Thinking about a used Lucerne...thoughts?

[joe555]

Probably about 5-10 yrs old range, roughly. Started shopping and I like the look/styling of them, and their reliability reports look at least reasonable.

Allowing for bias of those who love them any experiences or what you've heard from others about the good or bad appreciated.

[polarzak]

You will not find a 10 year old one...first was 2006. If you get the 3.8 engine, take care of it and it will last and last. I have read that that 8 cylinder NorthStar is not good. Leaks oil, mechanically not a great engine. In 08 they replaced the 3.8 will a smaller 6...I have heard nothing bad about them. From what I read on the other Buick sites, some are Lucernes full of problems, and some, like mine are problem free. That said, I bought mine new in 06 and it was a mess right off the lot. Everything was fixed under warranty, so anything you buy should be fine in that respect. Some items to note:
Front Wheel bearings were an issue on some cars. I have had one replaced
OEM factory chrome wheels were garbage...chrome peeled off resulting in leaking tires.
More recently people are reporting inoperable rear doors.
Door handles are plastic and break especially if you yank of the doors.

Other than that, it really is a nice vehicle. When you buy second hand, you take your chances, but on a good note, people that normally drive Lucernes are not drag racing them, and so probably are reasonably taken care of. Good luck.

[joe555]

Really appreciate the reply thx

[cvali]

So did you purchase the Lucerne?

[ND4SP]

Originally Posted by polarzak

You will not find a 10 year old one...first was 2006. If you get the 3.8 engine, take care of it and it will last and last. I have read that that 8 cylinder NorthStar is not good. Leaks oil, mechanically not a great engine. In 08 they replaced the 3.8 will a smaller 6...I have heard nothing bad about them. From what I read on the other Buick sites, some are Lucernes full of problems, and some, like mine are problem free. That said, I bought mine new in 06 and it was a mess right off the lot. Everything was fixed under warranty, so anything you buy should be fine in that respect. Some items to note:
Front Wheel bearings were an issue on some cars. I have had one replaced
OEM factory chrome wheels were garbage...chrome peeled off resulting in leaking tires.
More recently people are reporting inoperable rear doors.
Door handles are plastic and break especially if you yank of the doors.

Other than that, it really is a nice vehicle. When you buy second hand, you take your chances, but on a good note, people that normally drive Lucernes are not drag racing them, and so probably are reasonably taken care of. Good luck.

I would tend to disagree with you about the Northstar, the newer versions of the Northstar have been a good engine.. Look up information on line if you want the Northstar..

[polarzak]

Originally Posted by ND4SP

I would tend to disagree with you about the Northstar, the newer versions of the Northstar have been a good engine.. Look up information on line if you want the Northstar..

I have not read anything good about the NorthStar, and perhaps the newer ones are better, although the OP was asking about an older Lucerne. In addition to not reading anything good about them, my neighbor had a DTS with a NorthStar, and it was serious junk. Beside leaking oil, he had crank and cam problems. I would not take one, old or new, if it was free. I was going to buy a 2013 CTS, and while not a North Star, the engine in that Cadillac got terrible reviews also.