1998 Buick Regal problems
Owners have filed 376 complaints about the 1998 Buick Regal with NHTSA. Steering accounts for 20.7% of them — narrowly the most common, ahead of engine and engine cooling at 14.6%.
Complaints376
Crashes8
Fires47
Injuries5
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Steering 20.7% · 78
Engine and engine cooling 14.6% · 55
Electrical system 13.6% · 51
Visibility 7.7% · 29
Service brakes, hydraulic 7.7% · 29
Engine 7.7% · 29
Exterior lighting 6.1% · 23
Structure 3.5% · 13
Severity
Of those complaints, 8 describe a crash, 47 describe a fire and 5 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Across the 17 model years of the Buick Regal in this data, 1998 ranks 2nd by complaint volume — 2011 draws the most.
Filing volume has held steady, 7 in the last three years against 8 in the three before.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 91,000 miles.
In owners' own words
When turning to the left I loose power steering control and when I turn to the right it works most of the time but not all the time leaving it very hard to turn. Mechanic checked the power steering and said that it was alright and that their was a recall on the lower pinion gear and to check it out. O a couple of occasion my steering was out of whack while driving and I almost went in the ditch. Steering · reported at 122,000 miles
The contact owns a 1998 Buick Regal. In 2004, the contact received recall notice number 03v527000 (steering:rack and pinion). The vehicle had 48,721 miles at the time. She went to the dealer and had the recall repair performed. The power steering has failed again and she believes that it should not have failed so quickly. The current mileage was 72,000 and failure mileage was 71,000. Steering · reported at 71,000 miles
Have 1998 Buick Regal with symptoms identical to recent safety recall 03v527000 for steering defect. However, since car was built in feb 1998 it appears to be out of the range of the gm recall (ends for cars built prior 10/97). Suggest recall be extended to recall cars with same symptoms that were built in months surrounding time frame since gm parts tracking not that exact. Steering · reported at 49,000 miles
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…