We purchased a used 2008 buick enclave and the passenger seat air bag indicator light shows the air bag to be off as often as on when an adult passenger is seated there. This is a major safety issue when you think you are protected and you are not.
2008 Buick Enclave airbags complaints
Page 5 of 5: complaints 101 to 113 of 113, newest first, as owners wrote them.
The passenger airbag indicator inconsistently registers off when my wife or others sit in the passenger seat of our 2008 buick enclave. We have taken it to the dealer many times and they say it is working as designed. Gm is ignoring this safety issue. We are very concerned that this protection system is not working properly.
I have a 2008 buick enclave for which the passenger side airbag sensor only detects a low weight (110 lb) adults about 50% of the time. The other 50% of the time it turns the airbag off even though there is an adult in the seat. Apparently this is a known issue. See other cases at http://www.enclaveforum.net/index.php?topic=449.0. Why isn't a recall issued over such a potential safety issue?
Tl*the contact owns a 2008 buick enclave. While driving approximately 45 MPH on normal road conditions, the front passenger side air bag warning indicator failed to illuminate whenever an occupant was positioned in the seat. The failure occurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for diagnostic testing and they stated that the failure was related to a faulty seat sensor. The seat sensor was replaced twice. The vehicle was taken to the authorized dealer on seven separate occasions for identical failures, but there were no resolutions. The failure and current mileages were unavailable. Updated 5\26\09 *cn the air bag light would come on and go off at random times, when the passenger seat was occupied. Updated 05/28/09.
I own a 2008 buick enclave and twice now in less than four months my air bag service light has come on. Both times I have taken the car to the dealers and both times they have cleared the code and have not fixed the problem. They seem to lack the technical know how or willingness to fix this problem. According to the service advisor this is a common problem with this vehicle and I am surprised that gm is not taking this safety problem seriously.
Ltr re problems he is having with the airbag system in his 2008 buick enclave. *nj the consumer stated the service air bag light illuminated. The consumer thought the problem was fixed the first time, but the air bag light illuminated again. The consumer believed the dealer was just clearing the codes and not trying to find out what the cause of the problem was.
Passenger front seat airbag does not work properly. 132 lbs, 5'8" female sitting in passenger seat gets intermittent "on" status for the airbag when car running. Tends to be in the "off" mode about 80% of the time with this same person sitting in the seat. The first time this was addressed was in sept of 2007 during the test drive prior to purchase. At that time we contacted on-star while the same passenger described above was sitting in the seat and the sales rep was present. On-star rep could find no problem and suggested restarting the car. We did and the airbag went to the "on" position. About three months later (after purchase) the passenger airbag began to register in the "off" position most of the time. Restarting the car did not always solve the problem. Within the past month we have only seen the "on" light three times while the same passenger is in the seat. We took the car to the dealership 2 times and they said they could find nothing wrong and that the passenger must be too light and therefore it is unsafe for the airbag to be in the "on" position. It is our contention that there is in fact something wrong with the bag deployment system especially given the system would in fact be "on" sometimes. However gm was unwilling to provide passenger weight parameters so we could further investigate if the sensor is malfunctioning. In checking with the federal safety agency for national specifications we found it uses a 108 lbs 5'2' dummy to ensure deployment. As noted above we are talking about a person 24 lbs heavier and 6" taller than the minimum the federal safety agency specification. So there must be something wrong and gm does not seem willing to help us with this problem. This is very unsafe for the passenger. I am the primary driver. I am 120 lbs and 5'4". Gm says the passenger must be too light an therefore it is unsafe to have an airbag. If this is the case then why is the driver side airbag designed for someone my size and weight. They can't have it both ways.
My airbag sensor light came on and I immediately took it to the dealer. I was told the part was on order. After not hearing anything for 10 days I called and was told that the part would not be available for 5-6 weeks. I have a new vehicle without a properly functioning airbag and the only thing gm could do was give me a rental car. I am concerned because after researching this I discovered that this is not a problem with only my enclave but also with others. I also found that there was a similar problem in the acadia and there was a recall but nothing is being done by gm regarding the enclave. When I tried to contact the gm executive office I was told that there was nothing else they could do and I could either drive a rental car or drive my car without the airbag.
