RoadVitals

2008 Buick Enclave Transmission Problems

Owner-reported complaints naming the transmission system, filed with NHTSA

Data refreshed

Transmission reportsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
12
Latest Apr 27, 2022
Share of all reportsThis category as a share of every owner report on file for this model year. One report can name more than one component, so the categories overlap.
2%
of 536 total
Crash or fire reportedReports in this category whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. The reporter's own answer on the NHTSA form, not a verified finding.
0
Injuries or deaths reportedTotals the submitters entered on their own reports in this category. Not verified by NHTSA and not a casualty statistic.
0

What this page shows

Reports naming the automatic or manual transmission, including shifting behaviour, shudder, slipping and transmission control modules. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2008 Buick Enclave submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 12 reports on file name it.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Owner reports naming transmission

Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed

Transmission
Filed Apr 27, 2022

The contact owns a 2008 Buick Enclave. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle hesitated to accelerate. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the transmission control module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 124,000.

NHTSA ID
11462406
Incident
Jan 1, 2022
Mileage
124,000 mi
Powertrain (other)Transmission
Filed Jun 9, 2014

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BUICK ENCLAVE. WHILE TURNING THE VEHICLE AT APPROXIMATELY 15 MPH, THE TRANSMISSION FAILED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC AND THE TROUBLE CODE DETECTED INTERNAL TRANSMISSION FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 81,700.

NHTSA ID
10597012
Incident
Jun 7, 2014
Mileage
81,700 mi
Powertrain (other)Transmission
Filed May 21, 2014

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BUICK ENCLAVE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 30 MPH, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO ACCELERATE AS THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. ON ANOTHER OCCASION, THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO OPERATE IN REVERSE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE POWER TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 73,200 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 73,800.

NHTSA ID
10593101
Incident
Apr 16, 2014
Mileage
73,200 mi
Transmission
Filed Dec 14, 2010

THIS IS AN UPDATE TO COMPLAINT 10280929 FOR A 2008 BUICK ENCLAVE AWD AFTER FUEL EFFICIENCY REACHING AN ALL-TIME HIGH OF 17MPG COMBINE HWY&CITY, WITHIN WEEKS IT BEGAN DROPPING AND SETTLED BETWEEN 14-15 MPG. WATER LEAKS THAT BEGAN DUMPING CUP FULL OF WATER ON OCCUPANTS LAST YEAR FIXED. MORE DEFINITE HESITATION BETWEEN GEARS CONTINUES, AS WELL AS MOMENTARY LAPSES IN POWER RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PEDAL AND ENGINE. LAST MONTH A WHIRRING SOUND STARTED THAT WAS ASSOCIATED WITH TURNING THE CAR. THE SOUND WOULD RISE DURING ACCELERATION AND FALL DURING DE-ACCELERATION. BREAK JOB TOOK CARE OF IT (ALTHOUGH I DOUBTED THE DEALER'S ASSESSMENT) UNTIL YESTERDAY. THE WHIRRING HAS RETURNED, ALBEIT INTERMITTENTLY. AFTER 3 YRS I KNOW THAT IF A PROBLEM CAN'T BE REPLICATED ON TEST DRIVE OR SHOW UP AS CODES ON A COMPUTER--THE DEALERSHIPS (AND I HAVE BEEN TO 3 OVER THE YEARS) WILL DO NOTHING. MY SOLUTION IS TO TURN THIS PRETTY LOOKING CAR IN (3 WEEKS!) AND TURN MY BACK ON ALL GM CARS AFTER 30+ YEARS OF DRIVING ALL SORTS OF THEM. *TR

NHTSA ID
10370691
Incident
Oct 30, 2010
Mileage
50 mi
Transmission
Filed Aug 2, 2010

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BUICK ENCLAVE. WHILE THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 10 MPH, THE TRANSMISSION EXHIBITED HESITATION AND SHAKING. THE REVERSE GEAR WAS NONFUNCTIONAL. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR DIAGNOSIS. THE FAILURE WAS RELATED TO THE TRANSMISSION CLUTCH PACK. THE CONTACT WAS AWAITING REPAIRS TO THE VEHICLE. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 40,000.

