1988 Buick Park Avenue

Summary:

Sports car disguised as a grandpa car

Faults:

Air conditioning has had a minor leak for some time, but we didn't realize what it was until the air was no longer blowing cold.

Replaced front wheel hub after bearing went bad.

Alternator died during road trip, hottest day of summer. Barely had enough momentum left to get into emergency lane of highway. Thank goodness for cell phones!

Headliner falling down.

Ignition module had to be replaced after the car ran out of gas and module fried during restart. Would have been $800+ at dealership to fix, we replaced it ourselves for $312.

Paint is peeling in places.

Door seals are falling apart, so road noise is pretty bad.

General Comments:

Other than the headliner, the interior is still in beautiful condition, still quite plush after all these years.

Incredibly powerful car for its size. Accelerates up major mountains with ease, no loss of power. Engine and transmission still run like it's new.

Fuel economy is 32 miles per gallon on the highway, 28 in town, and that's with the air conditioner running.

Very reliable car, worth every penny we paid for it and more. I never hesitate to take off cross country with it.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 2nd August, 2003

13th Aug 2006, 16:21

I just purchased a 1988 Park Avenue for $300.00 with a 124,000 miles and was a little Leary on driving it from Indiana to North Carolina. Then thanks to google I found this web site and amazed at the good comments on this car. BUT not until you mentioned Mountains was I at ease.

Thank You Paul.

1988 Buick Park Avenue 3.8 liter

Faults:

Original motor lost a rod at 171,000. Replaced motor with a used one with 71,000 on it. Have replaced the water pump, alt, radiator, heater core, battery etc. All normal stuff.

General Comments:

I bought it with 131,000 miles on it. It had a slight knock which turned out to be fatal. Anyway the car now has 238,000 miles and the transmission is orig. I did put a tranny cooler on it about 20,000 miles back. It's the same engine and trans as the lesabre. I drive about 1,000 hwy miles/week and change fluids routinely. Definitely recommend!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 29th June, 1998