New Buicks (gasket, valve, buying, engines)

[stock66]

The new Buicks have been catching my eye. Keeps surprising me that I see a car and think "that looks good", then see it is a Buick! Just never thought much of them before.
Anyone else thinking this way? Anyone driven or own one? How is the quality?

[CortlandGirl79]

I'm 28 years old and they are catching my eye too! I especially like the new enclave and lacrosse. From what i've read recently their quality is really good. I don't really have time to look up the articles though, maybe someone else can.

[Ceezer]

I'm a huge Buick fan (I'm only 30) and have had a few in the past. The Lacrosse is nice but I think the Lucerne is absolutely gorgeous! My wife (27) likes the Enclave and she's usually only appreciative of 'flashy' models.

Sure, in stock form, they're easily identified as and mistaken for "Granny" cars, but a few small modifications can have them looking stylish and 'cool'. Even in stock form I think Buick has had some of the most sylish and classy lines and designs of this era. Let's use my last Buick as an example, a '92 LeSabre. If you look at that car today you can still admire it's curves and see cues used in today's mid-large sized modeling. Compare that to other cars of the same time frame and they look dated or just outright ugly.

One thing I liked about the "granny" look is that nobody ever gave a second thought about messing with my car. I would go places and leave my windows down. Sometimes I'd take the keys out of the ignition and toss them on the floorboard just so I wouldn't have to carry them (like if I was wearing shorts with no pockets).

The 3800s are bulletproof. Good power and decent economy. Smooth as a baby's bottom.

Another thing is comfort. The cars have good power when you need it, but you always feel like you want to take it easy. It's like, every time you get behind the wheel you're out for a Sunday drive. Driving for the sake of driving. Sit back and enjoy the ride. The cabin is also very spacious without feeling like you're driving a boat.

The good thing is, *nobody* ever thinks about Buicks. That means if you're buying used you can usually get a fairly decent deal. I recently looked into getting a last year LeSabre (it was replaced by the Lucerne) and you could get an '03-05 for $10-12k.

[CortlandGirl79]

Here's an article i found today:

Most Dependable Brands 2007
By KEVIN RANSOM, AOL AUTOS
The last few years have been rough ones for Detroit automakers, as they have seen their market share erode in the face of competition from their Asian and European rivals.

Moderator cut: do not repost copyrighted articles

[lilred7879]

Rented an Enclave last week - base model with cloth interior and it was still an amazing ride - extremely quiet. It was neat enough I took 4 people from customer sites for a ride just to check it out. GM might save themselves yet!

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Ceezer

The 3800s are bulletproof. Good power and decent economy. Smooth as a baby's bottom.

3800s are bulletproof? Id beg to differ. I know, I spent 3 years working for Olds and Pontiac. The 3800s were probably the most trouble prone engine besides the 350s and 4.3L Vortec engines. They did make decent power, especially when supercharged. And smooth is not the word Id use to describe them either, especially on the older models. The newer 3800s are vastly better, but the 3800s used in the mid-to-late 90's were gravelly and course as could be. Ugh. Id take the 3400 over the 3800, but thats just my opinion of course.

[Ceezer]

I don't know why your experiences were so bad but you're the first person I've *ever* heard put down the 3.8. I know guys that have been with GM or in GM garages from Detroit to Tampa to Phoenix to Bakersfield and they all love the 3.8. One of them has been a GM tech for 40+ years and it's one of his favorite engines all time.

Maybe the older LG3 3.8s had issues, they were used up until '88, but once they swapped to the LN3 it was all gravy. Especially the Series II (and I think they're at Series III now).

I'm not trying to say you didn't have those problems, I'm just really sorry you did because I truly believe it's a great engine. Regardless, the original poster was asking about new Buicks so issues from 15 years ago are moot.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Ceezer

I don't know why your experiences were so bad but you're the first person I've *ever* heard put down the 3.8. I know guys that have been with GM or in GM garages from Detroit to Tampa to Phoenix to Bakersfield and they all love the 3.8. One of them has been a GM tech for 40+ years and it's one of his favorite engines all time.

Maybe the older LG3 3.8s had issues, they were used up until '88, but once they swapped to the LN3 it was all gravy. Especially the Series II (and I think they're at Series III now).

I'm not trying to say you didn't have those problems, I'm just really sorry you did because I truly believe it's a great engine. Regardless, the original poster was asking about new Buicks so issues from 15 years ago are moot.

Interesting. Of all the motor swaps we had to do, the 3.8L and 350 were the most common. I worked in parts and saw new 3.8L engines come in the door on a weekly basis, no joke.

[1970pelle]

If its a true Buick its a fine car.The Enclave is just a dressed up chevy.They are using that same platform for all there GM lines.All built on the same line.They are just rebadging them adding upgraded interior.Yes #.8l have issues.Gm V6's have had a intake gasket and intake manfold problems for a number of years.Where you will have a coolant leak sometime internal some external.Its seam they make it to 60 k then start to leak.The parts used to repair from the dealer are in fact better the what was used when built.Easy to check looking side valve cover and inside oil cap and signs of water mixing with oil will look milkey.Check at the end of the intake manfold where the intake bolts to the cylinder heads front on rear.Use a flash light if its wet you most likely have a leak.But I still think Buick is better than a Caddy anyday

[Drover]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

Interesting. Of all the motor swaps we had to do, the 3.8L and 350 were the most common. I worked in parts and saw new 3.8L engines come in the door on a weekly basis, no joke.

Maybe you did more 3.8 motor swaps because there are God knows how many millions of cars out on the roads with that motor in it: Electras, LeSabres, Reattas, 88s and 98s, Bonnevilles, Rivieras, Regals, Park Avenues, Camaros, Firebirds, Impalas, Luminas, Grands Prix, Monte Carlos... with so many millions of those engines in service, you'll end up with a certain volume of them needing replacement even if the motor is otherwise pretty reliable.