CarComplaints.com Notes: Buying the first model year of any vehicle is rarely a good idea. You become a guinea pig for the automaker and they are really not nice to guinea pigs.

The 2008 Enclave has a wide enough range of problems to issue a warning. There's transmission failure under 90k miles, new power steering units costing over $1,300, and enough engine complaints to NHTSA to scare anyone away.

2.0

hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
80,468 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2008 Buick Enclave brakes problems

brakes problem

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2008 Buick Enclave Owner Comments

problem #10

May 222023

Enclave

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Asb

- Wenatchee , WA, USA

problem #9

Nov 302019

Enclave

  • 25 miles
Brake grinding changed brakes and rotors and also control arm hub bearing and strut

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #8

Feb 142020

Enclave

  • 93,500 miles
Steering makes a clicking noise when turning the wheel. The vehicle makes a clunking noise when hitting minor bumps in the road and intermittently the steering wheel shakes at highway speeds. The vehicle has a rattling noise when first started and recently the ABS/traction control service light comes on when first started. Also the vehicle has decreased horsepower and the mileage lcd screen has been acting up and not always showing the prndl and also the transmission acts up when shifting into 3 and 6 gear

- Watsontown, PA, USA

problem #7

Sep 202019

Enclave

  • 122,613 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2008 Buick Enclave. When the contact depressed the brake pedal to make a turn at 25 mph, the steering wheel seized. There were no warning indicators illuminated and the failure occurred randomly. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the power brake vacuum pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer and dealer were not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 122,613.

- Virginia Beach, VA, USA

problem #6

May 142019

Enclave

  • 200,000 miles
We where driving the other day, lost all power to dash cluster. Found water in fuses under glove box on passenger side. Dried out and got power back; but not ABS light is on and if it goes off we lose all brakes. The traction control and stabilitrak say service and we lost our back up camera as well.

- Port Byron, NY, USA

problem #5

Feb 242017

Enclave

  • 74,200 miles
This is a 1 owner vehicle, not driven long distances or on salted or rough terrain. In the last few months, I have had to replace both stabilizer bars, shocks, struts, and because the brakes were not put back on properly the brakes and rotors, and in 2011 the gear box had a leak which was replaced. Now after spending $4K in the last few months, I am being told the rack and pinion (which is the same as the gear box) is leaking again! I only have 74K miles on this car! I previously had a 1990 Chevy Suburban that never had these kinds of issues! and yet here alone I see over 80 issues for the power steering alone! make GM recall this vehicle or I fully intend to start a class action lawsuit and include your organization as well for failure to protect the public!

- Irving, TX, USA

problem #4

Feb 202014

Enclave

  • 85,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

All my tires keep getting low and check light engine keeps showing low tire pressure. I took it in to three different tire places they dont know what the problem is. Im constantly airing my tires everyday from summer throughout winter and its exhausting.

- Colorado Springs, CO, USA

problem #3

Jan 012014

Enclave 6-cyl

  • 83,000 miles
I purchased my vehicle January 2014. Since then I have had major issues with it leaking when it rains, . water enters the sunroof and drips throughout the vehicles overhead as well as soaks the passenger side carpet. Water drips from the visor, the overhead lights (which could result in an electrical fire) in the front middle and back of the vehicle it seeps through the seat belt height adjusters and the area where the side airbags deploy (which could cause deploy issues). The problem has gotten so bad my vehicle is starting to smell like mold and I am afraid that after a year of this problem mold has grown under the carpet as well as in the overhead foam. My biggest concern is if my child is exposed to this for an extended period of time it will flair up his asthma. A child with asthma is very sensitive to mold and mildew and he is very sensitive as well as has allergies to mold. Additionally, when it rains my exhaust smokes and car putts as if water has gotten into the engine/exhaust, the check engine light has come on several times while traveling and no one can seem to find the issue, the check airbag light came on a couple of months after the purchase, and my steering wheel tightens up when I turn and I have already had that taken care of once. As I was driving home today the emergency brake light came on and dinged all the way home. I believe there are now electrical issues with the vehicle due to the leaks and may cause a malfunction or fire.

- Pooler, GA, USA

problem #2

Dec 262014

Enclave 6-cyl

  • 90,000 miles
Driving on the highway RPM's were going up but car was hardly moving. We could have been hit! after checking on-line this seems to be a problem for the 2008 Enclave. Why has there not been a recall? I believe no-one wants to take responsibility for such a costly problem but someone is going to get hurt.....we were on the highway. I will not stop here....I am hoping someone will actually read and respond to me.

- Claremore, OK, USA

problem #1

Feb 042013

Enclave 6-cyl

  • 56,341 miles
This is the 8th time+ we've had water enter the car through the closed moon roof. Water drips down through the left and right windshield pillars, flows out of the seatbelt tensioners in the 3rd row and through the headliner onto the inside of the windshield. You can hear a wave of water flowing above the headliner, and when woosh it flows when the car dips to one side or the other. There's has to be electrical issues and rust that's being created by this problem. The dealership says the drain is clogged with leafs, from a moon room that's never been opened. This problem is pervasive for this platform (2007-2012/traverse/acadia/outlook/Enclave) but I don't see any activity from this organization to address this. The last 2 times this happened braking system failed. Warning on the dic: Break assist off and then the red critical failure warning and tones came on while driving. So now I have water on the inside of the windshield and failure of the braking system, while I'm driving. The dealership was unable to pull any error codes, but I recorded the event on my cell phone. Now this is a ntsb issue. Failed brakes and not being able to see out the windshield is a real accident waiting to happen. (note, once the vehicle dried out, the brake failure warning and tones went away.) good thing we live in drought stricken California or we'd probably be dead a long time ago.

- Alamo, CA, USA

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