1995 Buick Park Avenue

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1995 BUICK PARK AVENUE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 30 MPH THE AIR BAG DEPLOYED WITH NO WARNING. THE HORN WAS SOUNDING AND WOULD NOT TURN OFF. A TOW TRUCK WAS CALLED AND BEFORE IT ARRIVED THE VEHICLE CAUGHT FIRE AND SEEMED TO HAVE STARTED IN THE STEERING COLUMN. THE POLICE WERE CALLED, EXTINGUISHED THE FIRE AND FILED REPORT #10-24586. THE TOW TRUCK TOOK THE VEHICLE TO A STORAGE LOT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS POSSIBLY DESTROYED. GENERAL MOTORS WAS CALLED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE APPROXIMATELY 120,000.

AUG4,2004: :15AM ON MY WAY TO WORK FOR AN EARLY START I WAS 2 MINUTES INTO MY DRIVE. I NOTICED A SLIGHT LOSS OF ASSIST FROM THE POWER STEERING. THE SYMTOMS WERE TYPICAL OF A SLIPPING BELT OR LOW POWER STEERING FLUID. FROM THE STOP AT THE CORNER OF HILLSIDE AND HWY60 I PROCEEDED TO TURN RIGHT, BUT AS I STRAIGHTENED THE WHEEL ENTERING THE RIGHT LANE THE STEERING WENT TIGHT WITH A CLUNK AND THE STEERING WHEEL WAS FREEWHEELING. BEFORE I COULD STOP I FOUND MYSELF IN THE LEFT LANE STARING DOWN A SEMI COMING DOWN THE HILL. FORTUNATELY HE WAS ALERT AND HAD ENOUGH ROOM TO STOP. I TALKED TO THE DRIVER AND SUGGESTED BACKING MY CAR UP TO THE SHOULDER ON THE RIGHT SIDE (NORTH) OF THE ROAD. THE ANGLE OF THE TIRES IF THEY HELD CURRENT POSITION WOULD PLACE ME ON THE SHOULDER JUST EAST OF HILLSIDE. THE SEMI BLOCKED ALL TRAFFIC FROM THE WEST AND WHEN THE EAST TRAFFIC CLEARED I PROCEEDED. I WENT ABOUT TEN FEET AND THEN THE TIRES TURNED AND I WAS SITTING 90DEGREE TO THE ROAD BLOCKING THE LEFT LANE. AT THIS POINT ALL I COULD DO WAS DIRECT TRAFFIC AROUND MY CAR. WITH THE HELP OF TWO GOOD GENTLEMEN WE DIRECTED TRAFFIC UNTIL A TOW TRUCK ARRIVED. IN THE PAST I HAVE HAD VEHICLES WITH WORN PARTS. TIE ROD ENDS, UPPER AND LOWER BALL JOINTS, OR IDLER ARM. FAILURE IS INCREMENTAL OVER DAYS OR WEEKS. SYMPTOMS OF SHUTTERING OR PULLING INDICATE THE CAR NEEDS SERVICING SOON. NEVER HAS ANY COMPONENT JUST FAILED WITH A LOSS STEERING. THIS TIME WAS DIFFERENT; THE FAILURE WAS CATASTROPHIC. AN INSTANT LOSS OF STEERING AS THE WHOLE CRADLE DROPPED. FURTHERMORE THIS PROBLEM IS NOT NEW OR UNHEARD OF. THE FOLLOWING WEB PAGE INDICATES A RECALL TO CARS OF SIMILAR DESIGN AS FAR BACK AS 1988. C:\WINNT2\PROFILES\GFENSKE\DESKTOP\ITS NOT HOT IN DEATH VALLEY AND IT DOESNT SNOW HARD IN BUFFALO.HTM RECALL # 00V-189,NUMBER CARS RECALLED 713,435 FRONT ENGINE CRADLE BOLTS PULL THROUGH CORRODED RETAINERS & STEERING SHAFT SEPARATES.*AK

WITHOUT WARNING STEERING WHEEL AND BRAKES LOCKED UP WHILE DRIVING DOWN A HILL, CONSUMER DOWN SHIFTED AND WAS ABLE TO PULL OFF THE ROAD. CONSUMER HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP, THE DEALER WAS ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. *AK THE CONSUMER HEARD A BANG SOUND, RIGHT FRONT WHEEL VIBRATED,THERE WAS NO POWER STEERING, THE ALTERNATOR LIGHT HAD COME ON. THE RIGHT FRONT WHEEL LOCKED UP AND SKIDDING BEGUN. THE CONSUMER VIEWED THE POWER STEERING PUMP HAD BROKEN OFF AND WENT DOWN, BENT, AND WEDGED ITSELF IN THE AXLE. *SC

IN LATE 1999 I BEGAN TO HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THE STEERING AT LOW SPEEDS. IT CONTINUALLY GOT WORSE UNTILL THE POWER STEERING WOULD GO OUT COMPLETELY AT SPEEDS BELOW 20MPH. THE DEALERSHIP HAS REPLACED THE ENTIRE STEERING SYSTEM THREE TIMES. THE DEALERSHIP HAS BEEN IN CONTACT WITH BUICK OVER THE LAST SIX MONTHS, AND THEY TRIED EVERYTHING THE BUICK TECHNICAL PEOPLE SUGGESTED. HOWEVER, THE PROBLEM CONTINUES. THE CAR HAS BEEN TAKEN OFF OF THE ROAD BECAUSE IT IS UNSAFE. AT THIS POINT BOTH BUICK AND THE DEALERSHIP HAVE STATED THAT THE CAR IS NOT REPAIRABLE, AND THAT THEY DO NOT KNOW WHAT THE PROBLEM IS. NO ONE FROM BUICK HAS EVER COME TO BECKLEY TO LOOK AT THE VEHICLE. ALL OF THEIR INPUT HAS BEEN OVER THE TELEPHONE. I AND THE DEALERSHIP BOTH FEEL THAT WHATEVER THE PROBLEM IS, IT MOST LIKELY IS NOT CONFINED TO THIS ONE CAR. THE CAR IS A SAFETY HAZARD BECAUSE ONE NEVER KNOWS WHEN THE POWER STEERING WILL GO OUT COMPLETELY.*AK

POWER STEERING SYSTEM BECOMES INOPERABLE AT SPEEDS BELOW APPROXIMATELY 15 MPH. THIS HAPPENS WHEN MAKING SLOW TURNS IN TRAFFIC ,PARKING ETC. THE CAR CAN NOT BE STEERED. IT IS AS THOUGH THE ENGINE HAS BEEN TURNED OFF. IT IS A SAFETY HAZARD BECAUSE THE CAR WILL NOT TURN, RESULTING IN IT GOING INTO THE OTHER TRAFFIC LANE. MOUNTAINEER AUTO MALL HAS REPLACED EVERYTHING IN THE POWER STEERING SYSTEM TWO TIMES. TWO WEEKS AGO THEY TOLD ME THEY HAD CONTACTED BUICK & WERE TOLD THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO. FURTHER, THEY EXPLAINED THE CAR WAS NOT REPAIRABLE, AND IT SHOULD NOT BE DRIVEN BECAUSE IT IS A SAFETY HAZARD, NOT ONLY TO OURSELVES BUT OTHER DRIVERS AS WELL. WE NEED TO KNOW HOW TO PROCEED WITH BUICK. *AK

POWER STEERING PUMP BOLTS BROKE OFF THE ENGINE BLOCK AND FELL ON THE AXLE SHAFT CAUSEING LOOSE OF POWER ABD THE BELTON RIGHT SIDE OF CAR . ALSO DAMAGE TO THE AXLE SHAFT . SECOND TIME IT HAPPENED IN 2 WEEKS. NOT HAPPY WITH THE RESULTS OF THE PROBLEM. NOBODY SEEM TO KNOW ABOUT THE THIS PROBLEM ACCORDING TO THE SERVICE PEOPLE AT BUICK. SERVICE PEOPLE AT BUICK SAID THAT THEY NEVER HEARD OF THIS PROBLEM. I'M NOT HAPPY WITH THIS PROBLEM