NHTSA ID
10346766
Incident
Jul 24, 2010
Mileage
40,000 mi
Transmission
Filed Jul 12, 2010

WITHIN THE LAST FOUR MONTHS, I HAVE NOTICED A VIBRATING NOISE AS PART OF MY STEERING. MY MAJOR COMPLAINT IS A VERY LOUD SHARP WHISTLING NOISE COMING FROM MY ENGINE AFTER DRIVING IT FOR A SHORT TIME. THE SCREECHING, WHISTLING CONTINUES WHILE IT IS IDLING FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIME. I AM CONCERNED OF WHAT IT IS AND ALSO FIND IT NOT ACCEPTABLE TO HAVE TO PUT UP WITH THE NOISE CONSTANTLY, ESPECIALLY BEING ONLY 2 YRS. 4 MO. OLD AND LESS THAT 25,000 MILES. OBVIOUSLY IT IS A DEFECT BY GM AND THEY ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR FIXING IT ASAP AS I'M NOT SURE IF THE NOISE IS ALL THERE IS TO IT AS FAR AS SAFETY. THE TECHNICIANS AT THE DEALERSHIP WORKED ON IT, PUT IN A NEW DEFIBULATOR, TOOK IT BACK OUT AND SAID THEY CALLED GMC. ACCORDING TO THE TECHNICIAN, GM SAID ALL ENCLAVES MAKE THE SAME NOISE. I AM IRATE AS NOT ONE ON THE LOT MAKES THE NOISE NOR DO ANY OTHER'S THAT I KNOW PEOPLE DRIVE. I DID NOT PAY CLOSE TO $40,000 FOR A LUXURY VEHICLE THAT SOUNDS LIKE A 15 YEAR OLD CLUNKER IN WHICH AGAIN IS EMBARRASSING AS WELL NEEDS TO BE RECKONED WITH BEFORE MY NEXT DESCRIPTION MAY BE A BIG SAFETY ISSUE TOO! .................. TAKE CARE OF YOUR CONSUMERS GMC AS INTEGRITY SHOULD BE #1 IN YOUR COMPANY. *TR

NHTSA ID
10342796
Incident
Jul 12, 2010
Mileage
22,000 mi
Transmission
Filed Feb 12, 2010

08 BUICK ENCLAVE NORMALLY DOWNSHIFTS AND UPSHIFTS ALL THE WAY UP A HILL. TOOK IN THREE TIMES AND THEY SAID EVERYTHING CHECKS OUT NORMAL, JUST DRIVE IT. THEN DRIVING OUT TO ARIZONA, IT STARTED OUT DOWNSHIFTING AT THE START OF A HILL AND UPSHIFTING AT THE TOP OF THE HILL LIKE A NORMAL CAR. THEN ONCE EVERY FIVE TO TEN HILLS IT WOULD NOT UPSHIFT AT THE TOP OF THE HILL UNTIL I SHUT OFF THE CRUISE CONTROL. ONCE I WENT FIVE MILES DOWNHILL BEFORE I SHUT OFF THE CRUISE AND IT UPSHIFTED. I TOOK IT IN TO THE DEALER, BUT THE FEW MILES THEY DROVE IT, THEY COULD NOT MAKE IT HAPPEN. THEY SAID THERE WERE NO CODES SO THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO, SO JUST DRIVE IT LIKE IT IS, AS ITS STILL UNDER WARRANTY. IT HAD ALSO HAPPENED ONLY ONCE BEFORE WHEN IT WAS NEW,BUT THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING EITHER. I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS CONNECTED OR NOT, BUT IF I WANT TO ACCELERATE SLOWLY,I HAVE TO PUSH THE GAS PEDAL DOWN FARTHER AND THEN BACK OFF QUICKLY TO NOT ACCELERATE TOO FAST. I SURE HOPE THEY CAN COME UP WITH A FIX FOR THIS PROBLEM. *TR

NHTSA ID
10310082
Incident
Dec 29, 2009
Mileage
22,300 mi
Transmission
Filed Dec 10, 2009

