RoadVitals

1989 Buick Reatta Owner Complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers, shown in full

Data refreshed

Complaints on fileComplaints 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.
10
Latest Dec 2, 2000
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
1
Filed in the last 12 monthsReports filed with NHTSA in the trailing 365 days. Recent volume reflects attention and vehicle age as much as anything else.
0
Reports on file since Apr 28, 1995

What this page shows

Our database holds 10 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 1989 Buick Reatta. Each one is a report filed by an owner or driver and published by NHTSA without most of them being verified. A complaint is not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. Narratives are shown exactly as filed.

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

Complaints, most recent first

Showing 1–10 of 10

Brakes
Filed Dec 2, 2000

THERE HAVE BEEN NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS CONCERNING THE ABS BRAKES ON BUICK REATTA. *AK

NHTSA ID
737205
Incident
Sep 10, 2000
Brakes
Filed Jul 18, 2000

I HAVE HAD CONSTENT PROBLEMS WITH THE BRAKES OF MY REATTA. THE BRAKES TOTALLY FAILED WITHOUT ANY NOTICE. REPLACED MASTER CYLINDER ($1200) THEN THE ACCUMALATER ALONG WITH SEVERAL TRIPS TO MY MECHANIC BECAUSE THE BRAKES WILL STILL GO TO THE FLOOR IF PRESSED HARD OR AT A STOP. IF I DIDN'T LIKE THE CAR SO MUCH I'D SELL BECAUSE THE BRAKES ARE DEFINITLY NOT UP TO PAR. WHEN I GO THE THE REATTA CLUB PAGE IT SEEMS EVERY ONE HAS SIMILAR PROBLEMS. PEASE TRY TO MAKE BUICK FIX THIS PROBLEM. *AK

NHTSA ID
725641
Incident
Sep 1, 1999
Brakes
Filed Jul 10, 2000

PLEASE ADVISE IF GENERAL MOTORS HAS HAD OTHER COMPLAINTS ON THIS MATTER ...I FEEL THERE SHOULD SOME TYPE OF REFUND REASON BEING I DID HAVE ONE BOLT BACK ON THE FRONT BRACKET WHICH IN TURN COULD HAVE BODILY INJURY TO MYSELF OR SOMEONE ELSE.*AK

NHTSA ID
725206
Brakes
Filed Jun 17, 2000

I HAVE HEARD FROM SEVERAL OTHER REATTA OWNERS THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE ABS BRAKING SYSTEM. THE BRAKING SYSTEM HAS FAILED WITHOUT WARNING ON SEVERAL REATTAS, AND I AM AFRAID OF THIS HAPPENING TO MY CAR WHILE IT IS BEING DRIVEN. BECAUSE OF THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE AFFECTED, I BELIEVE THIS IS WORTH AN INVESTIGATION. *AK

NHTSA ID
724138
Brakes
Filed May 20, 2000

THIS HAS BEEN AN ONGOING PROBLEM FOR MANY YEARS ON THIS CAR, THE BRAKES DO NOT FUNCTION PROPERLY, , ALL COMPONENTS HAVE BEEN CHECKED AND MANY REPLACED AT COST OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS, AND TO THIS DAY THE PROBLEMS STILL EXIST, NOT ONE MECHANIC CAN FIGURE OUT WHY. I KNOW OF SEVERAL PEOPLE THAT HAVE EXPERIENCED THE SAME PROBLEMS WITH THESE CARS. *AK

NHTSA ID
722930
Brakes
Filed Mar 4, 2000

REPAIR:RETIRED G.M. MECHANIC TRIED FOR 1 MONTH TO DIAGNOSE AND FIX PROBLEM. HE GAVE UP! I TOOK CAR TO G. M. BUICK DEALER WHO REPORTED "BAD ACCUMULATOR" BUT DIDN'T PERFORM CORRECT PROCEDURE TO DIAGNOSE PROBLEM.ABS ACCUMULATOR REPLACED BUT DID NOT SOLVE PROBLEM!*AK

NHTSA ID
719667
Incident
Feb 1, 2000
Visibility
Filed Nov 12, 1998

THE METAL SUPPORTING THE SUNROOF IS DETERIORATING & COMING APART, CAUSING THE SUN ROOF HEAD LINING TO DROP DOWN. *AK

NHTSA ID
830670
Incident
Sep 23, 1994
Tires & wheels
Filed Oct 9, 1995
Crash reported2 injuries reported

GOODYEAR TIRE BLEW OUT, CAUSING ACCIDENT/INJURIES. *SD

NHTSA ID
488927
Incident
Jun 12, 1995
Brakes
Filed Jun 22, 1995

THE ABS VALVE BLOCK MADE THE CAR PULL TO THE RIGHT WHEN THE DRIVER HIT THE BRAKES. PLEASE DESCRIBE. TT

NHTSA ID
967561
Incident
Jun 9, 1995
Exterior lighting
Filed Apr 28, 1995

HEADLIGHTS DO NOT OPERATE; WHILE DRIVING, LIGHTS SUDDENLY WENT OUT; CAUSE UNKNOWN; REPAIR EFFORTS MADE BY DEALER; DROVE HOME WITH PARKING LIGHTS ONLY. TT

NHTSA ID
964536
Incident
Apr 27, 1995

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.

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .