Intermittent Shift to Park Message Displayed While Vehicle in Park. See #19-NA-206 (through DTC B000A may not be set!). Caused by poor design of shift position switches! This is a KNOWN issue for many GM vehicles including my 2019 Buick Sportback, for nearly 20 years. GM should be made to fix this. In addition to not being able to start car and running down battery because of car power still being on and endangering the personal safety of every person using GM vehicles, it is possible Steering Lock may or may not occur and many vehicle accessories may not operate correctly. GM needs to supply a fix.
Buick Regal steering lock-up problems
28 of the 2,973 owner complaints about the Buick Regal describe steering wheel locks up, most of them for the 1998 model year.
- owner complaints
- 28
- worst model year
- 1998
- typical mileage
- 70,000
Is there a fix? There are 4 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
- 20191
- 20163
- 20114
- 20051
- 20041
- 20011
- 20003
- 19993
- 19985
- 19972
- 19961
- 19952
- 19911
Often reported together
Stalling 4Power steering loss 3Loss of power 3Engine failure 3Check engine light 3Pulling 1Steering noise 1Hesitation 1
Trouble codes mentioned
P0011 1B101E 1B000A 1
What owners say
While driving down the highway at 60 mph with myself my husband and my 7 year old son my steering wheel locked up and then jolted very hard to the left. Got the car pulled to side of the road the power assist warning started flashing this all happened Saturday October 22, 2022. It had never happened before turned the car off and checked fluids they were filled to where they needed to be started the car it was just fine. This morning on October 24 2022 my husband headed to work driving 55 and again the steering wheel locked and power steering assist appeared. I have not gotten this checked but very scared to drive with my son in the car as this could cause a very bad accident and no other problems with the car. I called Buick October 25, 2022 they said this model did have a recall but my VIN number was not one included in the power steering assist recall.
The contact owns a 2016 Buick Regal. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel seized while turning the vehicle. Additionally, the vehicle experienced a loss of motive power. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN and advised the contact to file a complaint with the federal safety agency. The contact related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 16V108000 (Steering) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 117,000.
The steering wheel locks up during turning making it difficult to control the vehicle during turn-this presented a major safety risk. The vehicle was taken to a Buick dealer service on two occasions. The dealer was not able to duplicate the issue. On the first occasion an error code of B101E was noted during diagnosis system check. (Service write-up attached) The same issue represented and is currently being serviced, though technical noted he was unable to reproduce the problem. Mileage when problem first noted was 59,418
I was driving doing almost 50 when it shut off with no warning the steering wheel locked up the brakes were not working. The first time this happened I just let the car coast to a stop, the second time was exactly the same except I put the car in neutral while I still had a good bit of speed and crunk it back up. The car always crank right back up with no problem and drives fine. I've change my fuses and certain lights (low tire, low coolant, check engine)on the dashboard won't go off and I just recently had my car inspected in which it passed
Check engine light on. Code p0011 present. Indicating over-advanced camshaft position sensor. While performing a u-turn, the vehicle died/lost engine power and steering locked in place in the middle of the road. The vehicle was spread across three lanes, as I was in the middle of my u-turn, with oncoming traffic approaching. Luckily, I was able to start the car back up and regain control just as traffic neared my position. Almost deadly situation. Also noticing engine hesitation as well as shaking of the vehicle while idling.
