Vehicle shuts down while driving

Buick was recently named as the third most reliable vehicle on the road, according to Forbes magazine. Well that's true if don't buy a first year model.

I bought a nice, fat, beautiful, shiny and luxurious sky blue 1991 Buick Park Avenue, with the ever popular 3.8 Liter V 6 engine, and only 105.000 miles on it. It had the leather and the works. Only owned by two people. Big mistake! It was to late. I was stuck with a lemon.

It ran good for the first 12 months, then it was all down hill from there. You sure can't accuse me of not taking care of the vehicle. I've put almost $1500,00 in repairs into it in the short year and half I owned it. Regular oil changes, tune ups, everything. You can't ask for a smoother shifting transmission or a quieter engine than this.

All electrical under the hood is new. so what's wrong with this thing? Why does it keep breaking down for no apparent reason? It was never abuse, or misused.

I owned a 88 Park Avenue a year or so before. The best car I ever owned my 88 Buick never broke down, and in the 299.000 miles that I owned it, I never so much as had to replace the alternator. Boy if they still made cars like that. It made me a huge fan of Buick/Pontiac, and the 3.8 Liter V6 engine.

So why is this 91 so buggy?

Then it occurred to me. I also owned an 85 Buick Skylark, another first year model. I'll never forget how often it left me stranded far from home.

So that's it, ever first year model Buick I've ever owned has given me a multitude of problems. I don't love Buick any less. But I'm now in the process of having GM buy my current Buick back, because of recall issues.

As an experienced mechanic the fact is, it doesn't matter how much work you put into a first year model car. If it's what I call a defective unit, it's just going to keep breaking down. As far as I know, if the car has had any recalls that the original owner didn't know about, GM is obligated by Federal law to fix it free of charge or buy the car back if it can't be fixed. Unless the recall was ended. Because public safety is involved.

Avoid the trap I got myself into. According to popular car buying websites, 20.000 91-92 year Buick Park Avenues were effected by recalls.

Before you buy a car, do your research well. Make sure your not buying a first year vehicle, because the first year a car ever comes out, it will almost always have a lot of bug and glitches. Find out what year the vehicle you want to buy first came out, and go for a model that was made three years later instead. And I will reemphasize the fact, it doesn't matter how much work you do on these first year vehicles, they have chronic defects and will continue to nickel and dime you to death as long as you own them.

Another thing, manufacturer defects are usually not something that is detected in a vin check, or lemon report.

So next time you have that itch to buy the latest and hottest car, wait until it's been out on the market for 24 to 48 month. For Example: Don't buy a 91 Buick Park Avenue. Buy a 93 or 95 model. It's the biggest money saving gift you can buy yourself.