with one dealer, therefore the whole company is inept and criminal. You should read the Honda Accord Problems Part II and the Honda Accord Quality Control issues forums and others. A major problem and the Honda Company still builds the most wonderful cars in the world. A GM part breaks and they remember it for two decades and indict the company and all its associates forever.
My car's been great. Few problems; much fewer than if I had fallen for the accord or camry. Check their forums with a reality meter.
To others: I'm sorry for responding to the bait.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
LeSabre is suppose to be a great car, but based on my and others experience it does not deserve that rating.
I believe you'll pay more, spend more for service, and may find the same problems you're currently having. IF you buy the comparable car (2nd in series) you'll pay a lot more and more to maintain, which another poster pointed out to you in July.
When you accused me of working for GM, that was wrong. If I worked for GM, I'd be much clearer in my message. Then you told me, "You like GM cars: so go and buy them, but donot try to mislead others people." sic.
Read the Pilot, Accord Problems Part II!, Accord Quality Problems, CAmry, Avalon, etc., columns, and tell them h ow bad their dealers are.
Just my opinion.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
I think Buick is still soliciting the same demographic that it has been catering to for at least the past 20 years (Tiger Woods or no, and the resurrected Harley Earl isn't working for me) and that has been and continues to be a problem for them. GM has been trying lately to overhaul their entire way of thinking about car design in an attempt to recapture this market segment (cars, not trucks) but so far all I've seen are expensive new Cadillacs.
Enjoy your Chevy or whatever car you own.
Thanks.
"For those who have the Stabilitrak option on your Buick LeSabre, have any of you had the Stabilitrak come on while driving? I'm a relatively new Buick LeSabre owner with the Stabilitrak, but have yet to see the Stabilitrak activated. For those who have seen Stabilitrak come on, did you notice it, how was it like, and did it help in preventing a skid or going out of control?"
I have had several opportunities to use stabilitrak, and it is wonderfull. Unless you are deliberately trying to drive like Micheal Schumacher in the rain (I confess to this), you probably won't notice it coming on. And that is a good thing! Because the system is very subtle and just coaxes the car back onto the right line. In comparison, the stability control in my wife's BMW is heavy handed and, I think, ultimately destabilizing as it causes extreme inertial shifts at the wrong time. To test stabilitrak, wait for a rainy day and find a wide, lightly-traveled road, like a state highway, which allows an entrance with an 90 degree right turn. point the car and floor it. you'll be amazed. the car will drive a perfect line onto the highway, with just the right amount of wheelspin to keep it pointed in the right place.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Obviously, you don't want to try this in heavy traffic!
My point is that stabilitrak will allow a certain degree of wheelspin, so it is very subtle and not easy to notice. In contrast, my wife's BMW will snap the throttle pretty much full shut the moment any slippage is detected. Sort of weird, really. The "oldster" buick supports and even encourages enthusiastic driving, while the "ultimate driving machine" discourages it.
I might add that I have a supercharged 2000 ultra, not a LeSabre. The stabilitrak should be the same, but because I've got a bit more power the results of my "experiment" might be a bit more dramatic in the ultra.
Thanks!
It is best to find a good dealer and test the car thoroghy: on the highway at relatively fast speed and in slow traffic. Cabin noise due to defective workmanship is quite common. Finding a honest and well regarded dealer is a must.
Radio is superb with 8 speakers. HUD display is great for driving.
Wheels needed to be rebalanced by the dealer on a force balancer to get rid of some slight vibration. The car is sensitive to the large tires. Since the Park Avenue, Aurora, Deville, Seville are all built with essentially the same parts and design, they all have had problems with tire balance and roundness. My LeSabre has Michelins, best of the bunch for roundness.
34-36 mpg on level interstates. 31 is typical average for long interstate trips. 24 is around town short trips driven by my wife during the week.
Recommend you drive the one you're going to buy and take it up to interstate speeds. Dependable engine.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Good luck with your car. I hope your dealer corrects the car problems.
I can't imagine that low, ours gives 24 in short trips and suburban drives, 1 mile type trips when my wife is driving it. Maybe in center city with a stoplight every block it could give 12... Is the DIC set on English units or metric???
Glad the torque converter noise was fixed. I hadn't heard of that problem. I know of no one with a LeSabre with a legitimate gripe about the 03s and up.
Make sure yours does not need the update bolts on the air intake and the antiseep pellets in the radiator which was a service update done on some 03s and earlier models of 3800 engine a few months ago. Your service manager will know what you're talking about when you ask. IF yours was built late in the model year it won't be in the group.
Enjoy your car.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Monday before posting I went to a used car lot to see what they would give me, as I was worried that going into the transmission so early was a forecast of trouble to come. After discovering I would be losing $5K from original purchase price, that calculated to $4.76 per mile used if I sold a 4mo old car. I have until next week to decide and would appreciate any reassurance from folks out there that I should keep this car and not worry. My previous cars have never had any problems so I am unfamiliar with dealing with warranties and what I can expect from the dealer as to help if this car continues to have problems.
As to your warranty concerns, do not let it, or your dealer intimidate you. Think of it like a health insurance policy for your car. For the first 36 months or 36,000 miles; whichever occurs first, anything except normal wear items such as brakes or fuel filters should be repaired without hassle or cost to you. If the service department at your dealer gives you any flak find a new dealer. If you have an extended warranty the same applies except there may be a deductible you pay for each event. However, even if you purchase an extended warranty, the initial factory warranty with zero deductible takes precedence over the extended warranty until after the initial 36month/36,000 mile warranty period. If you have questions or concerns do not hesitate to get in touch with me personally or contact this group.
I do have Michelin Symmetry tires and but do not have the Grad Touring suspension option (kind of wish I had it though, read below, but one sales guy in 2000 said it didn't make a difference).
Took off (3 hour job) the rear window metallic tint (which the owners manual says not to use metallic) and had 3M non-metallic non-fade guaranteed but expensive tint added. AM radio works great again.
As far as the vibration and other issues with visits to the dealer at around 2660 miles, here is what has happened with more questions:
1. First visit to the dealer for vibrations (and other issues) and they did road forced match balanced the tires (were 3, 8, 20, 14) per the TSB 00-03-10-003C (is this really a TSB and what does it say?) and they got 6, 9, 17, and 13. As 17 is high, they replaced it with a new tire of 6. Also, they replaced the front motor mount (part 25736430) as they said it was a little low. I believed they looked at the mount since I complained about the car vibrating and noisy when idling in drive. Further, they tried to put the rear AC duct that was laying on the floor from the factory up into the front center armrest hinge area per design. When I picked up the car, the duct was hanging half way out, showed the service writer and he had the shop shove it up all the way. It is now all the way out again. Does anyone else have this problem with the rear duct hanging out on the floor? For the record, they did satisfactorily fix (and wash car) on the first visit 5 other minor complaints including seat cover detachments under front driver seat area.
After driving away, car vibrated about the same and now pulled to the left when cruising at highway speeds. Do you think installing the motor mount could cause the pull? So, after my first visit for warranty work, the car seemed worse than it was before service and I was pretty happy the way it was before I took it in - just trying to get it perfect for paying $30k.
2. Took it back a second time and went for a test drive with the shop manager. He accelerated and said it has a slight left pull. They checked the tires and rotated with same result so they performed an alignment (receipt says "align ... pull and torque steer analysis"). Set front caster toe and rear toe adjustments. He said rear was way out.
After driving away, car still vibrates (guess I am getting use to it), pulls a little left or sometimes now right (all on smooth flat roads), and now really vibrated above 65 mph.
3. Took it back a third time and had another test drive with the shop manager for a long highway ride. He brought an electronic vibration sensor that did show unacceptable vibrations (7 readings) at 65 and even worse at 75. He said the slight pulls were acceptable and that a pull to the right is preferred if the driver falls asleep. This time, they did another road force balance and rotations. Manager had to road test it 3 times during repair until it got better. They also have ordered a steering damper (PN 16866989) per some TSB I believe to help with idle in gear vibrations even though the whole car vibrates slightly. Further, they said it probably would not help but should do it to satisfy the factory steps. Should I let them put this in and what exactly is it?
Car still has slight pulls and vibrations. High-speed high vibrations have been for the most part fixed.
