Buick Regal Problem
bazza99_99
Member Posts: 3
I own a 1993 Buick Regal which has approximately
70,000 on the clock. Recently we started having a
problem whereby the car would stop without any
warning. The engine would just 'die'. The engine
could be cranked but would not fire until the car
had been standing for about 5-10 minutes. It
appeared to be a fuel starvation problem that only
occured every 2-3 weeks.
The car has been serviced regularly and I was
initially told that the fuel pump was suspect. I
replaced both the fuel pump and the filter, and the
fuelline filter. At the same time I also made sure
that the tank was clean before reinstalling. It
ran fine for 2 weeks and then stopped again without
warning.
Has anybody else experienced a similar problem
with this make/model ? My gut feeling is a fuel
'chip' problem......but would like a second (or
third) opinion before proceeding. Any advice would
be greatly appreciated. Thanks
70,000 on the clock. Recently we started having a
problem whereby the car would stop without any
warning. The engine would just 'die'. The engine
could be cranked but would not fire until the car
had been standing for about 5-10 minutes. It
appeared to be a fuel starvation problem that only
occured every 2-3 weeks.
The car has been serviced regularly and I was
initially told that the fuel pump was suspect. I
replaced both the fuel pump and the filter, and the
fuelline filter. At the same time I also made sure
that the tank was clean before reinstalling. It
ran fine for 2 weeks and then stopped again without
warning.
Has anybody else experienced a similar problem
with this make/model ? My gut feeling is a fuel
'chip' problem......but would like a second (or
third) opinion before proceeding. Any advice would
be greatly appreciated. Thanks
0
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
Many years ago also had a similar problem with a 75 Mustang - but only in the summer on a real hot day when the engine compartment would get real hot which caused the computer to overheat and quit working. Let it sit around for about 10-15 minutes and it would restart.
Go to the parts store or talk to your mechanic. See if there is something expensive inyou could put on a spark plug wire to see if it is firing. The next time the problem occurs have someone crank the engine while you check to see if you are getting fire (spark) to the plugs. If you are it is not an ignition electrical problem. If it does not fire you have an ignition problem and not a fuel problem. HAPPY HUNTING AND GOOD LUCK.
Looked like a safe way to check for spark without getting zapped.
I had the exact same problem on my '91 Regal. After a lot of effort I found the vacuum hose to the fuel pressure regulator to be porous. That's why it stalls when hot and is erratic. Change it! It's simple, cheap, and you'll solve your problem!
covering the problem and took it down to the dealer for repair. They dug up the bulletin, replaced the defective part, #53030657AC Motor, and I've had no problem since.
Check the Recall bulletins on the Regal.
2. or it can be ignition module.
GSE.I have some minor dash rattles but only when it is warm outside.My passenger side window motor burned out,but was replaced under
warranty.Recently my automatic climate control
display is hard to read when I first start the car
but after the car warms up a little the display is normal.Has anyone else experienced this problem?
I will have my dealer look at it when I go in for my oil change.
Same thing happened with the Service Engine Soon light...changed the ELM module under warranty and never had another problem
Mine has 105,000 miles, five years old and it's in pristine condition. Never had any problem with the car except routine maintenance...very happy and will try to keep it another 100,000 miles. I only bought it back then because I drove a Buick Skyhawk for 150,000 with no problems and thought I'd keep the loyality...I'm glad I did.
You will be happy in three years I'm sure...so don't worry.
THANK YOU!
Have you posted this question in the Sedans conference? There are many Regal owners there who have the info you need and I think you will get more responses there.
This conference focuses on existing maintenance problems or general maintenance issues.
Your host, Bruce
After 70,000 the problems started. We've replaced the rack & pinion (don't know how to spell that), power steering pump, alternator, water pump, $500 for a/c, and the steering still hisses at me. The blinkers are on the fritz, and at the bottom of one particular exit ramp the blink sound is very loud - like it is amplified. Doesn't happen anywhere else or all of the time. Now the a/c is cold, but doesn't have a lot of air coming out.
I still love the pep when you step on the gas, but I'm tired of the problems. We also wouldn't buy a foreign car, but my next purchase (next week) will be a Toyota.
Does anyone have any idea why my blinkers would sound amplified at the bottom of one exit ramp???
Broken gas gauge (ran out of gas once!)
Broken power window switch on passenger side.
Dead battery (no lights were left on)
Intermittent electrical short that causes all gauge lights to flicker or just go out .
Bad passenger air bag.
Did I mention that this car just eats tires 2nd set in 45K miles is almost gone (it can't be my lead foot)
Other than these minor things I still love this car and its power.
greg
I suggest you take a look at this topic:
Buick Regal
in our Sedans conference. You should find a much more balanced viewpoint, lots more advice on whether the 99 LS can be had for that amount of money and on which model might be considered the "better" car. You can just click on that link to go directly to that topic.
Good luck.
Pat
Community Leader/Maintenance & Repair Conference
Also, I had the same flickering of the dash problem, one time only, and the dealer could not replicate the problem so no fix....
They told me that my tie rods are going bad, too much play in them side to side. The car has 14,000 miles on it and they suggested that I take it to my dealer for repair.
Has anyone else experienced this problem?
1) replaced the cruise control module
2) found and fixed a short in the ABS module
3) replaced a solenoid in the transmission
(they hooked up a bionic ear and heard the noise in the transmission....)
4) replaced another solenoid..
(this was a redesigned solenoid model recommended by a Detroit Buick engineer...)
5) replaced ANOTHER solenoid...
(who knows...)
6) put in a new transmission!
(if all else fails...)
Guess what, the noise is still there.
I'm talking with dealer management and Buick management now to see if I can settle without arbitration. I think I have a firm case for a Lemon Law claim in NC. I just wanted to see if anyone out here ever heard of this before. Buick sure doesn't seem to know how to fix it!!
Mine was a '98 Intrigue.
Don't know the lemon laws in NC, but wish
you well.
At this point, if the dealer isn't offering it,
request that they put you in contact with
the factory rep for Buick. They have some other fancy name for factory rep(which I forgot) but they know who you mean if you say "Lemon Law rep". This person is NOT
an employee of the dealership.
The dealer I dealt with (and even Olds customer service) were pretty evasive and
kept trying to fix the car and kept refusing
to put me in contact with the factory rep.
I imagine you hate to hear this, but you may
have to consider/hire a Lemon law attorney; I didn't, but that's just me.
By the time the Olds factory rep dealt with me,
he stated "I should have gotten this case
a long time ago".
Once I dealt with him, it was a breeze.
I do know this though. If you are going to persue as a Lemon law issue, do NOT
let them try and fix your car again.
Once they fix it, (although, why should we think
they could now, if they haven't in 6 trys...) they
will tell you that they have satisfied the terms
of the warranty and Lemon law no longer applies to this problem. But only if the problem goes away.
Now your problem is different than mine in that when they fixed my car, the fix lasted about two months, then the problem came back.
It seems like even if they do fix yours again, the noise probably won't go away.
Point is, the car has to still be broken to persue Lemon law (at least here in California)
so be careful what you let them do at this point
(disclaimer: I am not an attorney, I'm only sharing what Olds told me back when I went
thru this; use your own judgement...).
Also, be sure you are still within mileage limits or whatever terms your state dictates as valid to persue the Lemon law (again, don't know
what that is there).
If GM does "repurchase" the car from you, they should offer you cash as one of your options. In my case, they paid me, the price
I paid for the car, plus tax, license and registration. Minus a per mile use charge
and minus any DEALER installed options.
In my case I was around 11,000 miles and
had a $200.00 dealer installed security system (that I could not for the life of me
get them to take off when I was buying the car)
So I got back all the money mentioned above
minus about $800.00 for use (and that stinking add on security system); which I thought was fair.
If you are not offered something like I mentioned above, it may just be the dealer
trying to hornswaggle you (like basically
trade in your car, give you blue book and make
you buy a new car at retail). Lemon law
does not work that way. You should get all
the stuff I mentioned above, unless for some reason, you don't qualify for lemon law.
If you can't persue Lemon law but are
still within warranty, then disregard what I
said about not letting the dealer try to fix it
again. Obviously, if you have to keep the car
and someone has to pay for repairs, better
them than you.
I wish you sucess.
If you have had the entire transmission replaced with no improvement, maybe it is something such as a cable attached to the transmission that is activated when slowing vehicle speed.
Regarding the alternator, ask your Buick dealer for the service bulletin which gives the part number for the larger alternator (and longer serpentine belt) which will eliminate the alternator frying problem.
If the owner's manual says 100 ft/lbs, it means 100 ft/lbs for the wheels the car came equipped with.