Problems with 2008 Buick LaCrosse AIR BAGS

My father and mother had just left church to have sunday lunch with the church members and the vehicle left the road hitting an oak tree on the truck and turning it sideways into my father's side. the airbag between the top of the window and roof failed to deploy resulting in his death. mom survived but suffered a broken back, pelvis, and collar bone. the law firm hired by my mother is continuing their investigation as to why it did not deploy. *tr

I've had a lacrosse 2008 since february of 2013 and my airbag light for the passengers goes off and on periodically as if there is no passenger sitting there. also my airbag light comes on periodically as well as my seatbelt light comes on and i always have my seatbelt on. i went to a mechanic and we looked up my car to see if it was recalled and it wasn't. im scared that if i ever got into an accident my airbags won't deploy. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 buick lacrosse. the contact stated while driving 10 mph, the driver engaged the brakes and the pedal emitted a loud metal noise. the contact mentioned that the brake warning light illuminated. the vehicle was taken to and independent mechanic where the brake pads, brake drums and rotors were replaced. the remedy failed to repair the failure. in addition, the contact stated that the air bag warning illuminated intermittently. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the vin was not available. the failure mileage was 40,000 and the current mileage was 52,000.

Air bag light will illuminate periodically when the passenger seat is occupied by an adult 125 lbs and more who is wearing a seat belt. it resets with the restart of the car or sometimes will just reset itself during the travel. *tr

On october 25, 2012, we took our buick lacrosse in to sunrise chevrolet/buick dealership, collierville, tn. the passenger side airbag indicator had been showing "off" when a passenger was seated. it would sometimes come back on, but did this repeatedly. the dealership "fixed" it, saying it was a "passenger presence module" which they replaced in the amount of $855.43, parts and labor (not tax). during the last two months, the same thing has been happening with the indicator showing "off" when a passenger is seated and sometimes coming back on. the mileage on vehicle now is 80,500. this would seem to us to be a safety issue and it would seem that gm should bear responsibility for correcting it at no cost to us. we feel sure that we are not the only ones experiencing this fault. have you had other reports about this issue? please give us your judgment regarding this matter. *tr

The airbag readiness light has been turned on for the last couple of days so i took to the dealership and found out that it was a faulty right front seat mat assembly. they replaced it at a cost of $710. i do not think this should have failed. approximately 6 months ago the passenger airbag status indicator light indicated that it was not working even with a person sitting there and seatbelt on. they cleaned corroded connections. it certainly appears a defect in the construction of these airbag indicators. this should be covered under warranty. *tr

Tl* the contact owns 2008 buick lacrosse. the contact stated that while the brakes were depressed the vehicle made a loud friction sound and the air bag light illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnose that the front brake hub speed sensor, the wiring harness and the passenger air bag wiring connector terminal were defective and needed to be replaced. in addition, the contact mentioned that the driver side sun visor was defective and caused a blinding spot. the failure mileage was 20,000 and the current mileage was 20,500. updated 11/9/2012 *js

Air bag registered as off when a person was seated in the front passenger seat. sensor was replaced and after 18 months the same problem is recurring. the air bag will be on then switch off and on all while a person is sitting in the seat and not doing anything other than sitting. current mileage for 2nd recurrence is 46,150. also the low beam headlights are going off for no apparent reason at night while driving down the road. high beams must be used when this occurs. the passenger door lock will not open or lock when the remote is used or the door lock button on the door. the hood will also not stay up as the hydraulic lifters do not hold. *tr

Airbag display shows airbag off intermittently with seatbelt on with an adult in passenger seat while moving on highway. *tr

The passenger air bag warning light will come on when i'm driving and no one is even sitting in the passenger seat. anything sitting on the seat weighs much less than the 80 lbs specified in the manual. sometimes the light will come on when i have a passenger sitting there, indicating that the air bags are off - when they should be on!!! there is no event that consistently triggers the light coming on. i might be turning or slowing down or just driving down a straight road. sometimes, the light will stay on for a couple of minutes, and sometimes it will stay on for more than ten minutes. i've taken my car to the dealer five times in the four years i've owned the car, and the first four times, the dealer fixed it at no charge. this time, the dealer says it "has gone all the way down to the passenger detection module and it will cost you $1250 to fix it." a passenger detection modules sounds rather important to me, and very much a safety issue, but the service manager said that if there's no recall, it's customer pay. with the number of complaints made on this site for this identical issue, i'd say it's highly likely that there are many more cars with the same problem, but their owners just don't know about this site. is it necessary for a certain number of complaints before an investigation is made? i guess my husband will just have to trust his luck - he's the one generally sitting in the passenger seat!! *tr

