10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
36,388 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2016 Buick Encore engine problems

engine problem

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2016 Buick Encore Owner Comments (Page 1 of 2)

problem #23

Jul 142023

Encore

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

2016 Buick Encore VIN # KL4CJBSB0GB532930 with 67,584 miles. My car's check engine light came on. Upon checking the code at O'Reilly Auto I was told I had to see a mechanic as it showed code p0299, Turbo. I made an appointment at Garrigans Auto repair Shop, a reputable shop. After they inspected the SUV I was told the turbo had a crack and needed to be replaced. On 7/14/2023 I had the repairs done at a cost to me of $1,480.49 (attached). The car runs fine now. On 10/12/2023 I had another repair done on the car. This was the turbo emissions coolant line. While there, Thomas at the counter said he just received the notice of a "Special coverage A212338300 Turbocharger Replacement". I thanked him and contacted Buick. I talked to Diana and gave her my VIN number. She informed me of the extended coverage as long as my car was not more than 10 years old or more than120,000 miles. My car has 67,584 miles (notice attached). She sent me the form and I filled it out and returned it (copy attached). The case number is 9-10950181266 (attached). On 10/23/23 I received a call from Diane at Buick informing me my claim was denied. She said it was denied as it was not done at the dealership. If I had sustained a problem before Nov. 2021 I could file a claim but it had to be submitted by Nov. 2022. My work was done this year at a local shop. She said since it was not done at the dealership it was not covered. I told her I never knew of the 'special coverage' until after the work was done. She said it is not refundable. I asked for a supervisor who said the same thing. My issue is there is a serious malfunction of the turbo that could happen while I am driving down the interstate at 70 miles an hour only to have sudden reduced power or timing chain breakage causing serious damage to the car not to mention being hit from behind or when passing a semi due to loss of power or total engine malfunction (attached). Now I am contacting the NHTSA with my complaint.

- Tucson, AZ, USA

problem #22

Jun 232023

Encore

  • miles
Turbocharger failed which can eventually cause engine seizure. Independent mechanic diagnosed and repaired after Buick dealer told me I was out of warranty. After repair I located a letter from Buick with my vin number on it dated November 2021 (after my warranty expiration) confirmed that the turbocharger might fail and they would replace free of charge within 10 yrs or 120,000 miles of vehicle purchase. Prior to incident of turbocharger fail, my vehicle alerted me with with a loud tone of "Engine overheat, engine Idle" - all the engine oil and coolant ran out while driving.. Mechanic replaced water outlet, then a short time later service engine light came on with code for turbocharger failure.

- Dunedin, FL, USA

problem #21

Jul 152023

Encore

  • 123,000 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Buick Encore. The contact stated while driving 55 MPH, the vehicle accelerated independently with unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle started smoking and overheating. The contact was able to pull over on the side of the road and shut off the vehicle. The contact attempted to restart the vehicle however, the vehicle would not restart. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The mechanic retrieved DTC codes: P0700, P0243, and P0333. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 123,000.

- Bronx, NY, USA

problem #20

Sep 122022

Encore

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I was driving down the road and the car started cutting back, then it got real bad, has No power at all right in the middle of work hour traffic! The check engine light comes on then the traction light comes on, OnStar diagnostics sent email stating emissions system, stabil trac system and anti lock system My daughter was in the car we was in danger!!! I pay way too much for this car, I am on disability, fixed income! I have to have a way to go and get my daughter to school!!!

- Gaffney, SC, USA

problem #19

Jul 012022

Encore

  • miles
The turbo malfunctioned and made it not possible for the car to accelerate on the freeway. My safety was put at risk because the car would no longer accelerate at the speed limit which meant I was going slower than traffic. It sounds like this is a common problem for these cars in this year and 2017. The vehicle has been checked out by a mechanic. Nothing appeared until after it happened then the check engine light was on. sources that this is a common problem for this vehicle https://www.carcomplaints.com/Buick/Encore/2016/engine/engine.shtml https://www.driveandreview.com/buick-encore-problems/ https://buickforums.com/forums/threads/2017-buick-encore-turbo-failure.52583/

- Saint Paul, MN, USA

problem #18

Jan 012021

Encore

  • miles
In reference to this vehicle, I purchased this car from Burns Honda in February 2020. I replaced the battery less than a year of having this car. I then had my engine light come on and my car was skipping, it completely stopped while driving. Several times, it jumped when I would go over 65 MPH. I took it to the dealership that same night and they continued to tell me nothing was wrong with it. I have had electrical issues along with that. After back and forth for several days with Buick, they finally replaced the transmission. Fast forward to October of 2021, my engine light continues to go off and on and my car has been jumping on me.

- Cherry Hill, NJ, USA

problem #17

Apr 232021

Encore

  • 56,080 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Buzzing heard when I pressed on accelerating pedal. Heard a pop, then it would not accelerate and smoked out tail pipe. Engine light and oil lights both turned on. Vehicle was in motion when it occurred. I parked shortly after incident and had car towed to Firestone next morning. Jeff said engine blew and recommended dealer powertrain warranty to fix. Turbo blew which blew engine

- Rio Rancho, NM, USA

problem #16

Apr 022021

Encore

  • 38,000 miles
I got onto the 91 freeway heading East from the long beach blvd entrance. When doing the turn onto the freeway (U) the steering wheel locked/car shifted and both the engine light and traction control light turned on. Car was shakey whole time until I pulled over.

- Long Beach, CA, USA

problem #15

Feb 082021

Encore

  • miles
When stepping on the brake my car jumps and stalls. Check engine light is on. This is 3 third time it has happened in not even a year

- Van Nuys, CA, USA

problem #14

Nov 062020

Encore

  • 55,500 miles
Service light came on after being on the highway car started pulsing and now my car is idling rough.

