2011 Buick Lucerne

ENGINE STOPPED RUNNING WITH NO WARNING. IT WAS REPAIRED BY THE DEALER AT NO COST UNDER TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN (TSB) 15-NA-051. IN ADDITION TO THE REPAIRS SPECIFIED IN THE TSB, THE DEALER HAD TO REPLACE THE REAR FUSE BOX AND REPAIR THE WIRE TO THE FUEL PUMP BECAUSE THEY WERE BOTH DAMAGED DUE TO OVERHEATING. THIS IS A FIRE HAZARD WHICH SHOULD HAVE BEEN MADE A RECALL INSTEAD OF AN EXTENDED WARRANTY.

THE CAR WOULD NOT START WHEN I ATTEMPTED TO START IT TO GO TO WORK AND HAD TO BE TOWED IN FOR REPAIRS. THE FUEL PUMP WAS FOUND TO NEED TO BE REPLACED. ONE WEEK LATER THE CAR AGAIN WOULD NOT START AND HAD TO BE TOWED FOR REPAIRS. THE PROBLEM THIS TIME WAS THE REAR FUSE BOX THAT WAS SHORTED OUT DUE TO THE BRACKET RUBBING AGAINST IT, WHICH SEEMS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM FOR THIS MODEL. A RECALL SEEMS TO BE INDICATED BECAUSE OF THIS.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 BUICK LUCERNE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT START AND THE KEY FOB DID NOT WORK. WHEN THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO UNLOCK THE VEHICLE WITH THE KEY FOB, SHE BECAME LOCKED INSIDE THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT HAD TO MANUALLY UNLOCK THE DOOR ON THE PASSENGER SIDE TO EXIT THE VEHICLE. IN ADDITION, THE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM DID NOT WORK AND THE CONTACT SMELLED A BURNING ODOR. ALSO, THE VEHICLE MADE GRINDING AND CLICKING SOUNDS EVEN WITH IT BEING OFF. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A LETTER FROM THE MANUFACTURER THAT DESCRIBED THE FAILURES. THE CONTACT CALLED COGGIN BUICK GMC IN JACKSONVILLE (7245 BLANDING BLVD, JACKSONVILLE, FL 32244, (904) 638-1115) AND WAS INFORMED TO HAVE THE VEHICLE TOWED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 112,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 BUICK LUCERNE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO START. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO BUICK GMC OF BEAVERTON (503-298-4062, LOCATED AT 9155 SW CANYON RD, PORTLAND, OR 97225) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE REAR FUSE BLOCK IN THE FUEL PUMP RELAY MELTED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT CALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 109,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 BUICK LUCERNE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FUEL PUMP FAILED. THE CONTACT REPLACED THE FUEL PUMP AND FUEL PUMP RELAY HIMSELF. UPON FURTHER INSPECTION, THE CONTACT NOTICED THAT THERE WAS EXCESSIVE HEAT NEAR THE LOWER PART OF THE DRIVER'S SEAT BY THE SEAT BRACKET AND FUSE BOX. THE CONTACT WAS CONCERNED THAT THERE MAY BE A POTENTIAL ELECTRICAL SYSTEM DEFECT OR A DEFECT CONCERNING THE FUEL PUMP OR FUEL PUMP RELAY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE DEALER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 82,000.

ON 9/1/18 I DROVE MY CAR ALL MORNING LATE THAT NIGHT WHEN I WENT TO DRIVE AGAIN IT WOULDN'T START AND I COULD SMELL A LITTLE BURNING. CHECKED THE FUSE BOX AND IT HAD BLEW OUT A COUPLE OF FUSES SO WE CHANGED THEM. 3DAYS LATER IT DID THE SAME THING WE CHANGED THE FUSES AGAIN AND ONCE AGAIN THE BLEW NOW WHEN WE CHANGED THEM IT WON'T START AT ALL. I HAD TO KEEP CHANGING THE FUEL PUMP FUSE AND A DEALER SAID IT WAS BECAUSE OF THE METAL OF THE SEAT TOUCHING THE BOX .

