Problems with 2009 Buick Enclave STEERING

While in motion and braking to turn right or left, my power steering completely goes out. the steering wheel becomes very difficult to turn causing me to almost hit another vehicle as the turning radius had become much more larger than i am used to. the power steering does not seem to be impacted while going 15 mph or higher, it is only while applying brakes and slowing down and turning, right or left. i have been told by an auto shop that loss of power steering is a common problem for gm vehicles between 2009 - 2011 and that even a special coverage adjustment was issued, not a recall though. the special coverage was issued for cars up to 150,000 or 10 years after car was issued for service/sold. ten years in my case was in february 2019. i called a gm dealer to ask for help and was told i'm out of luck because the 10 years had passed. i am the 2nd owner of this vehicle and purchased it used in december 2014. i never received letters or notice from gm of this special coverage. furthermore, i have repeatedly taken my car in for service to this same dealership over the 5+ years of ownership and never once did the gm dealer notify me of the special coverage. at least 2 times, i took my car in for steering issues.

Vehicle steering wheel becomes very tight/ difficult to turn at times while turning, parking & reversing.

The power steering gives out when the car is travelling at slow speeds. it basically seizes up mid turn and needs an incredible amount of power to turn the wheel. this has been happening since about the 70,000 mile mark

I brought my vehicle last november of 2017 and for the last couple of months i have had a problem with my steering it locks up when trying to pull into a parking space or just simply turning a corner it takes a lot of strength to turn this wheel and also other driver's seem to think i'm holding traffic up because i can't turn the wheel also when backing up into traffic the wheel locks up it doesn't happen all the time but i almost hit another vehicle because the wheel locked up i'm afraid to drive the car on the highway for fear it may lock up going straight is fine only when turning backing up and no parallel parking can be done at all, i would not be able to get out at all.

As i was driving the power steering was randomly going out for just a moment so i checked my power steering fluid and it was fine. the next time i drove it when i went to make a turn the power steering completely stopped working and i almost ran into another car. very scary with 4 children in the car! took it to 2 mechanics that i trust and they were both shocked that the steering rack was loose. both said that it was something they almost never see, it was not something i could have done to make that happen and they were shocked to see that it was a problem. both told me to look into a recall for it since it was a major safety issue and problem that is not a normal wear and tear. i check my vin number and there are no recalls but i do see on multiple message boards that this is a big problem for 2009 buick enclaves with 80,000 miles.

Power steering locks up or goes out while turning at slow speeds or when you apply the brakes. this happens on the highway, city streets, parking lots or in driveways. there is no warning or apparent reason for this to happen. when it started we had our mechanic take a look, and he stated everything looked good and power steering fluid levels were normal. he suggested he could look at the steering rack and pinion could be what is needed, since this is common on this model and year of vehicle. as time goes on it continues to worsen and is not safe to drive the vehicle with or without my family as passengers. the mechanic stated it was going to cost upwards of $1300 to repair, which we feel should be the cost of the manufacturer since this is a common problem!

Some times in motion i lose my power stering.

Power steering went out while driving down the road (city street) in my 2009 buick enclave. took it to the shop, and they reported that i need to replace the rack and pinion and it is a common flaw in this type of vehicle.

At slow speeds the power steering goes out. steering is almost locked in place making it nearly impossible to steer.

When at low speeds, in a parking lot, the power steering goes out sometimes. when we are trying to park in a parking space, it is very difficult, because the power steering almost always fails. this is a serious safety concern to me. one of these days it is going to cause us to hit another vehicle or worse, a person. i have not took it to a shop. i have researched the issue and it seems to be a very common problem. my enclave has 125,000 miles on it, we bought it a little over a year ago and has had this issue since we bought it.

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 buick enclave. while having an in-house manufacturer recall repair performed on the vehicle for the replacement of the power steering pump, the local dealer (walker automotive, 1616 macarthur drive, alexandria, la 71301) informed the contact that the steering rack and pinion failed and needed to be replaced. the contact was also informed that both failures had to be repaired at the same time. the vehicle was not repaired due to the expensive cost. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the recall details were not provided. the failure mileage was approximately 80,128.

Periodically after backing out of a parking spot and put in drive have extremely hard time turning the wheel to get car to turn. example would be if you are in the car key on engine not running and you try to turn the wheel and it doesnt want to move. very scary and dangerous.