Now going back for a forth time next week to have them add the damper part I guess. Read that the bolts and holes on the hubs and wheels may not be centered (or run out on the bolt patterns problem). Has anyone had this problem with the 2003 platforms? Also, shop manager said he thought for other related platform vibrations, but not the LeSabre, that there is a TSB that says to add the heavy-duty suspension parts for vibration issues (I guess he is referring to the grand touring option parts?). Has anyone heard about this and have more details? I did find on an Edmunds Pontiac Bonneville (same platform as LeSabre) sight discussions about vibrations TSB 00-03-10-007E (April 03) for Aurora, Bonneville, DeVille, Park Avenue & Ultra, and LeSabre, that says to replace, as a last resort in the TSB, the lower control arms with a newly developed hydro-bushing lower control arm with improved damping characteristics (PN 25746324-Left, P/N 25746325) but only not on the LaSabre! Maybe this TSB is what the shop manager was referring too when he talked about heavy-duty grand touring suspension TSB addition? Further, the TSB says, "Customers who have become "tuned in" to the shake condition may still feel some shake in the vehicle..." Dose anyone know why LeSabre was excluded or if it is worth trying to get it implemented?
Other further side notes: Friends 2000 LeSabre Limited (with Grand Touring Suspension/Stabil Track but different stock tires then the 03's, think they are self sealing) rides really smooth with no vibrations. Also, I did complain about the headrests not raising far enough as I am 6' 2" and they said that's as far as they go. (As an aside, thought I read that the head rests will auto rise if not up already up if in an accident?) Finally, I thought about adding Park Avenue Ultra rear head rests. Any comments on this rear head rest addition idea? Thanks.
If the car is well-aligned then the car may seem to pull or drift with the crown of the road. Also a front-wheel-drive vehicle will have some torque steer (pulling to the left) under heavy acceleration -- my Bonneville does. All normal for this car.
Not sure about the steering damper. I give them credit if they are trying to follow the TSBs carefully but there's always the risk that they will make things worse by messing with it too much.
Sounds like you've done your homework and are paying close attention to what the dealer is doing. Keep us updated if you learn anything new.
Otherwise great, 24/30 MPG's, smooth, powerful. Have touring package, 16 inch Micheline Symetry tires, but have noticed the aforementioned slight vibration in drive at a stop light. Thanks.
Congrats on your car.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
(P05) Wheels, 16" (40.6 cm) aluminum, chrome-plated, 7-spoke exclusive
(N66) Wheels, 16" (40.6 cm) aluminum, cross-lace
Exterior Color (54U) Light Bronzemist Metallic
Exterior Color (87U) Cabernet Red Metallic
Engine compartment lighting
(DR2) Mirrors, outside rearview, electrochromic, driver
(PDB) Platinum Edition
(PDJ) Comfort and Style Package
New Features
Exterior Color (15U) Cashmere Metallic
Exterior Color (23U) Sagemist Metallic
Exterior Color (49U) Bordeaux Red Metallic
(QC4) Wheels, 16" (40.6 cm) aluminum
Changes
(UE1) OnStar is now standard on all equipment groups.
The car now rides great and is vibrationless. It is a real pleasure to drive.
I thought the Yokos were sort of the emperor's new clothes of Tire Rack. Everyone seemed to give it good reviews because everyone else gave it good reviews. They seem to be a little quieter than the Gens.
I gave the used 35K Gens to a friend. They now have over 60K and still are OK and have plenty of treadwear left, especially for someone who could not afford new tires. These used Gens quieted his car down noticeably. Maybe the Gens were not such bad tires. I just cautioned him to slow down in the rain to prevent hydoplaning.
I don't know if I will go back to Michelin for the next set yet, but the Yokos compare favorably to the X-ones I have on my other car. The Mich. are somewhat noisier.
Time for Buick to move into this new century we started almost four years ago.
Did the motor not work? Did the switches go bad?
I am not clear on what a regulator is...
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
BTW, the regulator is the mechanism the glass is attached to that the motor uses to raise and lower the window. I'm thinking that the whole assembly has one weak spot made out of plastic or nylon that is prone to breaking. Typical GM quality.