CAR WAS STATIONARY, AND ATTEMPTED TO START. ENGINE WAS NOT GETTING GAS. DEALER IDENTIFIED REAR FUSE BOX/FUEL PUMP RELAY WAS SHORTED OUT. HE STATED THIS COULD HAPPEN AT ANY TIME- STATIONARY OR GOING HIGHWAY SPEEDS. SHORT IN FUSE BOX COULD RESULT IN FIRE. SHORT WAS PROBABLY CAUSED BY REAR SEAT BRACKET RUBBING ON FUSE BOX, AS EVIDENCED BY MARKINGS ON FUSE BOX. THERE ARE MANY SIMILAR COMPLAINTS ON THIS SAME ISSUE ON INTERNET SITES. WHY HAS THIS NOT BEEN INVESTIGATED?

A MANUFACTURER DEFECT EXISTS IN THE AREA OF THE REAR FUSE BOX LOCATED UNDER THE REAR SEAT ON THE LEFT SIDE. THE SEAT BRACKET APPLIES PRESSURE TO THE FUSE BOX COVER DEFLECTING IT FROM ITS STANDARD POSITION. THIS DEFLECTION PUTS LATERAL PRESSURE ON THE FUEL PUMP RELAY. THIS LATERAL FORCE CAUSE AN WEAKED CONTACT BETWEEN THE RELAY AND THE FUSE BOX CONNECTORS. INCREASED ELECTRICAL RESISTANCE CAUSES THE RELAY TO OVERHEAT AND MELT ITS BASE AND FUSE BOX. THE HEAT IS INTENSE ENOUGH TO CASE THE CONTACT PINS OF THE RELAY, AND SOCKET OF THE FUSE BOX AND SOFTENS THE METAL FURTHER DEGRADING THE CONTINUITY AND INCREASING RESISTANCE. THIS MANDATES A REPLACEMENT OF THE FUSE BOX SINCE SIMPLY REPLACING THE RELAY AFTER THE HEAT DAMAGE MAY NOT BE SUFFICIENT TO REMEDY THE DEFECT. A MANUFACTURER TSB EXHISTS HOWEVER, THIS COMPONENT IS MORE LIKELY TO FAIL ON A LONGER HIGH SPEED DRIVE. IF IT FAILS AT SPEED, VEHICLE CONTROL ISSUES MAY ARISE AMONG WITH DRIVER PANIC WHEN THE ENGINE STALLS AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS.

ON MARCH 28TH, 2018 MY VEHICLE A 2011 BUICK LUCERNE WITH 162,554 MILES ON IT, WOULD NOT RESTART AFTER MAKING A TWENTY-MILE TRIP TO TAKE MY GRANDCHILDREN TO SCHOOL. I PARKED ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD IN FRONT OF MY MOTHER'S HOUSE TO VISIT, AND UPON MY ATTEMPT TO LEAVE, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT START. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS, STRANGE NOISES, OR SMELLS THAT WOULD LEAD ME TO BELIEVE THE FUSE BOX FAILURE, LEADING TO THE BOX MELTING. WHEN A BATTERY GOES BAD, IT SMELLS LIKE SPOILED EGGS, HOWEVER IN THE CASE OF MY VEHICLES FUSE BOX MELTING THERE WAS NO TOXIC SMELL(S), THAT IS A GOOD THING SINCE NO PASSENGERS SUFFERED FROM MELTING PLASTIC FUMES, I GUESS. I TOOK MY 2011 BUICK LUCERNE TO THE DEALER'S SHIP BECAUSE MY VEHICLE WOULD NOT START. UPON THE TECH DIAGNOSES THE FUSE RELAY HAD MELTED, AND THIS WAS ONE REASON THE FUEL PUMP WAS NOT RECEIVING POWER TO SEND FUEL TO THE ENGINE. MY NEXT CONCERN IS THE PLACEMENT OF THESE COMPONENTS IN THE VEHICLE, THEY ARE LOCATED UNDER THE REAR PASSENGER SEATS. IF THE VOLTAGE, FUSE BOX MELTS AGAIN SOON, THE POSSIBILITY OF AN INTERNAL FIRE IS HIGHLY POSSIBLE AND THUS THE LOSS OF LIVES IS LIKELY. AFTER CONDUCTING MY OWN ONLINE SEARCH, THIS IS A PROBLEM THAT HAS BEEN OVERLOOKED IN THE PAST OR MINIMIZED IN ORDER OF IMPORTANCE FOR THE CONSUMERS SAFETY CONCERNS REPORTED AT VARIOUS DEALERSHIPS. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).' *PM