The car shut off while I was driving it, I was starting to go from sitting at a red light and it just shut itself off! I've just purchased this car and already it's a hunk of junk. Also the amount of electrical problems caused by water entering the motor compartment is ridiculous and should be a recall as it's just a bad design. The AC fan motor located above the passenger floor fills with water and ruins the motor. The car shut off today because of shoddy soldering.
Buick Enclave water leak problems
48 of the 2,515 owner complaints about the Buick Enclave describe water leaks into the cabin, most of them for the 2008 model year.
- owner complaints
- 48
- worst model year
- 2008
- typical mileage
- 75,000
Is there a fix? There are 2 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
- 20111
- 20104
- 20092
- 200841
Often reported together
Airbag light 4Overheating 2Check engine light 2Transmission failure 1Steering noise 1Stalling 1Loss of power 1Hesitation 1
What owners say
Tl* the contact owns a 2010 buick enclave. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the audible warning chimes and turn signal clicking sound where not present due a malfunction in the audio amplifier. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer ballas buick(5715 west central ave, toledo oh.) who diagnosed that an electrical shortage to the audio amplifier had occurred due to the water leaking into the panels of the vehicle and behind the fire wall. The cause of the failure was not determined. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 168,000.
Sunroof water leak. When it rains water pours from all parts of the roof onto the interior of the car. From falling water to water running down through the walls of every part of the car. It has started to cause electrical problems with the vehicle and also I have found mold under the carpet where the water accumulates. It is usually 1 to 2 inches of water on the floor boards after raining. Causing mold, rust and mildew. This happens whenever it rains, a little or alot. This may be causing unhealth iisues. It would be smart for buick to fix these issues now before medical bills are involved.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 buick enclave. The contact stated that the tailgate did not function properly. When the tailgate was utilized, the door would raise up, but would automatically fall down and not remain in the upward position. Also, the sun roof leaked water into the vehicle. As a result, mildew covered the front and rear floors. Furthermore, the air bag indicator remained illuminated and would not turn off. There were no warning indicators illuminated for the tailgate or sun roof. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 141,966.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 buick enclave. While operating the vehicle, the air bag indicator remained illuminated. Also, while driving in the rain, water leaked into the cabin and onto the floor of the vehicle, which caused the brake pedal to become slippery when depressed. The failures were not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer (eckenhoff buick, 919 church rd, cherry hill, nj) and the manufacturer were notified, but no solution was offered. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 130,000. *tt
2008 buick enclave without accidents nor sunroof or windshield repair or replacement has been experiencing water leakage from visor joints, side curtain panels and under the steering column. My radio amplifier suffered water damage and 2" of water has pooled afoot of my vehicle floor. The issue has been present as of march 2018 and has returned for repair every two months since to date and is there again today. This issue is not able to be rectified nor solved. I have researched and found flooding and water accumulation issues are a known, common and repetitive issue with this make model and year. This will result in electrical and more significant power, and operation problems. A repair, fix compensation and deep cleaning is necessary.
I am having a problem with the brake light coming on and a chiming alarm. The only way to make the alarm clear is to either turn the engine off or press the emergency brake a little then release it. I am also having problems with the sun roof drain rail overflowing. As I saw in another post, I think water is the issue. This didn't happen with the brakes until water ran down both of the a posts. I saw in another post that others had this problem during rainy travel. Is anyone having this problem with enclaves? The sun roof rain rail issue has been ongoing for a long time now. But, the brake warning light issue is new. Electrical problems due to water leaks.
After a horrable rain, I came to my car, and found the front passenger side was flooded.I followed the water leak and found it was the sunroof, took the car to buick dealership, and found the drain tube was clogged, my warrenty did not cover it so I had to pay $178.00 for the repair. I then looked it up and found there is a known the federal safety agency item number on the car, it is 10026482. After looking into this I found it is a reoccurring problem, it needs to be fixed-blown out every 6 months. If it is a known problem it should have been fixed a long time ago. I am on a limited income and can not afford $178.00 every 6 months.it is destroying the carpet. I looked on youtube to see what the process is in fixing it and I see so many wires in the path of the water. I think this is a bigger risk factor than a simple leak. We have had this car for 6months now and this is the first problem. I have one family member and one friend that is interested in this car and I will be sure to let them know of the problems that we are begining to have. This car was taken to buick dealership, national city, ca.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 buick enclave. While driving approximately 65 MPH, the vehicle intermittently rocked back and forth. The failure recurred several times. Also, when the vehicle was started, the air bag indicator illuminated and remained lit. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who inspected the vehicle and performed a tire rotation and balancing. Additionally, the contact stated that the sun roof leaked water when it rained. The dealer was contacted (sellers buick gmc, farmington hills, mi, 248‑579‑4892) and scheduled an appointment for a later date. The manufacturer was made aware of the failures and stated that the warranty expired and there was no recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 buick enclave. The contact stated that when it rained, water leaked onto the battery housing and wires. The failure caused the vehicle to lose power while parked. The contact stated that water also came through the sun roof and flowed down the side channels onto the floorboard. In addition, the wires under the seats got wet and submerged the battery in water. The vehicle was taken to sims buck gmc (940 babbit rd, euclid, oh 44123) where it was diagnosed that the ignition switch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 158,000.
Related recalls
Structure: frame and members
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Buick Enclave and Chevrolet Traverse vehicles. The right-hand frame rail in the engine compartment may be cracked.
- Risk
- A crack in the frame rail may reduce crash performance, increasing the risk of an injury.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, as necessary, replace the vehicle, free of charge. The recall began October 4, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑630‑2438 or Buick customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300. GM's number for this recall is N192268310.
Recall number 19V643000 · Recall details
Structure: body: hatchback/liftgate
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2008-2012 Buick Enclave vehicles manufactured January 3, 2007, to February 29, 2012, 2009-2012 Chevrolet Traverse vehicles manufactured July 6, 2008, to March 9, 2012, 2007-2012 GMC Acadia vehicles manufactured September 15, 2006, to February 29, 2012, and 2007-2010 Saturn Outlook vehicles manufactured August 17, 2006, to March 18, 2010. The affected vehicles, equipped with the power liftgate option, have gas struts that hold the power liftgate up when open. These struts may prematurely wear and the open liftgate may suddenly fall.
- Risk
- If the open liftgate unexpectedly falls, it may strike a person, increasing their risk of injury.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will update the software for the power liftgate actuator motor control unit so that the motor will prevent the rapid closing of the lift gate, free of charge. The recall began on November 15, 2016. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020, GMC customer service at 1‑800‑462‑8782, and Saturn customer service at 1‑800‑553‑6000. GM's number for this recall is 15240.
Recall number 15V415000 · Recall details
Questions about the Buick Enclave water leak
Which Buick Enclave years have water leaks into the cabin problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2008 (41 complaints), 2010 (4 complaints) and 2009 (2 complaints).
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