Buick Lesabre brake failure problems

Filed Jul 23, 2014 · Brakes · 93,000 miles · WV

Tl* the contact owns a 1998 buick lesabre. The contact stated that the rear brakes failed twice and the brake line was leaking. The contact replaced the brakes and noticed that the brake line was severely corroded and unprotected in the engine compartment. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified. The approximate failure mileage was 93,000.

Filed Jun 13, 2014 · Airbags, Electrical · 240,000 miles · CA · crash

Re: accident may, 27, 2014, ncic 9245, officer id 17604 the above accident was caused by a mechanical failure of the buick le sabre, 1999, license # [xxx]. Not driver error. Leaving highway 193 turning onto hwy 49, (going toward auburn) being a 2 lane narrow winding road, the engine of the above vehicle died, locked up the steering, and had no brakes. I was unable to stop or control the car. This was the first time there was a loss of brakes. In trying to control the car it caused me to veer off the road to the right hand side. Upon leaving the road and crashing the air bags did not deploy. The vehicle has had this problem before verified by witnesses with the exception of the loss of brakes. Passenger in car on trip from fresno to auburn, in march of 2013, (mechanical failure of car engine, died, no steering), this happened twice, on same day. Csaa was called to tow car. Contact: [xxx] car being driven by [xxx]., (mechanical failure of car, engine died, no steerage), on hwy 49 and lonestar road. Called csaa. [xxx] the engine turning off while driving had happened on other occasions and there was difficulty in the car starting during cold weather. The buick lesabre has had regular service and maintenance. Records of service and repairs can be provided upon request. The ignition keys for the buick had extra keys attached to it. There were 4 additional keys, plus key light. Look forward to your reply. Sincerely, [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)

Filed Dec 27, 2013 · Brakes · 122,000 miles · NY

Tl* the contact owns a 1999 buick lesabre. The contact stated that the brake lines were rusted and leaking. The contact was driving 45 MPH when the brakes failed. The contact replaced one brake line. The other three were rusted and seeping through. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 122,000. . ..updated 01-10-14 *bf updated 01/1

Filed Jul 27, 2013 · Brakes · 133,414 miles · MO

Brakes went out, had no pedal at all. Managed to get home. Fluid full. Master cylinder ok. Brake shoes new. Brake fluid not leaking. Oil is leaking, but no brake fluid at all. Cannot find what the problem. Cannot get any pedal on the brakes.

Filed Dec 4, 2011 · Brakes · 39,000 miles · NY

Brakes failed because brake line corrosion. No warning at first, then the brake warning came on. Almost did not stop and almost hit a car in front.

Filed Sep 21, 2011 · Brakes · 151,561 miles · PA

While performing routine maintenance with my son he noticed all the front brake lines were severely rusted and close to failure. This vehicle previously encountered a burst rear brake line on 5-19-09, mileage at that time was 143,304. See the federal safety agency odi #: 10269462. All metal brake lines from the master cylinder and to/from the ABS unit and front wheels were replaced to avoid imminent brake failure. Silently rusting brake lines are a potential for sudden and unexpected brake loss, only giving the driver seconds to react.

Filed May 4, 2011 · Electrical · 83,000 miles · NY · crash

1998 buick lesabre crashed at low speed causing property damage, engine cut out while driving at low speed. Car was declared a total loss, leaving me with bills of over $10,000 for lost car, repairs, insurance. Problem had arisen on and off since acquiring car at 65,000 miles..twice taken in to gm dealership for this problem. Could not find anything wrong. Problem would disappear for months and then reappear. Numerous mechanics checked and could not find source of problem. After car was declared a total, news story ran about toyota cars stalling out due to defective engine control modules (the federal safety agency report #pe09054). The defective part was made by delphi..which was owned by general motors..makers of the buick lesabre. I contacted gm headquarters to ask if the control module in my part was made by gm/delphi. They refused to answer me, saying that as no recall had been issued and my car was gone,they could do nothing for me. Meanwhile, it turns out that gm did own delphi in 1998, did manufacture those modules, which had to have been in the buick lesabres,and were years later causing identical engine failures in toyotas. Those parts are out there today, waiting for something horrible to happen. Among the 12 summaries you have on your site for electrical problems with buick lesabres, one is even worse than mine "report #9001048 "complete electrical failure on a major highway with a tragedy barely avoided, transmission failure". When I purchased the car at 65,000 miles it had a serious transmission problem as well, which was found and fixed. The electrical problem persisted until the engine cut out while driving at low speed in the middle of the afternoon, on a busy local road. When the engine failed, the brakes failed. I could not stop the car. Quick thinking put me up against a telephone pole so no lives were lost. Many of your other complaints mention complete electrical failure with this car. Investigation anyone?

Filed Jan 9, 2011 · Brakes · IL

I have owned the car for 3 1/2 yrs now and this is the first time I have had this type of brake failure. The brakes went all the way to the floor and the car sled, I was trying to come to a complete stop to make a turn. The ABS lite has been on the car almost ever since I bought it.

Filed Nov 4, 2010 · Brakes · 88,071 miles · OH

My wife was driving our 2000 buick lesabre ltd home from work and her brakes went to the floor when she tried to stop at a traffic light. She was able to stop, but the brakes were barely there. She was able to get the car home without incident, and I checked it out when she got home. I found that there was almost no brake fluid left in the reservoir. I took my other vehicle to the store and bought some brake fluid and refilled the reservoir and checked under the vehicle for leaks. I found that the brake lines had rotted out in the center of the vehicle between the rear wheels, directly behind the compressor motor for the load leveling shocks that are on this vehicle. I took it to the local buick dealership the next day, and they confirmed what I had found, that the rear brake lines were rusted and rotted out. I asked about a safety recall or service bulletin on this issue but they said there was none. I found it very odd that there was no signs of corrosion anywhere else on the underside of the vehicle or on the brake lines other than directly behind the compressor motor for the shocks. They replaced both rear brake lines at a cost to me of $568.31.

Filed Oct 12, 2010 · Brakes · 42,330 miles · MD

2005 buick lesabre with 42,330 miles went into the repair shop to have the brakes replaced. Once the brakes were replaced, the mechanic took the car from the repair bay onto the parking lot to check the integrity of the brakes. The mechanic applied a hard braking when the brake pedal went to the floor. Upon inspection of the brake system, it was found that the brake line which goes across the rear of the car from wheel to wheel had rusted through and caused the brake fluid to leak. This brake line was replaced with a new one from wheel to wheel. The system was then bled and brake fluid replaced. The car was checked again and was found to be drivable.