The front passenger airbag system on my '08 buick enclave cxl does not activate 100% of the time when the seat is occupied. I have taken it to the dealership where I purchased the car twice and was told there was nothing wrong. They told me that they had at least three other enclaves in the shop at the same time as mine with the same complaint and that nationwide, other enclaves owners were making the same complaint. They told me that if the passenger does not sit in a certain exact position, with their legs in a certain position, the system will not activate. This does not allow for any variables, such as height, weight and body shape. I find this to be a totally unacceptable and quite dangerous inherent design flaw on a new model of car.
Tl*the contact owns a 2008 buick enclave. The contact stated that the air bag light illuminated when an adult sat in the front passenger seat, which indicated that the passenger side airbag, would not activate. The vehicle has been repaired. The current and failure mileage was 3,500 miles.
The front passenger air bag light frequently indicates that the airbag is off when my 110 pound wife is in the seat. I have noted the same complaint from other enclave owners on an enclave web site (http://www.enclaveforum.net/index.php?topic=449.0 ).
Purchased new 2008 buick enclave on may 24, 2007. We immediately noted the "on/off" front passenger air bag light on the dash was inconsistent when my 5' 7" 118 lb. Wife sat in the front passenger seat. About 40% of the time the light indicates that the air bag is off, but sporadically it shows that the system is on. June 1st, on my first dealer visit with this vehicle, I reported this problem and was advised that this was possible and we should view a seat sensing video. After several phone calls and visits to my dealer, royal buick of tucson (who have been more than helpful and concerned) the service manager called buick and was told that we were the only one in the us having that problem and the buick district manager said the system checked out okay but my wife's build was not designed for that car. We were told that the system was operating within the "parameters" set by the manufacturers for people of my wife's size. Also, they said, these "parameters" were established by federal law. Fast forward to 9-25-07, the sensor manufacturer sent an engineer to tucson and spent 2 hours having my wife get in and out of the front seat to establish a more realistic database or algorithm for people her size. Buick or the seat manufacturer sent another seat right from the assembly line to replace our seat for their analysis. As of today 9-27-07 this new seat has a failure mode of 60% in the last three days (15 seat entries and 9 times the airbag failed to arm) we paid $40,000 for a car with an air-bag safety system that was designed to protect both front and rear passengers, but yet it would not protect an adult of my wife's size when riding as a front-seat passenger. Had we known this fact, we would not have purchased the vehicle at any price. Safety is our biggest concern when buying a new vehicle. This complaint is the same as number 10202517 with a few added details.
Purchased a brand new 2008 buick enclave on may 10, 2007. Subsequently, we noted that the "on/off" front passenger air bag light on the dash was inconsistent when my 5' 4", 115 lb. Wife set in the front passenger seat. More often than not the light indicates that the air bag is off, but occasionally it shows that the system is on. We first talked with the salesman and he said this didn't sound right and I should bring the car in when it was showing the system was off while my wife was riding as a passenger. In august, we took the car to the dealer, bill kobach, in topeka, kansas with my wife setting in the seat and the light was indicating that the air bag was "off." the service manager said they were having some problems with the "on/off indicator light," but I should leave the car with them so that they could check the system. Later, they called and said the system checked out okay and they had called detroit about it. They were told that the system was operating within the "parameters" set by the manufacturers for people of my wife's size. Also, they said, these "parameters" were established by federal law. We find it inconceivable that we we paid $45,000 for a car with an air-bag safety system that was designed to protect both front and rear passengers, but yet it would not protect an adult of my wife's size when riding as a front-seat passenger. Had we known this fact, we would not have purchased the vehicle at any price. Safety is our biggest concern when buying a new vehicle. *jb. Updated 01/09/08. *lj updated 12/12/07
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