When turning the vehicle to the left at a low speed, the power steering stopped functioning. the steering gear box was replaced, and functionality improved slightly for about a month. mileage at the time was about 90,000. after a month, the issue returned. in addition to the power steering failure when turning left at low speeds, the vehicle started making a grinding noise near the front left of the vehicle, and the vehicle engine would cut in and out intermittently. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic and the steering rack was found to be the issue. the mileage at the time of this issue was about 107,000. between the 90,000 mile issue and 107,000 mile issue, the power steering would cut in and out unexpectedly, and almost caused several accidents. the vehicle has been taken to the dealership once, and an independent mechanic three times since the vehicle was purchased just two years prior. gm should recall the steering systems.

We have a 2009 buick enclave with the faulty steering at low speed. the steering wheel appears to lock up or turn very hard. in parking lots it is almost impossible to turn by a small woman (almost hit someone walking). gm will not do anything on this car because it has a branded title, even though there is a special coverage of 10 years or 150000 miles and this 2009 has only 70000 or so. if this was a safety recall instead of a safety campaign they would have to fix it. once again gm knows of a safety problem and will not do anything until people lose there life and they are forced to by others.

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 buick enclave. while driving at low speeds, the power steering failed and it became difficult to turn the steering wheel. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed and was informed that the power assist mechanism failed and needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 140,000.

Car lost power steering at low speed when making turns.

When driving at very low speeds the steering binds and/or locks up causing the vehicle to stop turning. with extra applied strength the steering suddenly turns causing a severe jerk in the car's turning motion. there have been several near misses, telephone pole on 03/07/16, it happens very unexpectedly. over the past weeks the problem has increased to happening at most every parking lot, slow turn in or red light/stop sign turn. initially it was only happening when turning as the car was backing up but now it's a constant issue.

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 buick enclave. while driving 25 mph, the vehicle lost power steering and became difficult to turn. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. the vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 124,180.

Car with 51,187 miles had to have steering gear replaced and flush and bleed system. owner heard a whine in in the power steering when turning. at a cost of 1,193.76 + tax. never heard of such a thing with that few miles on a vehicle.

We have the 3.6l v6 engine, and the timing chain and gears need to be replaced at 89,000 miles - rendering the car unsafe to drive (this has been a known issue across multiple gm cars using this engine). in addition, the steering gear/rack and pinion assembly are faulty along with the power steering pump (also a known issue).

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 buick enclave. when the steering wheel was turned to the left or right, there was an abnormal noise coming from the steering column. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the rack and pinion failed and needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 67,000. the vin was unavailable.

Today i had to replace the rack and pinion on my car. this morning i went to make a left hand turn from a complete stop into gas station and the steering locked up. i lost all control of the car for a few seconds as oncoming traffic was approaching. a similar incident happened a few weeks ago while i had my 1 and 5 year old in the car. i was circling around a building to the left. the steering seemed to lock up and pull right..at the same time the engine revved up. i hit the brakes to avert going down a steep decline. i immediately took the car to my mechanic and they found a leak from the rack and pinion. i started researching this and discovered it seems to be acommon repair.

The power steering failed while making a turn. it became very difficult to turn the wheel. the problem has occurred three times since, all when turning and at low speed. there is no noise associated with the issue. i am greatly concerned that the failure will cause an accident. gm needs to issue a recall & repair these issue at no cost to the customer.

I had taken the car to buick dealer for an oil change. i asked them to check if they saw a possible oil leak because i saw a few spots in the garage. they said there was a leak from a rubber bearing and the cost to fix that was 2700. tool the car sears to have them double check. sears said there was not leak. there was residual oil from oil change. this was on 06/20. checked every day after that to see if the oil leaked again and it did not. on 06/28, while coming home with my kids, hear sudden noise, and in a few seconds smoke coming out from left front side of the car...lot of smoke. got the kids and dog out safely. tried to turn off the car...i had the key out but the car was still on. it just would not turn off. tried taking it our of the garage and the steering would not turn. somehow got the car on the curb and after trying a few time, the car did turn off. noticed all the coolant had flushed on the floor. got it towed to the dealer. dealer said power steering gear and power steering pump burned and needs replacement. also said it was because of a minor oil leak that was under the engine that caused it. coolant flushing was covered and gm will pay for the fix but i will need to pay 2500 for the steering gear and pump replacement. this could have been a disaster and life threatening if it had happened at high speed. gm least concerned about it and not supportive or standing behind their cars. i have only 36k miles on it and would not have expected something like this. i read on some forums where a lot of people have had similar issues. for the safety of other buick enclave holders, i please request you to have buick act on this and send a recall.

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 buick enclave. while driving approximately 20 mph, there was an abnormal noise coming from the steering wheel. the failure recurred on numerous occasions. the vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the steering pump needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 90,000.

