1987 BUICK LESABRE — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-22 40 complaints · 5 recalls
Most-reported system: STEERING (13 complaints · 32.5%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 4
  • Fires 2
  • Injuries 6
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 1986 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution STEERING appears in 13 of 40 owner complaints (32.5%) in this vehicle snapshot. STEERING: 13 complaints, 32.5% of reports STEERING 13 · 32.5% · 1 crash reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 6 complaints, 15.0% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 6 · 15.0% · 1 fire reports ENGINE: 5 complaints, 12.5% of reports ENGINE 5 · 12.5% · 1 fire reports SEAT BELTS: 4 complaints, 10.0% of reports SEAT BELTS 4 · 10.0% VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 3 complaints, 7.5% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 3 · 7.5% · 3 crash reports FUEL SYSTEM: 2 complaints, 5.0% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 2 · 5.0% POWER TRAIN: 2 complaints, 5.0% of reports POWER TRAIN 2 · 5.0% SERVICE BRAKES: 2 complaints, 5.0% of reports SERVICE BRAKES 2 · 5.0% STRUCTURE: 1 complaints, 2.5% of reports STRUCTURE 1 · 2.5% UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 31 complaints, 77.5% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 31 · 77.5% · 2 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
STEERING 13 32.5% 1 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 6 15.0% 0 crashes · 1 fires
ENGINE 5 12.5% 0 crashes · 1 fires
SEAT BELTS 4 10.0% 0 crashes · 0 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 3 7.5% 3 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 2 5.0% 0 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 2 5.0% 0 crashes · 0 fires
SERVICE BRAKES 2 5.0% 0 crashes · 0 fires
STRUCTURE 1 2.5% 0 crashes · 0 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 31 77.5% 0 crashes · 2 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, NHTSA Safety Recalls, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jan 1995; the first recall shown was reported in Jun 1987. 1995-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 1995-Q2: 5 owner reports 5 1995-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 1995-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1996-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 1996-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1996-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 1996-Q4: 3 owner reports 3 1997-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 1997-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1998-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 1998-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 1998-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 1998-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 1999-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2000-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2002-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Jun 1987 May 2006 Recall campaign 87V093000 ◆ Recall campaign 87V093000 Recall campaign 87V135000 ◆ Recall campaign 87V135000 Recall campaign 88V067000 ◆ Recall campaign 88V067000 Recall campaign 89V102000 ◆ Recall campaign 89V102000 Recall campaign 06E043000 ◆ Recall campaign 06E043000 Investigation PE87041 ● Investigation PE87041 Investigation EA87022 ● Investigation EA87022 Investigation PE88021 ● Investigation PE88021 Investigation C89001 ● Investigation C89001 Investigation PE89098 ● Investigation PE89098 Investigation PE89101 ● Investigation PE89101 Investigation EA89028 ● Investigation EA89028 Investigation PE89171 ● Investigation PE89171 Investigation EA90017 ● Investigation EA90017
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
1995-Q1 Owner reports 2
1995-Q2 Owner reports 5
1995-Q3 Owner reports 6
1995-Q4 Owner reports 1
1996-Q1 Owner reports 2
1996-Q2 Owner reports 1
1996-Q3 Owner reports 4
1996-Q4 Owner reports 3
1997-Q1 Owner reports 1
1997-Q3 Owner reports 1
1997-Q4 Owner reports 1
1998-Q1 Owner reports 3
1998-Q2 Owner reports 1
1998-Q3 Owner reports 2
1998-Q4 Owner reports 1
1999-Q1 Owner reports 3
2000-Q1 Owner reports 1
2002-Q1 Owner reports 1
2002-Q2 Owner reports 1
Recall campaign 1 87V093000
Recall campaign 1 87V135000
Recall campaign 1 88V067000
Recall campaign 1 89V102000
Recall campaign 1 06E043000
Defect investigation 1 PE87041
Defect investigation 1 EA87022
Defect investigation 1 PE88021
Defect investigation 1 C89001
Defect investigation 1 PE89098
Defect investigation 1 PE89101
Defect investigation 1 EA89028
Defect investigation 1 PE89171
Defect investigation 1 EA90017
NHTSA Safety Recalls Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Safety Recalls (5)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

  1. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 06E043000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    THIS CONDITION MAY CAUSE AN INADEQUATE SEAL AT THE CONNECTION, POTENTIALLY LEADING TO A FUEL LEAK. IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE, A FIRE COULD OCCUR.
    Remedy:
    HONEYWELL WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND REPLACE THE FUEL FILTERS FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON OCTOBER 18, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FRAM CUSTOMER SERVICE AT 1-800-890-2075 (OPTION 1).
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  2. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 87V093000

    Report date
    Component:
    SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
    Consequence:
    LOSS OF THE HYDRAULIC PUMP MOTOR WOULD RESULT IN A TOTALLOSS OF REAR BRAKES AS WELL AS POWER ASSIST TO THE FRONT BRAKES. THE RED BRAKEWARNING LIGHT WOULD ILLUMINATE AND STAY ON. IF THIS WARNING IS NOT HEEDED, ALOSS OF REAR BRAKES AT A TIME WHEN MINIMUM STOPPING DISTANCE IS REQUIRED COULDRESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH. AN INOPERATIVE ABS ELECTRICAL RELAY COULD CAUSELOSS OF THE ABS FUNCTION, BUT NORMAL POWER ASSISTED BRAKING WOULD BE RETAINED.THE AMBER ANTI LOCK WARNING LIGHT WOULD ILLUMINATE AND STAY ON.
    Remedy:
    THE ABS AND HYDRAULIC PUMP MOTOR ELECTRICAL RELAYS AND 30 AMP FUSES WILL BE REPLACED. IN ADDITION, THE HYDRAULIC PUMP MOTOR ASSEMBLY AND PRESSURE/WARNING SWITCH WILL BE INSPECTED AND, IF REQUIRED, REPLACED.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  3. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 87V135000

    Report date
    Component:
    ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
    Consequence:
    THE IN LINE FUSIBLE LINK LOCATED IN THE AREA OF THEPLASTIC WINDSHIELD WASHER BOTTLE BRACKET MAY, UNDER A HIGH RESISTANCE LOAD,MELT DOWN AND IGNITE THE WASHER BOTTLE BRACKET RESULTING IN AN ENGINECOMPARTMENT FIRE.
    Remedy:
    THE WINDSHIELD WASHER BOTTLE BRACKET WILL BE REPLACED.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  4. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 88V067000

    Report date
    Component:
    SERVICE BRAKES, AIR
    Consequence:
    THIS CONDITION COULD LEAD TO SEPARATION OF BRAKEHYDRAULIC UNIT FROM ITS MOUNTING BRACKET AND RESULT IN LOSS OF BRAKE FUNCTIONAND AN ACCIDENT.
    Remedy:
    REPLACE HYDRAULIC UNIT MOUNTING BOLTS.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →

  5. Manufacturer action

    Recall campaign 89V102000

    Report date
    Component:
    Not available in the source record
    Consequence:
    SERVO ROD ASSEMBLY COULD CATCH ON ENGINE COMPONENTS ANDRESULT IN A STUCK THROTTLE WITH POTENTIAL FOR A VEHICLE CRASH.
    Remedy:
    INSTALL A NEW BUSHING IN CRUISE CONTROL SERVO BAIL.
    View authoritative NHTSA record →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot 2026-08-22
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 40 complaints · page 1 of 2

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot 2026-08-21
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-22 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-22.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources