AI Damage1989 Buick Century: common problems
Owners of the 1989 Buick Century filed 40 complaints with NHTSA, most often about seat belts and vehicle speed control. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 40
- involving a crash
- 8
What fails most often
- 1 Seat belts 18% of all complaints
- 2 Vehicle speed control 18% of all complaints
- 3 Engine and cooling 13% of all complaints
- 4 Structure 13% of all complaints
- 5 Seats 10% of all complaints
- 6 Electrical system 8% of all complaints
- 7 Fuel system 5% of all complaints
- 8 Latches, locks, linkages 5% of all complaints
- Seat belts: 7 complaints (18% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Vehicle speed control: 7 complaints (18% of all), 5 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Engine and cooling: 5 complaints (13% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Structure: 5 complaints (13% of all).
- Seats: 4 complaints (10% of all).
Engines and transmissions
US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.
- 2.5 L · petrol · 4 cyl
- 2.8 L · petrol · 6 cyl
- 3.3 L · petrol · 6 cyl
- automatic, 3-speed
- automatic, 4-speed
Drive: FWD
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 40 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seat belts | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 7 | 5 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Structure | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Seats | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Fuel system | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Latches, locks, linkages | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Tires | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Equipment | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Service brakes | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Steering | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 1 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
And right rear tire tread separated, and tire was still inflated. There were no injuries. Dunlop sp 40 p195/70r14 dot db r w 466047 ( 006677 ) consumer added it was a hot day
Consumer has had 2 accidents relating to engine acceleration. Both times this happened the same way. Consumer has a very steep driveway. On sept. 11-2000, vehicle was in reverse & it accelerated backwards at a maxium speed.
Peluso's mother continued to drive vehicle with light on until one day she was turning into her driveway and the brakes failed. She could not stop the vehicle, crashed into her garage door, damaging the garage and the vehicle. Vehicle was towed to larry menke buick dealership in the auto center, town of seaside, ca.
After being hit on passenger side, driver seatbelt buckle came unattached, resulting in injuries. Tt
Car sold to me is a lemon. The motor went out in less than 30 days.
A technician serviced vehicle. Technician inspected the engine and determined that engine cradle was rusting.
Door hinges split in half, causing door to separate from vehicle. Dealer has been notified.
When geting on to the highway the seat back fell in to the back seat making me unable to see any traffic ahead of me.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 5,948 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 16% most complained about).
On average one model year of the Century has 70 complaints (26 years in the data). This year has 40, below average.
What to check before buying
- Seat belts. Belt pretensioners after airbag deployment, SRS codes.
- Vehicle speed control. Accelerator pedal, cruise control, throttle codes.
- Engine and cooling. Radiator and fan after a frontal hit, coolant level and condition, overheating.
- Structure. Rails, pillars, panel gaps, signs of pulling or welding.
Other years of this model
- Century 19823 sources
- Century 19848 sources
- Century 19857 sources
- Century 198622 sources
- Century 198728 sources
- Century 198816 sources
- Century 199033 sources
- Century 199138 sources
- Century 199245 sources
- Century 199354 sources
- Century 1994106 sources
- Century 199599 sources
- Century 199680 sources
- Century 1997106 sources
- Century 1998218 sources
- Century 1999235 sources
- Century 2000193 sources
- Century 2001145 sources
- Century 2002154 sources
- Century 2003127 sources
- Century 200439 sources
- Century 200519 sources
- Century 99993 sources
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 1989 Buick Century?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: seat belts, vehicle speed control, engine and cooling. Total complaints: 40. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: seat belts (18%), rust, corrosion (5%), stalls while driving (5%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1989 Buick Century?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 1989 Buick Century from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 1989 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.