24th Oct 2003, 17:31

I have a 1991 buick century with the 3.3 V6. It currently has 201,000 miles. I have replaced the idling pulley, the wheel bearings, the alternator, a few of the fuel injectors, as well as the basic things (oil, tires, brakes). It still has a lot of power, and gets 28mpg on the freeway at 75mph. The gas gauge has stopped working since about 120,000 miles. Great very reliable car.

14th Aug 2004, 17:39

I just bought my 1989 Century two weeks ago, it's a 3.3 with 169,000 miles on it and during the first few days that I owned it the alternator, harmonic balancer, crankshaft sensor, and thermostat went. I've been stranded on the side of the road so many times. Today my exhaust developed a leak, but at least I can drive it now. I was so frustrated. Hopefully I won't have anymore problems for a while, I couldn't handle it if I did. All these repairs left me pretty much broke. Hope you are right about this type of car, because even after all the trouble I have had with it, I really like the car. It floats on the road.

25th May 2005, 17:55

I own a 1993 Buick Century Special with 241,000 miles on it. It has the 3.3L V6 with four speed automatic transmission. Overall the car has been great, never had a breakdown. The engine is wonderful and has only had normal routine maintenance done on it. This really is the only thing great about the car along with the ride quality.

1. It’s not the most attractive car on the road.

2. The paint is peeling badly on all the flat surfaces (hood, roof, and trunk).

3. It’s by far not the best handling car on the road.

4. Front seats are not very comfortable and the back seat room is cramped.

5. Some engine components are very difficult to work on i.e.… rear spark plugs.

6. Tire size is too small… even during this era; the car should have come with 15-inch wheels.

7. Fit and finish isn’t very great.

8. Bad vibration at highway speeds (60mph to 75mph) in the front end. Have changed out tires, rims, ball joints, tie rods and wheel bearings several times and it still vibrates. All suspension components check out okay.

On the other side…

1. With so many miles on the engine, it still averages about 25mpg in the city and a little more on the highway.

2. The ride quality is outstanding… Cadillac level if you ask me and I’ve ridden in quite a few of them.

3. Engine, engine, engine! Great engine!

4. Many power accessories.

5. Cheap to Maintain.

6. Import reliability from GM.

Overall… not a flashy car, but will get you and the family from point A to point B reliably and isn’t that what it’s all about?

20th Oct 2005, 07:33

Bought my 1990 Century in 2004 with 71,000 miles on the 3.3 litre V6. Even though the car was heavily undercoated and was garaged most of it’s life, it still had extensive rust at the bottom of all four doors, enough to warranty replacement if I were so inclined. Cloth interior was in excellent condition. Car had very slight exhaust noise at the muffler when purchased, but was a great car for the $1000 investment. Drove well, handled great and got good all-around gas mileage.

Two years later at 76,500 miles, replaced alternator, front tires, exhaust system, shocks, struts and alignment. Car now rides, handles and sounds like a brand new vehicle. Also replaced wire wheel covers because the retainers were very prone to ceasing because of rust. Drivers seat beginning to show signs of wear.

In my opinion, this was the best money I’ve ever spent on a vehicle and I’m confident it will go another 76,000 miles. I’ve always been a GM man and this is why.

30th May 2006, 16:17

I am trying to find out what is wrong with my 1990 Buick Century. It will turn over until the battery dies, but is not getting fuel. I got it started right away with starting fluid, but it wouldn't stay going. Does this sound like the fuel-pump to you? Is this an expensive part to replace? other than that it is a great car, but having it down right now is hurting my wallet a bit.

11th Mar 2007, 00:59

I bought my 1992 century in 10-06 with 129,000 miles from an individual who bought it new here in Memphis. I did a lot of maintenance work, spark plugs, wires, module, O2 sensor, etc. It also had an exhaust leak, shocks & struts were plum worn-out. After all of that work, the car averaged 22 MPG. After replacing the intake gasket due to coolant leaking at 133,000 miles, I was tickled to death the car was averaging 25 mpg. No regrets for dumping a 94 Toyota tercel for this car.

28th Jul 2008, 19:06

I have a 90 Buick Century with a 3.3 V-6 Low miles 55,000.

The previous owner spent $500 trying to fix a fast idle condition. I bought the car for $700, replaced the computer and this fixed the idle problem.

Later on next year the car would not start or stay running.

I replaced two fuel injectors and this fixed the problem.

The bad fuel injectors had shorted out to 3 Ohms, they are supposed to be 12 Ohms.

20th Nov 2008, 20:55

Got a 1990 Buick Century from mother in law with 60,000 actual miles; an extremely low mileage car.

The car has never been wrecked; not bad for being nearly 20 years old, she had regular maintenance done on it; tires, belts and oil changes, she had new computer and fuel injectors, fuel rail, intake manifold items replaced at about 56,000, so these wore out due to age not wear is my guess.

After I got the car a less than a little more than a year ago, all fuel injectors went bad again, cause an auto repair place misdiagnosed a fuel problem. Since then the water pump shaft fell off, and tires replaced. Brakes need to be done..

All in all, not too bad for a car nearly 20 years old.

Minor items that are nuisance; head liner is losing its hold.

Note, I have a 1990 Honda Accord with 270,000 and not nearly as much maintenance is needed as on the honda.

5th Aug 2010, 20:43

I'm updating my 1990 Buick Century 3300 V-6 review.

Since replacing the electrically shorted fuel injectors, I've had a fast idle problem again. I adjusted the Throttle Position Sensor to 0.46 volts and this put it back in range so the computer (ECM) could stop using its default, which caused a very high idle speed.

Another problem was the engine shaking and a rattling noise. I replaced the catalytic converter and that fixed the rattling noise. Then checked for spark, and there was no spark on the 3-6 coil. The coil tested good, so I replaced the ignition module, and that fixed the engine shaking problem.