Buick LaCrosse reliability by year
25 recall campaigns and 2,119 owner complaints across 15 model years. Best year to buy: 2017. Year to avoid: 2005.
Worst model years to avoid → — the single year to avoid for every model line we track, ranked side by side.
Years to avoid — and why 5 flagged on the NHTSA record
Cleaner on the data: 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 . Still verify the specific vehicle.
At-a-glance: every year color-coded
Each cell shows the last two digits of the model year and its 0–10 reliability score from NHTSA data. Click any year to see the full record. ★ best year · ✕ year to avoid.
Year-by-year reliability 15 model years · newest first
Per-year recall counts add up to 50, more than the 25 campaigns above, because a single NHTSA campaign often covers several model years and is counted once in each.
Common trouble spots across the LaCrosse aggregated across 15 model years
Common questions
What's the best year to buy a Buick LaCrosse?
Based on NHTSA complaint volume and severity weighting, the 2017 Buick LaCrosse scores 8.0/10 — the strongest in the 2005–2019 range. 34 complaints on file, 2 active recalls. Reliability scores reflect the federal complaint record, not subjective owner reviews.
Which Buick LaCrosse year should I avoid?
The 2005 Buick LaCrosse scores 6.2/10 — the weakest in the lineup. 315 owner complaints with NHTSA, 5 active recalls. That doesn't mean every 2005 is a problem — it means failure rates run higher than peer model years on the same platform.
Which years of the Buick LaCrosse should I avoid?
On the NHTSA complaint and recall record, the model years to be most careful with are 2010 (avoid — the electrical system — 6 fire-related complaints and 1 crash-related complaint on the electrical system); 2008 (avoid — the electrical system — 6 fire-related complaints on the electrical system); 2007 (avoid — the electrical system — 14 fire-related complaints on the electrical system); 2006 (avoid — the lighting — 5 fire-related complaints and 5 crash-related complaints on the electrical system); 2005 (high-risk ownership — electrical system: 68 complaints, classified severe). The cleaner years on the data are 2017, 2016, 2018, 2015, 2014, 2013. This is our read of the federal data, not a substitute for a pre-purchase inspection of the specific vehicle.
How many years of the Buick LaCrosse are tracked?
15 model years (2005 through 2019) with NHTSA records on file. Total across the lineup: 25 distinct recall campaigns and 2,119 owner complaints. Those campaigns land on 50 model-year entries in total, because one campaign often covers several years at once — which is why per-year recall counts add up to more than the campaign count.
What's the most-reported problem on the Buick LaCrosse?
electrical is the most-reported category — 504 complaints across 13 model years. Average shop repair runs about $850.