My daughter drives our 2011 buick regal cxl that we purchased in february 2016. In the last several month the vehicle has stalled, steering locks up, brakes go completely out, it doesn't have an electrical and because it has an electric emergency brake there is no way for her to stop. The first two times she was driving around town and the last time it happened was last week at 70 MPH on the highway. She almost hit the car in front of her. Once it coasted to a stop she was able to start it and continue on. This gm vehicle 2011 buick regal is a death trap waiting to happen. Don't buy a buick!!! I picked it up from the local buick dealer yesterday and they can't do anything. Once the vehicle is restarted after one of these incidents the computers automatically resets and wiped clean of codes without any trace of a problem or issue. All the errors completely disappear. The service person at the dealership asked me if I had a decoder I could plug in right after it happens. This problem is all over the internet and buick does nothing. You can bet that a gm executive would decline an offer for one of his/her family members to drive it for a while. Make no mistake these cars shut down completely without any warning and absolutely nothing works at the moment. No steering, no brakes, stalled engine, and no electrical. Absolutely nothing!!! All buick says base on online comments is sorry. Sorry for what? Killing people? Not giving a [xxx] about my family or yours? If they were sorry they'd step up and do the right thing before its too late and someone dies. Insurance companies are probably paying out lots of money to their insured and the people they hit, injure or kill. I bet they would love to hear more about this issue. Be carefully what you buy because you might be surprised by your car right before you crash. I've always likes gm and buicks but not anymore. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 buick regal. While driving at an unknown speed, the engine lost power, stalled, and the steering seized without warning. The vehicle was able to restart. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the camshaft failed. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the throttle body failed. The vehicle was repaired and the failure recurred. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 72,000. ..updated 08/23/16
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 buick regal. While driving 20 MPH, the vehicle stalled and the steering wheel seized without warning. The vehicle was able to restart. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 21,200.
While driving at approx 40 MPH or more the engine suddenly cuts out and the steering locks up and the car violently stops, which could cause a fatal accident. This is very much like the ignition switch problem in the other recalls. After a few tries the car does start again but this is not acceptable. Also there has been smoke pouring from the engine on more than one occasion when the vehicle was not even operating for more than ten minutes, and often the smell of gas permeates the inside of the vehicle.
Related recalls
Steering: electric power assist system
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016 Buick Regal Vehicles manufactured August 30, 2015, to February 12, 2016. The affected vehicles have a power-steering assist system that may fail.
- Risk
- A loss of power steering assist may increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the electric belt drive rack and pinion steering gear assembly, free of charge. The recall began on March 21, 2016. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300. GM's number for this recall is 21510.
Recall number 16V108000 · Recall details
Steering
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014 Buick Regal, Cadillac XTS, Chevrolet Camaro and Chevrolet Impala vehicles. Improperly torqued fasteners may cause the steering intermediate shaft and the steering gear and/or the lower control arm and the lower ball joint to separate.
- Risk
- If any of the components separate, the vehicle may have a loss of steering, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- GM began to notify owners on June 27, 2014, and dealers will inspect the fasteners for correct torque, correcting them as necessary, free of charge. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300 (Buick), 1‑800‑458‑8006 (Cadillac) or 1‑800‑222‑1020 (Chevrolet). GM's number for this recall is 14378.
Recall number 14V409000 · Recall details
Steering: rack and pinion
- What is wrong
- Certain passenger vehicles have lower pinion bearings in the power rack and pinion assembly in which the retainer tabs were not crimped properly. These retainers could fail and permit the ball bearings to escape.
- Risk
- If this occurs, the pinion shaft can be forced upward during left turns and back down as the steering wheel is moved back and to the right. If the pinion shaft moves further, the driver will need to exert more effort to turn the steering wheel, similar to a vehicle without power assisted steering. If the pinion shaft moves even further, the driver will require much higher effort to turn left and may not be able to turn the wheel as much as intended. With the maximum pinion shaft movement, which requires internal gear component damage, the driver can encounter high resistance to turning left, followed by unintended power assist to the right. In any of these conditions, a crash could occur.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install a new lower pinion bearing unless inspect of the existing bearing indicates that replacement of the gear assembly is necessary. Owner notification began on february 5, 2004. Owners should contact buick at 1‑866‑608‑8080; chevrolet at 1‑800‑630‑2438; oldsmobile at 1‑800‑630‑6537; or pontiac at 1‑800‑620‑7668.
Recall number 03V527000 · Recall details
Steering: steering wheel/handle bar
- What is wrong
- The four (4) steering column support bracket attaching bolts were under torqued during assembly.
- Risk
- Inadequate torque can cause these bolts to vibrate, loosen, or fall out resulting in loss of steering control and increase the potential for a vehicle crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will retorque the steering column support bracket attaching bolts to the correct specifications.
Recall number 95V030000 · Recall details
Questions about the Buick Regal steering lock-up
Which Buick Regal years have steering wheel locks up problems?
The model years with the most reports are 1998 (5 complaints), 2011 (4 complaints) and 1999 (3 complaints).
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