Fuel pump relay is overheating to dangerously high temperatures. At least 211 F degrees. Causes the fuel pump fuse to melt leaving me stranded. Immediate replacement of the 20 AMP fuse is necessary to get the car running again. The fuel pump relay gets really hot even if the AC is not on. Waited for hour and a half in near 100 F degree heat for a tow truck to it home. I’m lucky the car did not catch on fire. I know quite a few of the Buick Lucerne’s have had recalls regarding this item. Picture of the actual car is included. No police report was necessary as this was a breakdown situation. This has utterly disrupted my life because I do not have access to a car with good air conditioning until this problem is repaired.
Buick Lucerne fuel pump problems
150 of the 943 owner complaints about the Buick Lucerne describe fuel pump failure, most of them for the 2008 model year.
- owner complaints
- 150
- worst model year
- 2008
- typical repair cost reported
- $818
- typical mileage
- 91,156
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.
By model year
Often reported together
Won't start 55Overheating 27Stalling 20Fire or smoke 20Loss of power 7Engine failure 3Check engine light 3Power steering loss 2
What owners say
We have a Buick Lucerne 2010. We went out it would not start. Tow it to dealership they replace the fuel pump. We did. Get it home next day it will not start again. Tow it to dealership again. This time they find melted wire connectors. Under back seat and on a fuse box.They replace them it starts and melt them again. This time they call to junk yards to get a used fuse box and connectors. Because of cost. The junk yards did tell them it's a known problem with these cars and they sell these fuse boxes and connectors sell as fast as they get them. We said no used parts on this car. Come to find out that GM now's about this problem. And has not done anything about it. They meaning GM. Has even put out papers on the internet as how to try and fix it. Such as cut the insulation around the fuse box.And even cutting the seat belt bracket. My wife drives this car everyday. Now she is afraid of it. Because if it happened once could it happen again. I don't now. I have drove GM's all my life but am not happy about this. What do I do. Please help. I am a retired firefighter and I do not want her to drive this car if it could catch fire.
The contact owns a 2008 Buick Lucerne. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was examined by an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the fuel pump relay and fuse had melted, and the fuse box located underneath the rear seat needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer were not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 153,000.
The contact owns a 2009 Buick Lucerne. The contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, the engine failed to turn over. No warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that upon inspection he became aware that one of the relays from the electric fuel pump under the rear passenger’s seat needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the fuel pump relay prong base had melted due to overheating. In addition, the contact stated that the fuse was a 10.01 AMP instead of a 5 AMP which could have caused the failure. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred 2 days later. The manufacturer was made not aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 66,000.
Fuse box (rear) 2008 Buick Lucerne CXL. FUEL PUMP Relay burns fuses out quickly. The fuse box located under the back seat has been having issues of burning where the fuel pump relay is located. It then in turn shorts out the fuse box which keeps needing to be replaced. This is a safety issue as it catches fire under the back seat. Fuse box has been replaced before and continues to have issues and melts, causing the vehicle to die in mid traffic, does at stop lights or even just parked and running it dies out and smells like burning plastic. The fuse box has caught fire several times. The issue has been confirmed by several mechanics and dealerships. Also there is a history of electrical problems with the rear fuse box in carfax. There was no warning, and now the check engine light is illuminated. We bought the vehicle last year in June of 2024. There seem to be no problems at the time until shortly after we had bought the vehicle. Turns out there's a long history of electrical problems involving the rear fuse box with this vehicle. I have uploaded screenshots of the car report on this vehicle. There are more complaints.
The car died suddenly and would not start, with no warnings or codes. Towed it to a Midas repair shop and it was diagnosed as a corroded Low Profile Fuel Pump relay. This was replaced, and the car ran fine for 3 days before going dead in the middle of driving and left me stranded in an intersection. Had to get it towed back to Midas where it was more accurately diagnosed that the issue with the relay was being caused by a faulty Rear Electrical Center. Both of these parts have been recalled, and I have only owned this car for a little over a year. It has only around 40,000 miles on it. Despite this recall, upon taking the car to the local Buick dealership, they stated they could not cover the recall due to it being expired before I even owned the car. I do not understand how it is right or fair for this to have to be paid out of pocket, for $183.53 and $818.81 respectively, when it is not my fault, it is a faulty GM parts issue, and GM stated they will not stand behind their product and cover the recall despite the evident risk to my safety if I was to continue driving the car without repair. I understand it is expired, but I fail to see how this is ethical when the part is still faulty to the point of being dangerous.
Vehicle shuts off due to fuel pump relay connection problem which is due to the back seat rubbing against the fuse box
Our Buick Lucerne would crank but wouldn't turn over when trying to start after trying to pick up take out. 1) It was suggested to me by a passerby that it sounds like a fuel pump relay. 2)I started to smell something burning. The passerby who happens to be familiar with Buick Lucerne tried to help. He lifted the back seat and showed me the fuel pump relay which was burned. Then he switched the electrick window relay which is the exact same relay switch and the car started. Went immediately to an autozone and bought spare fuel pump relay. Thought that solve the problem, but every 2 to 3 days I'd smell that burning smell. 3) The mechanic I've been going to for 10 years confirmed the issue 4)Have not taken to dealer or insurance rep 5)Absolutely no visual warning on dashboard. the warning happens when I start smelling the burning odor. Started one and a half months ago....
Rear fuse block, fuel pump relay, gets hot and melts. Apparently due to seat latch pushing against fuse block cover. Smoked, but not fire.
Fuel Pump relay fuse is getting burnt up and not allowing car to start. This is a known problem and the federal safety agency has already made a recall but mine isn’t recalled. You would think since mine is a 2008-2011 Buick Lucerne it would be able to get fixed. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the Buick Lucerne fuel pump
Which Buick Lucerne years have fuel pump failure problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2008 (66 complaints), 2009 (55 complaints) and 2010 (17 complaints).
How much does it cost to fix fuel pump failure on the Buick Lucerne?
Owners who mentioned a price put the repair at about $818 (median of 12 complaints that include a dollar amount). Costs vary with mileage, warranty and where the work is done.
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