My dealership identified a significant problem with the power steering gear on my vehicle that constituted a significant safety issue. had it not been caught, my power steering inevitable would have failed while driving and resulted in a crash. i was also advised by the dealer and have learned through research that this is a very common problem affecting buick enclaves and other similar gm suvs and crossovers. the repair work to correct this manufacturer defect is over $1500 and conveniently not covered by warranty. this is a significant and unacceptable issue and should result in a recall of all affected vehicles and reimbursement of repair costs to affected owners. *tr

At times the steering locks up at low speeds. it happens normally when turning a corner at low speeds. it locks up and very, very hard to turn. i am sure at some point in a congested area it is going to cause me to cause an accident and possibly hurting or killing someone or myself. this is without a question a safety issue that buick needs to own. i have read in many forums that allot of buick owners are experiencing this issue. i have owned alot of vehicles in my life and have never had to pay up to $2200 to fix the steering on a vehicle because of premature failure. i have owned several cars that i have driven over 200,000 miles and never had mechanical steering issues. buick needs to own this critical safety issue. respectfully, [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr*jb

I have had problems with this vehicle since i purchased it in jan 2015, this is one of several things that have gone wrong and make this vehicle extremely dangerous to drive, when steering this vehicle whether slowly into a parking spot or on a turn, the steering locks up on you and becomes extremely difficult to turn, also i have had problems with the transmission, often when trying to speed up to get on highway, it pulls back or the rpms reave really high and the car doesn't go forward. also once you put the car in park and take your foot off the brake the car actually rolls several inches and bobs back an forth, this actually knocked my child down as she was getting out of car and she hit her head on the concrete. when telling the dealer of these issues their answer is well unless we can get the car to do these things we have no idea what your are talking about and can't fix it. meanwhile when i looked for other complaints these same complaints came up by several consumers.

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 buick enclave. the contact stated that while driving at approximately 10 mph, the steering wheel seized. the vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the power steering and the steering gear hose needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 39,448.

The key gets stuck in the ignition in the direction of the car being on and wont turn backwards so you cant turn vehicle off. *tr

I was coming up to turn into my driveway and lost power steering. this condition about led me to hit another car. at higher rpms the power steering comes back but at an idle or just above it requires great effort to turn the vehicle. *tr

Steering locks up at low speeds. it happens when turning a corner at low speeds and its very hard to turn almost cause me an accident on 08/23/15 with all my family on board.

September 11, 2014 - power steering failed out of no-where while making a left hand turn into a parking lot. difficult to move car into the parking spot. after approximately 90 minutes of being parked power steering was working fine. october 1st, 2014 while driving on a major highway the antilock brake system (abs) warning light on, stabilitrak indicator light on/service stabilitrak message displayed in dic. since we were on the highway we continued driving until we got to our location and parked the car. approximately 2 hours later we started the car and the warning lights were off. we then proceeded to drive home and less than a mile down the road the power steering failed again as we were making a left hand turn. this time it''s not resolving itself. car is not drivable.. *tr

Power steering locks up at speeds under 20 mph. started around 54000 miles and have gotten increasing worse just. extremely hazardous to us and everyone on the road . !

2009 buick enclave 80k miles - power steering intermittently fails, predominately at low speeds and sharper turns, with no warning. *tr

Dealer is telling me the power steering pump and the rack and pinion steering are leaking and need replaced. estimate is $1754. i just started noticing the steering whining in the past week or so. warranty ended on the steering at 90,000. from the amount of complaints i see online, it appears something needs to be done about this problem. gm needs to issue a recall. *tr

In august of 2014, around 60k miles, i noticed a moan when i steered as well as a "knock" that i had heard previously and taken into the dealership under warranty (they said it was a tire rod; clearly it was not). i was aware the moan may be my power steering pump, so i brought it in for diagnostic appointment to a local repair shop. not only did i find my power steering pump needed replacement, but that was the cause and effect of a much large issue- my steering rack was loose, and was disengaging from the mount, which in turn, caused the corruption of my power steering pump. i was told it was worsening very quickly and if i lost my steering rack from the mount, i could lose steering, which could result in a crash. i was informed this type of repair is highly unusual for a car this new, with no accident history, and otherwise in excellent condition, and is likely an "engineering issue." i am appalled at not only the price of these repairs which i paid out of pocket ($1,968.51), but after some research, how common this particular problem is with 2008 & 2009 buick enclaves, especially around 60k miles. the mileage on my vehicle now is 65,342. *js

When making a right turn my steering wheel locked up and i could barely make the turn. this happens randomly and is becoming more frequent. this now happens when i turn right or left, but it still is very random. i always have children with me and one of them has just received their driver's permit. i do not feel that it is safe for my new driver to practice with this vehicle....even though it is only 5 years old. i love this car but there have already been several recalls dealing with airbags and seatbelts and now the should be one dealing with this power steering issue. clearly this is not an isolated occurrence and there are numerous other owners dealing with the same problems. this issue is an accident waiting to happen. not knowing if you will be able to make a turn when there are pedestrians and other traffic in the mix is not safe! buick...you need to get this fixed!!!!! one angry, unhappy consumer! *tr

