27th Jun 2006, 15:41
I just unloaded my 94 Century, It was a big money pit. It seems like every month something went out. Even after spending 900$ to get the AC fixed, it still wasn't right. I replaced it with a 04 Camry. From now it's Toyota or Honda for me.
24th Jul 2006, 10:59
I have a Century as well and just about 3 months ago I had the same stalling problem. Turned out it was my injectors. 1 was about shot and 2 others were going out.
-Tom.
20th Oct 2006, 15:29
Your fuel pump maybe causing your car to stall. Take it to a garage and ask them if they can test your fuel pressure if its before 40 you got a bad fuel pump.
19th Jul 2007, 23:15
A plastic baffle in the gas tank came loose in mine and would block the intake, causing the engine to stall without warning.
The mechanic said if the tank gets smacked somehow it's more likely to come loose than on its own. Not a common failure, but it does happen. Replacing the tank is the fix.
31st Dec 2008, 09:06
For those still reading, GM 3.1's are generally good motors, but are very sensitive to ethanol, it'll cause them to up and die because the ethanol causes the ECM to think the motor is running rich. If you change to non-ethanol 87 octane and it runs, there's your problem. I never understood though, why GM does not have routines to tell you if the ignition system or injectors themselves are going bad!
3rd Jun 2009, 20:57
It is the fuel injectors electrical coil windings shorting out and overloading the computer, and this cuts off power to the injectors for a moment and eventually it won't start at all. I have a 1990 Buick Century and three injectors had an intermittent short measured at 3 Ohms, it's supposed to be 12 Ohms.
There's no excuse for this kind of failure, I had a 87 Ford E-150 Van with over 200,000 miles on a 302 V-8 engine and those fuel injectors could last forever.
Overall the Buick Century is less trouble, good value and worth fixing.
16th May 2011, 22:41
In my experience, with these junk cars, the crank sensor is a common failure. Intermittently it will cause the engine to stall when coming to a stop or just taking off.
It is located underneath and behind the engine, beneath layers of oily dirt. So of course replacing it will cost a long dollar. When mine got real bad in the middle of February (180K+ miles) I simply recycled the old jalopy. Random stalling at speed is likely an electrical short, as in previous comments.
Final recommendation - buy it for $500 if the mileage is low, then drive it into the ground while shopping for a killer deal on a better vehicle. Remember, post~1962 big3 autos are built only for profit, not legacy (a little nod to the AMC there. :-)
17th May 2011, 16:22
If these cars are junk, then why do I see so many of them, as well as the LeSabre/Electra/Park Avenue from this period, still on the road, now in many cases well over 20 years later?? How many Accords and Camrys do you see from the late 80's, or even early 90's, still on the road? I know I hardly ever see any.
18th May 2011, 17:29
I see tons of these and old Cutlass Cieras on the road as well, even in the rust belt.
Very durable car, even with little to no maintenance.
Most people don't maintain them well, but they keep driving anyways.
My family has had a few, all served us well.
Not the fanciest car, but good value for your money.
4th Nov 2013, 01:06
Older cars tend to have some issues; that doesn't make them junk. Your problem could be as simple as a loose wire or a poor connection. As has been suggested, you should get the codes read to see if that reveals the source of the problem.
My '94 Century cut out randomly - it would completely die, but start right up again. It turned out to be that sometime before I owned it, the gas tank had taken a hit, and the baffle inside the tank came loose. Occasionally the movement would cause the fuel pump to become blocked long enough to kill the engine. A good junkyard tank and a new pump as a precaution, and the problem was fixed.
4th Nov 2013, 05:47
I could understand your Toyota comment if you bought the same year, vs one 9 years newer. My mother bought a new Century and kept it 8 years with no issues, and then bought another new car. I suspect if I had one 19 years old, it may need the A/C charged, or new brakes or tires. You see that a lot on here. A hand me down first car that's old, and then the new or much newer import is better.
Again, if anyone bought the Century new and had it the first 10 years or so, they would be sharing better comments like our family. We have a 2004 Honda EX at 104k, and it has had some expensive issues lately. Timing belt, water pump, front end work, tires are wider and high for the EX, brakes all hitting at once. But in all fairness, it's older now and needed work.
4th Nov 2013, 13:51
I had a 86 Olds Cutlass Ciera Brougham in beautiful shape, but had the same stalling problem. It was a carburetor motor. I tried everything; fuel pump, all the electrical items, everything was new, but once every 6 months, going down the highway at 100 k`s per hour, it would just stall, and sometimes when I would stop at a light. Otherwise it would run as smooth as silk.
Went to many mechanics, but no one could find the problem. I even changed the gas tank, but to no avail. I still feel sad when I think about the blue Olds.
12th May 2006, 19:02
It just stall's, I can be going 120 km/h down the highway, or idling in traffic, there's no pattern to it. Sometimes it starts right back up, other times it takes a minute or two to get going, when it does that it wants to start, but just chokes out, but will eventually start up and keep going.
It dosnt set codes, or else id fix it... No check engine light comes on when it happens. Wires, plugs, fuel pump, fuel filter, all the top end gaskets have been done, took the throttle body off and cleaned it the best I could (not that it was dirty). I have the ODB and ODB computers and there is nothing that sticks out, I have put the computer on and driven it down the road and everything operates normally, its very hard to pin point anything when it does happen with the computer on it...
I am convinced it's the crank sensor... I just wish it would die completely or set a code...