2nd Aug 2008, 13:46

I've owned a 2000 Buick Century for nearly 9 years (purchased brand new) and have been pleased with the car for the most part. However, I've experienced the same transmission issues (and, I might add, manifold intake problem) that has been mentioned through this site. The car now has 77000 miles on it, and I'm leaning toward a new Hyundai Sonata. Would like to stay with GM, but after what happened with Oldsmobile, I wonder if they're not planning to do the same thing to the Buick line. As others have expressed, why hasn't Buick addressed these issues and had the cars recalled to fix the problems?

2nd Aug 2008, 14:31

Also, (to add to an earlier comment) I recently had the ANTI-LOCK light appear on my instrument panel. The Buick service department told me that the pump was going out and it would be a $1310 repair. That, coupled with the transmission issue, is causing me to consider trading the car either on a new Lacrosse, or Hyundai Sonata. (I have not found any complaints regarding the Buick Lacrosse.)

14th Aug 2008, 23:40

Here's my story... the 2000 Century I own, started the jerking transmission issue at around 38K. It would reset itself when the engine was turned off, but that stopped working after a while. I've been doing the same scenario for years to keep from putting any money into it. At 105K, it somehow affected the flywheel in my transmission and is now in the shop. The jerky drive got worse, loud ticking sound coming from engine. Apparently, the flywheel was cracked and barely hanging on (the result of years of no attention). I replaced that and the two solenoids. My local tranny guy charged $800...let's see how long it lasts!!

28th Aug 2008, 18:27

We have a 2000 Buick Century and have loved the comfort and ride. We have 140,000 miles on this vehicle and have been dealing with the transmission problem for several years. When it starts in, we have to turn it off and restart. The Anti-lock brake light stays on all the time. The fuel gage hasn't worked for sometime, and now the gear shift indicator is fading out. (I took the car in today regarding the gear shift indicator, and was told that would be a $300-$400 fix.) If we lose the gear shift indicator, we won't be able to determine whether we have fuel since we've been checking that by the number of miles we've driven (which appears on the gear shift indicator). Although we love the car, we are about done. It is disappointing that such a nice car has so many computer/electrical problems.

8th Sep 2008, 08:54

My old man bought our 2000 Buick Century w/50k miles about three years ago and I've hated it ever since. Because he works in the city, I have to play chauffeur and I let me tell you, the whine and hard shifting just kills me. Because he is too cheap to pay for a real mechanic, we never found out the problem and I get blamed. Now after reading all this, I'm going to take it to a real transmission shop. Thanks guys!!!

Oh by the way, has anyone else had the plastic bits, knobs, and nick knacks fall down while driving? It started with the AC knobs falling, then the drink holder collapsed, followed by the arm rest springing up without being touched (now it never closes), the steering wheel sheds like a sheep dog, and the factory cassette player ate my David Bowie tape(its still in there!).

I swear I think the car hates me and the feeling is mutual.

19th Oct 2008, 22:31

FELLOW BUICK OWNERS!!

I too have a buick. It's a 2000 Century. I bought it as my first car and was very excited because of the supposed reliability. Since last year (my junior year) I started experiencing all the same symptoms EVERYONE is talking about. I also noted that turning off the car and opening the door (to cut all electrical power) cured the symptoms temporarily. To make a long story short, my dad recommended that it was a valve in my transmission. Since he was a mechanic in the Air Force for four years I took his word and began my investigation for easy and CHEAP fixes. I came across this product called TransTune made by a company called SeaFoam. It only costs about 10-15 bucks!! You pour half the bottle into your tranny fluid and I'm telling you it eliminates the issue!!! I was incredibly happy. I let a bit of time go by, specifically a year, and the condition has never returned. THIS IS the way to go! give it like a day or two of running for the fluid to completely clean the valve before you give up hope. I put in a half bottle every six months just to keep on top of it. It won't affect the quality of your tranny fluid.

Now, I'm having another issue. I think there is a slow short somewhere in my car thus draining juice from my battery when my car isn't running. I checked to see if the battery is good and it is, and I had the alternator checked and all is good. I was told that there was a short somewhere and that unless it was found and fixed that it would constantly drain my battery dead. If anyone has had an experience with this or knows a respectable (but not a rip-off) electrician in Pittsburgh, please, please, please drop me a line at ajk.pitt@gmail.com. I've already checked all my lights and in the process of obtaining a voltmeter to check my fuse box.

Thanks!!! and try the TransTune!!!

25th Oct 2008, 15:23

I to have a 2000 Buick Century with the hard shifting. I bought an extended warranty on the car. The dealership replaced the transmission sensor it worked fine. They did that about 8 months ago. Now the hard shifting and the noise has come back. I also 2 have the ALB light saying on again. It comes and go. My fuel gauge when it goes to about half a tank it will climb up to a full tank. The dealer told me it was the sensor in the fuel tank and the warranty does cover that. I love my car. I also have a piston slap when you first start the car up. The dealer told me I have to leave it overnight for them to hear it. I love the gas millage and the comfort of the car. But now I see that these Buick's have a lot of transmission problems. I think they should have a recall on the transmission.

26th Oct 2008, 05:30

I found this forum last year when I had my tranny (2000 Century) overhauled. The problem came back right away. I've constantly checked back on this forum to see if anyone has really found a fix. I'm pretty sure GM knows about this problem too but don't care. Especially now that they are facing sales problems. They have not even shown concern about this issue. If you notice, first comment on this issue was posted in 2006. I think its time to give up. I've stopped using the car and giving up my 2005 fully loaded Uplander and that's it for me with GM products. Going back to Toyota.