This problem arises at multiple times daily and it has happened ever since the date of purchase. when you turn usually at slower speeds the steering wheel will become almost impossible to turn at your designated target. in my opinion and it seems to be a common factor with this specific gm/buick model that out of all the recalls the steering was the biggest concern mentioned but it has not been recalled along with the other issues from this vehicle. i purchased the 2009 buick enclave because i trusted gm vehicles and i had my third child on the way so my first choice was a gm vehicle. presently, my mind and trust has changed about gm vehicles because it seems that the manufacturer is ignoring this huge issue that numerous consumers have filed complaints on. since my daughter has been born i refuse to put her in that vehicle because of such fear that we will have an accident because of one of the many issues going on with my 09 buick enclave. this is very upsetting since myself like many that have purchased this vehicle thought of the purchase as an investment or a new fresh step in life. but now it has turned out to be a huge disappointment and added stress to my families life including a danger to not just us but others. *tr

The power steering goes in and out while using it. starting to see on line that this is a very common issue with the make and model. it usually goes out when turning at a high rate of speed or when your parking. *tr

Driving home and the stabilitrak and traction control light comes on. car now spins tires and has disabled the abs. very unstable car with abs not working properly. take my vehicle in for routine maintenance and was told rack and pinion is leaking. got online and see class action law suit against gm for this same reason. no recall. i don't see how gm does not think this is a safety issue. to be driving down the road and steering fail. not only endangering people in the car but also everybody else around them. i'm starting to hate this car. looks good from a distance but the problems gm has had with these models enclave, traverse, acadia all models with this steering system. not a cheap fix either! my father worked for gm so that's all we buy. seriously reconsidering though. *tr

My vehicle is extremely hard to steer at low rates of speed. it is almost as if the power steering goes out. i was almost in a collision because i was unable to maneuver the car quickly. thankfully, i was able to get out of the way. i had my children in the car. this issue appears to be frequent and corrected in later buick enclave models. this issue is a safety hazard that gm needs to investigate. this faulty power steering pump needs to be recalled immediately. *tr

I have a 2009 buick enclave its start have a intermitent loss of power steering, when at lower speeds and try to turn left or right. last weeks this been happen every day, sometimes its make a lot noise and get check engine code p0008. then check engine goes off after couple hours. *tr

As i was trying to turn into my office the power steering quit working and i about got rear ended. next time i was making a turn into a side road and same thing and i could not get out the maxim road quick enough if someone was coming i would have been t-boned. the following time i was turning out of my driveway and same thing if some one was coming it would not have been good because i live in a curve. next time making turn onto main road luckily no one was coming again. last incident to date turning in my sitters driveway and ran off of her driveway because it quit working. the fluid has been checked so i know that is not the issue. it is scary issue for my family and i. *tr

Power steering fails and the wheel is hard to steer to the left or right. it continues to get worse and worse. in addition, as we were driving down the street at about 30 mph and all of the electrical went out in the vehicle. we stopped the vehicle, restarted it, and the problem went away. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2009 buick enclave. while driving 15 mph and turning in either direction, the steering wheel would become very difficult to turn. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who added power steering fluid, but the failure recurred. the manufacturer was not notified. the failure mileage was 110,000..updated 11/03/14 *bf the power steering pump and pinion were replaced. also, it was discovered the pulley seized on the shaft. updated 11/07/14

I was heading out my neighborhood up a hill to make a left turn and all of the sudden the steering wheel would not move and almost caused me to get into a wreck. i already had the steering pump and pinions changed 1 week ago and now this happens. apparently this is an issue gm knows about and nothing has been done. i have 2 kids and i am concerned about their safety. not to mention how costly this is and as a single mother i cannot afford to buy another vehicle or repairs, by the way i did just purchase this vehicle 2 weeks ago. yes i did just purchase it from a dealer. *tr

Car became almost impossible to steer when doing slow turns or in a parking lot. the dealer said it was the power steering pump. it was replaced along with all the other parts and supplies needed. after that it seemed to work okay. *tr

At low speeds the power steering fails intermittently causing severe difficulty maneuvering near parked cars or pedestrians. *tr

While trying to execute a u-turn, the power steering failed. oncoming traffic was able to swerve around me or this would have resulted in a collision. the power steering often fails when attempting to turn while going slowly. this is a serious problem and safety concern. *tr