KnownCarProblems2009 Buick Enclave Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 220 complaints with NHTSA about the 2009 Buick Enclave, most often about the steering (49% of complaints, typically around 70,000 miles). It is 4th of 19 Enclave model years by number of complaints and has 8 recalls.
Most common 2009 Buick Enclave problems
Steering
108 complaints · 49%Half of these problems showed up before 70,000 miles. Parts named most often: hydraulic power assist system.
I was stopped on the street waiting to pull in my drive way as traffic passed. I attempted to turn expecting to pull in as normal but steering wheel locked up and missed driveway. To avoid traffic accelerated into yard due to steering not working as anticipated. Steering returned to normal intermittently.
I own a 2009 Buick Enclave that started experiencing intermittent steering lock-up issues at approximately 55,000 miles. The steering would intermittently 'lock-up' especially at speeds below 35 MPH without warning, the problem became much worse over time. We frequently travel to the nc mountains where there are many…
Engine
43 complaints · 20%Half of these problems showed up before 85,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2009 Buick Enclave. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled after the automatic locks malfunctioned. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technician was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 83,094.
Sevice stabiltrak light and check engine lightcame on and engine power loss while traveling down freeway. Check out many videos and forums of issues [] parts of this document have been redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
Transmission
33 complaints · 15%Half of these problems showed up before 91,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2009 Buick Enclave. While driving 40 MPH, the vehicle failed to shift into fourth or fifth gear. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 91,000. Ma 10/19/2015 updated 10/26/2017
Driving on the highway the rpms started racing and it felt like the transmission was slipping. We started losing power and eventually the car would not shift out of first gear. Carmax had a dealership repair the transmission. We don't use this vehicle often so when we drive it several months later it seemed fine…
Electrical
22 complaints · 10%Half of these problems showed up before 60,500 miles. Parts named most often: instrument cluster/panel, instrument panel.
Issue: repair done for premature timing chain wear due to engine control module resolution: recall repair #10287 performed and reprogrammed engine control module issue #5.
Power steering fails and the wheel is hard to steer to the left or right. It continues to get worse and worse. In addition, as we were driving down the street at about 30 MPH and all of the electrical went out in the vehicle. We stopped the vehicle, restarted it, and the problem went away.
Other or unspecified
12 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 97,500 miles.
While driving my car twice this week my vehicle turned off while I was driving. One of the times it cut off at the light while I was turning.
While operating ,opening the liftgate and leaning into the storage (trunk)to remove items liftgate made a noise and came down hitting my daughter on her head.liftgate(hatch) will not remain open.dealer diagnosed as struts and power pad need replacement.extended service plan does not cover the struts.dealer also said…
Speed control
11 complaints · 5%Half of these problems showed up before 117,000 miles. Parts named most often: accelerator pedal.
Hard shifting noted in gears. Car acts like it's in neutral when in reverse. Buick dealership says the wave plate is defect. Other 09 Buick enclaves are covered by specialty policy. 14404 a. But not my VIN VIN. Same make model and transmission. I was told by gmc customer service to complain here.
Car accelerated on it's own during highway speeds. Was traveling on a 2 lane highway in the desert at 70 MPH in #1 lane, attempting to pass a semi truck, went to the #2 lane increased speed up to 75, let off gas once I was back in #1 lane and my car was at 5 RPM when typically it's at 2 RPM or less. My car was…
Air bags
9 complaints · 4%Half of these problems showed up before 75,500 miles. Parts named most often: side/window.
My service air bag light came on for no apparent reason, after my friend and I re-entered the vehicle while on a day outing. I believe it to be for the passenger seat, because the passenger air bag dash light will not illuminate to on when a passenger is seated in it. Worried that it may be for the whole air bag…
Got into a major accident two cars ran into my vehicle and everyone was injured and the air bags did not come on to prevent that. I have insurance and police report that states this.
Stability control
9 complaints · 4%Half of these problems showed up before 74,500 miles.
Transmission-push on gas but wouldn't move, just revved up, was parked and tried to leave and vehicle wouldn't go in reverse so ended up having it towed and transmission replaced. Less than 75,000 mile on it. Power steering pump-would go to turn wheel and would take both hands to turn it because it was that tight.…
Issue: check engine light issue resolution: dealership found code p0304 and p0306 were stored. Recommended replacement of #4 and #6 coils and plugs. Repair replaced all plugs and coils. Issue #7. Itr
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2009 Buick Enclave recalls
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Dealers will replace the driver's air bag module, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters were mailed on november 3, 2021. Owner notification letters were mailed on january 10, 2022. Owners may contact buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300 or chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. Gm's number for this recall is n212349040.
Full defect summary
General motors, llc (gm) is recalling certain 2008-2017 buick enclave and 2013-2017 chevrolet traverse vehicles. The driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment, due to a manufacturing defect.
Body and structure: hatchback/liftgate
Risk: If the open liftgate unexpectedly falls, it may strike a person, increasing their risk of injury.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will update the software for the power liftgate actuator motor control unit so that the motor will prevent the rapid closing of the lift gate, free of charge. The recall began on november 15, 2016. Owners may contact buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, gmc customer service at 1-800-462-8782, and saturn customer service at 1-800-553-6000. Gm's number for this recall is 15240.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2008-2012 buick enclave vehicles manufactured january 3, 2007, to february 29, 2012, 2009-2012 chevrolet traverse vehicles manufactured july 6, 2008, to march 9, 2012, 2007-2012 gmc acadia vehicles manufactured september 15, 2006, to february 29, 2012, and 2007-2010 saturn outlook vehicles manufactured august 17, 2006, to march 18, 2010. The affected vehicles, equipped with the power liftgate option, have gas struts that hold the power liftgate up when open. These struts may prematurely wear and the open liftgate may suddenly fall.
Seat belts
Risk: If the steel cable becomes fatigued and separates, the seatbelt may not properly restrain the seat occupant increasing the risk of an injury in a crash.
Fix: General motors will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, repair and replace the lap pretensioner, free of charge. Parts are not currently available. An interim notice will be mailed to owners in july 2014. A second notice will be mailed to owners once parts become available. The recall for the 2009-2010 model years began on july 11, 2014. The interim letter for the 2011-2014 model years were distributed on july 11, 2014. Owners may contact general motors at 1-800-222-1020 (chevrolet), 1-800-521-7300 (buick), 1-800-462-8782 (gmc), 1-800-553-6000 (saturn). General motors re
Full defect summary
General motors is recalling certain model year 2009-2014 buick enclave vehicles manufactured april 14, 2008, through may 14, 2014, chevrolet traverse vehicles manufactured june 6, 2008, through may 14, 2014, and gmc acadia vehicles manufactured april 9, 2008, through may 14, 2014, and 2009-2010 saturn outlook vehicles manufactured april 14, 2008, through march 18, 2010. In the affected vehicles, the flexible steel cable that connects the seatbelt to the front outboard seating positions may fatigue and separate over time.
Air bags: side/window
Risk: Failure of the side impact air bags and seat belt pretensioners to deploy in a crash increase the risk of injury to the driver and front seat occupant.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected harness connections with soldered connections, free of charge. The recall began on june 16, 2014. Buick owners may contact the owner center at 1-800-521-7300, chevrolet owners at 1-866-694-6546, saturn at 1-800-553-6000, and gmc owners at 1-866-996-9463. Gm's number for this recall is 14030. Note: vehicles repaired as part of customer satisfaction campaign 10085 and special coverage 10335 have already had the subject condition repaired and therefore are not included in the safety recall.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2008-2013 buick enclave and gmc acadia and 2009-2013 chevrolet traverse and 2008-2010 saturn outlook vehicles. In the affected vehicles, increased resistance in the driver and passenger seat mounted side impact air bag (siab) wiring harnesses may result in the siab and seat belt pretensioners not deploying in the event of a crash.
Seat belts
Risk: The safety belt may not restrain the occupant as intended during a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the seat occupant.
Fix: Dealers will modify the second row seat side trim shields. If a safety belt buckle is damaged, dealers will replace it free of charge. The safety recall began on august 18, 2010. Owners may contact chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, buick at 1-866-608-8080, gmc at 1-866-996-9463, and saturn at 1-800-972-8876, or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.
Full defect summary
General motors is recalling certain model year 2009-2010 chevrolet traverse, buick enclave, gmc acadia, and saturn outlook vehicles. The second row seat side trim shield restricts the upward rotation of the safety belt buckle when the seat back is returned to a seating position after being folded flat. If the buckle contacts the seat frame, additional effort is required to return the seat to a seating position. If sufficient force is applied, the buckle cover could be pushed down the strap, exposing and partially depressing the red release button.
Electrical: electrical system
Risk: It is possible for the heated washer module to ignite and a fire may occur.
Fix: Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently disabled and removed from the vehicle. The safety recall began on june 11, 2010. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, saturn at 1-800-972-8876, gmc at 1-866-996-9463 and hummer at 1-800-732-5493 or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.