- Harrison, OH, USA

problem #13

Jun 242020

Encore 4-cyl

  • 47,989 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Multiple lights came on at once and needed an intake manifold, pvc tube, valve cover, all which were repaired and the car continues to jerk forward intermittently on acceleration and deceleration.

- Port Orange, FL, USA

problem #12

Sep 022019

Encore

  • 87,064 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Buick Encore. The contact stated that while the vehicle was idle or at start up the engine smoked. The contact stated that there was an odor of burning engine oil. The contact stated that there was evidence of oil on the top of the engine when the hood was raised. Haley GMC 9831 midlothian hyperlink, richmond va 23235: 804-250-1322, was contacted and a valve cover replacement was suggested. The contact stated that the onstar system alerted of an emission failure. A plug part was replaced while still covered under the warranty in an earlier visit to the same dealer. The burning odor still persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 87,064.

- South Chesterfield, VA, USA

problem #11

Sep 182019

Encore

  • 85,000 miles
My AWD went out on 3 occasions, each time I was told they found nothing. One day I lost acceleration power and then the engine light came on. The dealership said my pistons were not firing and had to be replaced with the turbo. All was covered, however two weeks later my red oil alarm came on, I was out of oil. The car went back to dealer, all oil was burned up and so was my turbo. I had taken my car in previously for large amount of smoke coming out the back-end. I was told nothing was found to be wrong?

- Cleveland, OH, USA

problem #10

Nov 052019

Encore

  • 86,000 miles
While traveling at higher speeds (60+ mph), the check engine light will come on and the car will lose significant power in 4th and higher gear. This will present as speed can still be gained although very slowly in 4th gear, speed can be maintained but not gained while in 5th gear, and speed will only be lost while in 6th gear. 3rd gear and below all work fine. This issue is resolved by turning the car off for a while and then it continues to operate as it should thereafter, however, the check engine light will remain lit for a few days. The main concern is that the car loses the capability to get out of the way in the case of an emergency due to the lack of power while in this state.

- Kunkletown, PA, USA

problem #9

Oct 172019

Encore

  • 32,251 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Buick Encore. While driving 65 mph, the vehicle decelerated to 44 mph and the vehicle stalled. The vehicle coasted until it came to a complete stop. The vehicle was restarted, but hesitated to drive. The vehicle was taken to bob ruth Ford (700 N U.S. 15, dillsburg, pa 17019, (877) 818-1593) where the contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was currently being repaired under warranty. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 32,251.

- Harrisburg, PA, USA

problem #8

Oct 112019

Encore

  • 48,000 miles
When stopped, the vehicle feels like its missing, sometimes feels like it wants to stall. When accelerating, sometimes hesitates or not quite getting spark. Scary when merging and don't have full power right away. Brought to dealer 3 times, and now warranty has passed. Happens everyday.

- Saint Cloud, FL, USA

problem #7

May 252019

Encore

  • 88,000 miles
Our vehicle started losing pick up and go in the middle of driving about 2 weeks ago. Check engine light came on, so we took the vehicle to identify the issue. Error codes P0299 turbo/super charger underboost issue was identified. We called the dealership and were told the part is on backorder until maybe July. Even after market parts apparently are unavailable because GM is purchasing them. We contacted service manager at dealership because we are without a car that we are paying for and there is a huge concern that if the part is this difficult to obtain, there must be an undisclosed issue going on here. The service manager said they are only able to obtain updates for parts once the part is ordered, but also did confirm there is ( not necessarily a backorder, but the part is hard to come by!?!). he could not answer why. He did encourage us to contact Consumer Affairs to escalate our concerns. We did contact Consumer Affairs and were directed to contact NHTSA. We currently are without our vehicle that we continue to pay for and continue on this journey of tell this person or department and we are getting nowhere fast. Something bigger is obviously going on here and as always the paying customer continues to be the one paying for it. We want the part and it would be nice to not be inconvenienced with scrambling everyday on how to get to/from work and how to get to/ from caring for elderly parents who are in need of our assistance to eat, bath and remain safe. This issue is a huge inconvenience and truth needs to be told by GM/Buick.

- Warrington, PA, USA

problem #6

Apr 202019

Encore

  • 20,000 miles
Anti theft light comes on intermittently. When this happens the car acts like it might stall when idling.

- Canton, GA, USA

problem #5

Sep 132018

Encore 4-cyl

  • 19,500 miles
The contact owns a 2016 Buick Encore. The contact stated that the vehicle would crank unexpectedly while driving at extremely low speeds. The vehicle was equipped with the auto start feature when coming to a complete stop, which could not be disengaged. The contact described the failure as if the ignition were being started while the engine was already running. During the failure, the vehicle would stall and the contact would have to come to a complete stop and restart the engine. George nahas Chevrolet (4135 fl-44, wildwood, fl 34785, (352) 504-4538) stated that they could not assist unless there was a warning indicator on the instrument panel. The dealer was unable to duplicate the failure. The contact called the manufacturer and left a voice message. There was no follow-up after the contact and manufacturer tried to contact each other several times. The failure mileage was 19,500..

- The Villages, FL, USA

problem #4

May 022018

Encore

  • 10,300 miles
Yesterday I started the vehicle up and it quit. So I started it again and it ran. Then today, I was backing out and it died out. I started it up again and drove towards home. Then I was traveling 40 plus miles an hour when the car shut off. I hit the brakes and it started rocking. I was almost hit from the car behind me. I had it towed to the Buick dealership.

- Kettering, OH, USA

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