2013 Buick LaCrosse Problems and Complaints

Senior Editor,

Updated on August 7, 2024

The Buick LaCrosse is a handsome midsize luxury sedan from the house of General Motors and it was promoted to the midsize segment back in 2010. General Motors has a widespread presence in the automotive market through its versatile lineup of vehicles and manages to clock huge sales volume too. However, occasional reliability issues aren’t new for GM vehicles, and the Buick LaCrosse shares a similar fate as well.

For the 2013 model year, the sedan faces five recalls along with 2 investigations and 104 official complaints. The investigations dealt with vehicle fire issues while a single recall was also issued regarding those problems too. Apart from that, the sedan has seen three recalls for the possible fracture of the toe link within the rear suspension. Among the complaints, the suspension and the powertrain see the highest number followed by other miscellaneous areas of the car. In its class, the 2013 Buick LaCrosse competes with the Toyota Avalon, the Ford Taurus, and the Chrysler 300.

Buick LaCrosse user complaints and problems

Engine problems

Engine stall: Quite a number of complaints mentioning engine stalling issues have been recorded by the NHTSA. All the reports mention that while the owners of the affected vehicles were driving the vehicles, the engines stalled suddenly without any warning. Moreover, malfunctions of the base model’s eAssist system also resulted in engine stalling issues as well.
Premature failure of drive belt: A couple of owners have reported this issue where the drive belt failed. Since the base model’s engine is paired with an eAssist tech, the drive belts of the affected models failed prematurely and repeatedly.
Camshaft sensor failure: repeatedly One owner complains about this issue. According to the lodged report, the camshaft sensor of the car’s engine failed repeatedly which resulted in sudden stalling of the engine too.
Transmission control module malfunction: The transmission control module of a few 2013 Buick LaCrosse models has malfunctioned. The owners further mention that the fault led to the vehicles going into limp mode suddenly while driving.

Safety problems

Airbag failure and airbag sensor malfunction: A couple of owners faced complete airbag failures while they were involved in crashes. In one instance, the owner mentions that none of the 6 standard airbags inside the car were deployed during the crash even though the impact was significant enough. Apart from this, a few owners have also reported a faulty/overly sensitive front passenger seat airbag sensor. After keeping anything on the seat as light as 6 lbs the sensor would activate the airbags and give continuous audio-visual alerts on the instrument cluster.

2013 Buick LaCrosse recalls

S.No.	Recall Date	NHTSA Campaign ID	Issues noticed	Additional remarks	Remedy
1	March 15, 2013	13V097000	Loss of Engine Braking/FMVSS 102	If engine braking is unexpectedly removed, it may increase the risk of a vehicle crash.	GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the transmission control module free of charge. The recall began on April 3, 2013.
2	May 6, 2013	13V173000	Hybrid Charging System/Possible Fire or Stall	If the vehicle is continued to be driven, the engine may stall, and/or the vehicle may not start. In addition, there may be a burning or melting odor, smoke, and possibly a fire in the trunk.	GM will notify owners and dealers will test the GCM and replace it, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on June 11, 2013.
3	December 10, 2020	20V764000	Rear Toe Links May Fracture	A rear toe link fracture may reduce the driver's ability to control the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.	GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear suspension toe links and adjuster fasteners free of charge. Parts are not currently available. Owners were mailed an interim notification on January 27, 2021, and April 15, 2021. A third notification was mailed on August 19, 201.
4	August 12, 2021	21V633000	Rear Toe Links May Fracture	A rear toe link fracture may reduce the driver's ability to control the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.	Dealers will replace the rear suspension toe links and adjuster fasteners, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters were mailed on September 30, 2021. Owner notification letters were mailed on January 3, 2022.
5	December 22, 2021	21V00F000	Rear Toe Links May Fracture	A rear toe link fracture may reduce the driver's ability to control the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.	Dealers will replace the rear suspension toe links and adjuster fasteners, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on January 27, 2022.

Should you buy a used Buick LaCrosse?

The Buick LaCrosse almost justifies its premium tag with its elegant styling both inside and outside, impressive driving characteristics, and excellent safety scores. Moreover, the base model’s eAssist tech delivers commendable fuel economy numbers too which you’d miss on most of its peers. On the reliability side too, the sedan doesn’t disappoint either and the total number of official complaints only makes up a minor percentage of the total number of units of the sedan sold. Going forward with a used example would be a good decision since the used model would offer even more value at a lower price due to its luxury car-like characteristics. However, do look out for the power steering failure and the powertrain failures on the used model.