Full defect summary
Gm is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 buick, lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 buick enclave; cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; saturn outlook; and model year 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles equipped with a heated washer fluid system (hwfs). A recall was implemented in 2008 to add a fuse to the control circuit harness to address the potential consequences of a printed circuit board (pcb) electrical short. However, there have been new reports of thermal incidents on hwfs modules after this improvement was installed. These incidents resulted from a new failure mode attributed to the device's thermal protection feature. The significance varies from minor distortion to considerable melting of the plastic around the hwfs fluid chamb
Transmission: column shift
Risk: The driver may not be able to restart the vehicle and the vehicle could roll away after the driver has exited the vehicle, resulting in a possible crash without prior warning.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and ensure that the shift cable adjustment clip is fully engaged. In the event that the clip does not engage, the shift cable will be replaced free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on or before march 24, 2009. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, gmc at 1-866-996-9463, pontiac at 1-800-620-7668 and saturn at 1-800-972-8876 or at www.gmownercenter.com.
Full defect summary
General motors is recalling 276,729 my 2009 buick enclave, chevrolet cobalt, hhr, malibu, traverse, gmc acadia, pontiac g5, g6 and saturn aura and outlook passenger vehicles. These vehicles fail to comply with federal motor vehicles safety standard 102, "transmission shift position sequence, starter interlock, and transmission braking effect", and fmvss 114, "theft protection and rollaway prevention". On some of these vehicles, the transmission shift cable adjustment clip may not be fully engaged. If the clip is not fully engaged, the shift lever and the actual position of the transmission gear may not match. With this condition, the drive could move the shifter to "park" and remove the ignition key, but the transmission gear may not be in "park".
Seat belts: buckle assembly
Risk: In a vehicle crash, if the rivet is missing, the buckle may separate from the mounting strap, increasing the risk of injury to the passenger.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the safety belt buckles in the second and third rows, and replace them if necessary. The recall began on november 26, 2008. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080; chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438; gmc at 1-866-996-9463; saturn at 1-800-972-8876; or through their website at <a href=http://www.gmownercenter.com>http://www.gmownercenter.com</a> .
Full defect summary
Gm is recalling 16,667 my 2009 buick enclave, chevrolet traverse, gmc acadia, and saturn outlook vehicles for failing to conform with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 209, 'seat belt assemblies.' these vehicles may have been built with a safety belt buckle in the second or third row that is missing a rivet.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Outboard front seat belt anchor cable failure
Summary
On august 31, 2020, the office of defects investigations (odi) opened engineering analysis (ea) ea20002, as an upgrade of recall query (rq) rq19003. This investigation, related to recall 14v-266, was opened to investigate instances of detachment of the flexible steel seat belt anchor cable attached to the outboard side of the front seats in vehicles manufactured by general motors (gm). The subject vehicles included model year (my) 2009 through 2014 gmc acadia, buick enclave, and chevrolet traverse suvs as well as my 2009 through 2010 saturn outlook suvs. These vehicles were previously repaired for this defect under recall 14v-266. The subject vehicle population is approximately 1.3 million v
Seat belt anchor cable failure
Summary
On may 19, 2014, general motors llc (gm) notified the office of defects investigation (odi) that it would conduct safety recall 14v266 to address fatigue and separation of the flexible steel cable that connects the front outboard seat belts to the seat-mounted belt pre-tensioner in 1.4 million model year (my) 2009-2010 saturn outlook, 2009-2014 buick enclave, gmc acadia and chevrolet traverse (lambda platform) vehicles.the remedy was to inspect for signs of damage and replace pre-tensioner anchor cables as needed. Re-work was conducted to relocate the pre-tensioner anchor cable out of the occupant entry path. Odi has subsequently received four (4) vehicle owners questionnaires (voq) reportin
Fleet vehicle recall completion audit
Summary
On november 18, 2010, NHTSA's recall management division (rmd) opened an audit query (aq10-001) to investigate recall remedy completion by rental car companies on safety recall campaigns.it was expected to provide the agency an indication of how completely and how quickly rental car fleets perform necessary recall-related remedies on the vehicles owned and then rented/leased for use on the roadways.rmd queried three (3) major motor vehicle manufacturers (ford, chrysler, and general motors) and requested data regarding completion figures for fifteen (15) discreet safety recalls.analysis of this data demonstrated that rental car recalls completion was neither complete nor consistent.the rental
Questions about the 2009 Buick Enclave
- What are the most common problems with the 2009 Buick Enclave?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: steering (108 complaints, typically around 70,000 miles); engine (43 complaints, typically around 85,000 miles); transmission (33 complaints, typically around 91,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2009 Buick Enclave have?
- 8 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from October 7, 2021 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2009 a bad year for the Buick Enclave?
- It is 4th of 19 Enclave model years by number of complaints, with 220 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.