Steering locked while driving on highway. Car would speed up on its own without touching the gas peddle. This occurred as soon as the car was taken out of park.
Buick Century steering lock-up problems
12 of the 1,688 owner complaints about the Buick Century describe steering wheel locks up, most of them for the 1997 model year.
- owner complaints
- 12
- worst model year
- 1997
- typical mileage
- 102,000
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall for this area of the car. See below
By model year
- 20012
- 19992
- 19983
- 19975
Often reported together
What owners say
Steering wheel locks up while making a turn
I was making a left turn and the steering locked and there was a loud bang. I wasn't able to complete the turn causing me to drive off the road and onto a lawn. The steering wheel wouldn't go back to the correct position and it seemed to be in manual steering mode. I could barely move the wheel. The car is not drivable at this time.
1) car needed towed to garage for starter failure. As it left the garage the steering locked up and sent car almost into oncoming traffic with 2 children in the car. There had been no other warnings of a problem. 2) it happens every time the steering is turned one direction then back to the other. It does not just come back. Especially to the left. I almost crashed 4 times just trying to get it home. 3) I filed an insurance claim on the tow company thinking they were responsible. They looked at it and said they found nothing wrong, that nothing was bent. After getting on line and investigating, I learned of this steering problem. It matches it perfectly. I had someone knowledgeable of mechanics look at the car and they said the steering gear rack needs replaced and not to drive the car as it is. It is to dangerous to drive. I also just had new intake manifold gasket from the decool problem gm has. Now I have a car that I can't drive and can't afford to fix. Nobody assumes liability and I think gm should have had this recalled and corrected.
Tl*the contact owns a 1999 buick century. Whenever the contact makes a left turn or a u-turn, the steering wheel locks and becomes difficult to turn. The dealer stated that the suspension steering rack locks up when making a left turn. The dealer repaired the failure and the vehicle is currently operating normally. The failure mileage was 75,000. Updated 03/04/09. *lj updated 03/04/09.
1997 buick century-steering locks up randomly causing loss of vehicle control.
1997 buick century-steering locks up randomly causing loss of vehicle control.
Power steering locked up when making left turns. The steering wheel either locked, did not go into the full turns or was very difficult to turn. Dealership indicated that there was a defect in the rack and pinion as described in steering gear bearings recall 03v527000. However, this vehicle was not included in the recall due to VIN.
While driving 60 MPH, the vehicle was hit by another vehicle on the front passenger side. The consumer stated that both frontal air bags did not deploy upon impact. The driver sustained minor injuries as a result. *nm the consumer tried to avoid the accident but the steering wheel locked up and the vehicle shut off. *sc
While in motion there was a thumping noise emmiting from the right front tire. The steering wheel locked and the key would not return it to it's normal postion. Also there is a problem with the brakes, also the gear would not shift out of park.*jg
Related recalls
Steering: linkages: knuckle: spindle: arm
- What is wrong
- The right hand spindle nut was not properly tightened during assembly. This can cause premature wheel bearing failure and over time, the spindle can fracture.
- Risk
- This would cause the wheel to separate from the axle and result in a vehicle crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect the torque on the right hand front spindle nut. If the spindle nut is undertorqued the dealer will replace the right hand front wheel bearing assembly and the spindle nut will be replaced.
Recall number 94V189000 · Recall details
Questions about the Buick Century steering lock-up
Which Buick Century years have steering wheel locks up problems?
The model years with the most reports are 1997 (5 complaints), 1998 (3 complaints) and 1999 (2 complaints).
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