My passenger airbag has not been working since 2010.we took it to mceelveen buick in summerville,sc in 2011.they said it was the wiring harness. need to be replaced. we couldn't afford it. why is there not a recall on this model,but on the enclave? *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 buick lacrosse. the contact stated that while the passenger was seated in the front passenger seat, the passenger side air bag indicator light would illuminate intermittently. the contact mentioned that the passenger side air bag indicator light would mainly fail to illuminate when the passenger was seat. the contact was concerned that the passenger side air bag may not deploy while in a crash. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and independent mechanic who were both unable to duplicate the failure. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 22,000. updated 8/28/14*cn updated 9/10/2014 *js the consumer stated the dealer suggested replacing the passenger seat but, it was not a guaranteed fix. updated 9/10/2014 *js

Air bag passenger seat light shows off even with a passenger seated. passenger is well above 80lbs. indicator light on dic shows seat belt not being worn even when a passenger has one on. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 buick lacrosse. the contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the passenger side air bag light illuminated indicating that the air bags system was off. the vehicle was taken to a dealer who was unable to diagnose the cause of the problem. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the vin was not available. the failure mileage was 5,000.

Airbag light consistently going off and on the passenger side. have it at the dealer numerous times but the same problem still exists. *tr

I have a 2008 buick lacrosse cxl which i purchased 04/29/2008. at about 3,000 miles i noticed the passenger air bag light would come on intermittently showing the bag was off even though my wife was in the seat and buckled up. i took the unit into the local dealer and the service advisor told they couldn't check for a code unless the "off" light was showing when someone was in the seat. later the indicator lamp started coming on and would stay on (showing the air bag was off) for miles. i returned to the dealer i purchased the car from and they checked all connectors and pins. it did not malfunction when they test drove the vehicle but the malfunction returned on the way home. this dealer has rechecked the vehicle two times to no avail, the light still comes on. i have found if i have my wife move the seat forward and/or backward the light will go of for a while, (the time varies with the road conditions e.g. rough, smooth, straight, curvy and so forth). i found another instance on line where a 2009 lacrosse had the same problem as mine. a fix was not provided in their investigation of the vehicle. buick doesn't list any technical bulletins pertaining to this malfunction. this is a very dis-concerning issue any time we drive and i suppose it is a safety issue also. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 buick lacrosse. during the daytime, the instrument panel lighting was very dim, which made it difficult to view the gauges. the dealer stated that the vehicle was working up to standard and that the design of the vehicle could not be altered. the manufacturer was not notified. the approximate failure mileage was 5. updated 10/03/14*lj updated 3/10/2015 *js

Tl*the contact owns a 2008 buick lacrosse. the contact was experiencing extreme difficulty with the front passenger seat air bag system sensor. he has a health condition that has affected his height and uses a seat cushion in the vehicle. while in the driver seat, the cushion is fine but when he rides in the passenger seat, he is unable to use the cushion because it sets off the sensor and deactivates the air bag. this is a safety concern because he is unable to ride in the passenger side of his vehicle with a working air bag. the manufacturer was unable to provide assistance. as of may 16, 2008, the sensor has not been deactivated. the failure and current mileages were 200. updated 06/16/08 *bf

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 buick lacrosse. while driving approximately 20 mph, the front passenger air bag off indicator illuminated intermittently. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer six times for the similar failure. in 2009, the front passenger seat was replaced and the failure continued to occur. in addition, the air bag sensor was replaced and the technician stated the air bag functioned properly, even though the defect continued to occur. the manufacturer was notified of the constant problem and provided no further assistance. the approximate failure mileage was 1,000. updated 09/30/11. *jb

Tl*the contact owns a 2008 buick lacrosse. the passenger side air bag has an indicator light that is either off or on when a passenger is seated in the seat. the light illuminates when an occupant is seated in the seat. the dealer stated that the passengers are not heavy enough and should weigh at least 80 lbs. the contact stated that his wife weighs more than 80 lbs. the dealer stated that nothing could be done to correct the defect. the failure mileage was 12 and current mileage was 1,500. updated 02-19-08 *bf updated 02/19/08 *tr