BUICK ENCLAVE STOPS SUDDENLY WITHOUT WARNING ON HIGHWAY DUE TO SOME SORT OF TRANSMISSION FAILURE. OCCUPANTS IN VEHICLE NARROWLY ESCAPE SERIOUS INJURY FROM POSSIBLE REAR END COLLISION. ONSTAR DIAGNOSED PROBLEM AS SOME SORT OF TRANSMISSION RELATED FAILURE. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO BUICK SERVICE FACILITY. GM TECHNICAL SUPPORT RECOMMENDED THAT ELECTRONIC CODES BE RESET AND VEHICLE IS TO BE RETURNED TO CUSTOMER. CUSTOMER PICKED UP VEHICLE AND VEHICLE TRANSMISSION FAILED AGAIN ONE HOUR LATER ON SAME DAY. ONSTAR DIAGNOSED PROBLEM AGAIN, THIS TIME A SIMILAR BUT DIFFERENT PROBLEM RELATING TO THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SYSTEM. VEHICLE IS BUICK SHOP AGAIN WAITING FOR GM SOLUTION TO FIXING PROBLEM. FIX IS UNKNOWN AT THIS TIME. EXACT CAUSE IS UNKNOWN. *TR

NHTSA ID
10295185
Incident
Nov 28, 2009
Mileage
35,000 mi
Transmission
Filed Oct 15, 2009

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BUICK ENCLAVE. THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION WOULD NOT SHIFT FROM 1ST TO 2ND GEAR. WHEN THE FAILURE OCCURS HE EXPERIENCES A VIOLENT VIBRATION. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALERSHIP , AND A TECHNICIAN CONCLUDED THAT THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 44000. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 29000.

NHTSA ID
10287487
Incident
Jan 15, 2009
Mileage
29,000 mi
Transmission
Filed Sep 21, 2009

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 BUICK ENCLAVE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HIS VEHICLE ROLLED BACKWARDS WHILE IT WAS IN DRIVE ON A HIL AND STALLEDL. THE BUICK DEALER PERFORMED A DIAGNOSTIC TEST; HOWEVER, THERE WERE NO ERROR CODES TO INSTRUCT THEM ON WHAT NEEDED TO BE REPAIRED. THE CONTACT STATED THE VEHICLE COULD BE TOO HEAVY FOR THE TRANSMISSION. THERE ARE NO RELATED RECALLS OR WARRANTY AVAILABLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 15,234. UPDATED 10/5/09 *CN UPDATED 10/07/09

NHTSA ID
10284760
Incident
May 15, 2009
Mileage
15,234 mi
Transmission
Filed Aug 18, 2009

FROM THE DAY OF PURCHASE MY BUICK ENCLAVE HAS FAILED TO ACHIEVE THE RATED THE FUEL EFFICIENCY (12 MPG INITIALLY UPTO 14MPG 18MOS AND NUMEROUS TRIPS BACK TO DEALERSHIPS. BASICALLY COMPUTER CHECKS AND ADJUSTMENTS WERE DONE. FINALLY, LAST MONTH A VALVE JOB WAS DONE, AS WELL AS SOME TRANSMISSION WORK AND NOW MY FUEL EFFICIENCY IS IMPROVING. I HAVE DRIVEN 400 MILES SINCE THIS MECHANIC WORK AND THE MPG IS APPROACHING 17MPG. *TR

NHTSA ID
10280929
Incident
Jan 6, 2008
Mileage
10 mi
Transmission
Filed Apr 19, 2008

2008 BUICK ENCLAVE THAT HAS HAD TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS FOR 8 MONTHS (NEW CAR WAS PICKED UP IN AUGUST OF 2007). AFTER SEVERAL SERVICE ATTEMPTS TO FIX THIS PROBLEM, IT STILL DOESN'T PERFORM LIKE IT SHOULD. TODAY WHEN DRIVING THE CAR THE ENGINE WAS RACING TO OVER 4,000 RPM WHILE DRIVING DOWN A 35 MPH ROAD -- THOUGHT THE THING WAS GOING TO BLOW UP BECAUSE IT WOULDN'T SHIFT INTO THE NEXT GEAR. ALSO HAD WATER (FROM RAIN) ON THE INSIDE OF THE CAR AFTER IT RAINED DUE TO FAULTY RAIL CONNECTORS (NOT SEALED) ON TOP OF CAR. *TR

NHTSA ID
10225003
Incident
Apr 19, 2008

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

Other components reported on this vehicle

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Elsewhere on this vehicle

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .