2016 Buick ENCORE - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2016 Buick Encore SUV AWD received an impressive overall safety rating of 5 stars, indicating excellent crash protection for both front and side impacts. It also has high ratings for front and side crash tests, as well as rollover and side pole crash protection. The vehicle is equipped with standard electronic stability control, which enhances safety by helping the driver maintain control during skids or sudden maneuvers. Additionally, it offers optional forward collision warning and lane departure warning systems to assist the driver in avoiding potential accidents.

Despite its strong safety features, it is worth noting that there have been 55 complaints filed regarding this vehicle, indicating some issues reported by consumers. Furthermore, there have been 2 recalls for the 2016 Buick Encore, which suggests potential safety or performance issues that needed to be addressed by the manufacturer. Overall, while this car has excellent safety ratings and several advanced safety technologies, potential buyers should be aware of the reported complaints and recalls associated with this model.

auto generated summary, may be inaccurate.

Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

55

Recall Count

2

Investigation Count

0

Safety Rating

5/5

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Safety Features

2016 Buick Encore SUV AWD Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2016 Buick Encore SUV AWD

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

Standard
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

Optional
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

Optional

2016 Buick Encore SUV AWD Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2016 Buick Encore SUV AWD Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2013 Score 2016 Score 2022 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating 5 5 5
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 5 5 5
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 5 5

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2013 Score 2016 Score 2022 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating 5 5 5
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 5 5 5
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 5 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front 5 5 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear 5 5 5
Overall Side Barrier Rating 5 5 5

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2013 Score 2016 Score 2022 Score
Rollover Rating 4 4 4
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip No Tip No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating 5 5 5

Complaints for the 2016 Buick ENCORE

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"turbocharger failed which can eventually cause engine seizure. independent mechanic diagnosed and repaired after buick dealer told me i was out of warranty. after repair i located a letter from buick with my vin number on it dated november 2021 (after my warranty expiration) confirmed that the turbocharger might fail and they would replace free of charge within 10 yrs or 120,000 miles of vehicle purchase. prior to incident of turbocharger fail, my vehicle alerted me with with a loud tone of "engine overheat, engine idle" - all the engine oil and coolant ran out while driving.. mechanic replaced water outlet, then a short time later service engine light came on with code for turbocharger failure."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2024-11-06
Complaint:
"the contact owns a 2016 buick encore. the contact stated while driving 55 mph, the vehicle accelerated independently with unknown warning lights illuminated. the vehicle started smoking and overheating. the contact was able to pull over on the side of the road and shut off the vehicle. the contact attempted to restart the vehicle however, the vehicle would not restart. the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. the mechanic retrieved dtc codes: p0700, p0243, and p0333. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was 123,000."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2024-03-07
Complaint:
"i was driving down the road and the car started cutting back, then it got real bad, has no power at all right in the middle of work hour traffic! the check engine light comes on then the traction light comes on, onstar diagnostics sent email stating emissions system, stabil trac system and anti lock system my daughter was in the car we was in danger!!! i pay way too much for this car, i am on disability, fixed income! i have to have a way to go and get my daughter to school!!!"
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2022-12-09
Complaint:
"the turbo malfunctioned and made it not possible for the car to accelerate on the freeway. my safety was put at risk because the car would no longer accelerate at the speed limit which meant i was going slower than traffic. it sounds like this is a common problem for these cars in this year and 2017. the vehicle has been checked out by a mechanic. nothing appeared until after it happened then the check engine light was on. sources that this is a common problem for this vehicle https://www.carcomplaints.com/buick/encore/2016/engine/engine.shtml https://www.driveandreview.com/buick-encore-problems/ https://buickforums.com/forums/threads/2017-buick-encore-turbo-failure.52583/"
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2022-01-07
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2016 buick encore. the contact stated that while the vehicle was idle or at start up the engine smoked. the contact stated that there was an odor of burning engine oil. the contact stated that there was evidence of oil on the top of the engine when the hood was raised. haley gmc 9831 midlothian hyperlink, richmond va 23235: 804-250-1322, was contacted and a valve cover replacement was suggested. the contact stated that the onstar system alerted of an emission failure. a plug part was replaced while still covered under the warranty in an earlier visit to the same dealer. the burning odor still persisted. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was informed of the failure. the failure mileage was 87,064."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2019-02-09
Complaint:
"my awd went out on 3 occasions, each time i was told they found nothing. one day i lost acceleration power and then the engine light came on. the dealership said my pistons were not firing and had to be replaced with the turbo. all was covered, however two weeks later my red oil alarm came on, i was out of oil. the car went back to dealer, all oil was burned up and so was my turbo. i had taken my car in previously for large amount of smoke coming out the back-end. i was told nothing was found to be wrong?"
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2020-06-09
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2016 buick encore. while driving 65 mph, the vehicle decelerated to 44 mph and the vehicle stalled. the vehicle coasted until it came to a complete stop. the vehicle was restarted, but hesitated to drive. the vehicle was taken to bob ruth ford (700 n u.s. 15, dillsburg, pa 17019, (877) 818-1593) where the contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. the vehicle was currently being repaired under warranty. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 32,251."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2020-05-10
Complaint:
"when stopped, the vehicle feels like its missing, sometimes feels like it wants to stall. when accelerating, sometimes hesitates or not quite getting spark. scary when merging and don't have full power right away. brought to dealer 3 times, and now warranty has passed. happens everyday."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2019-11-10
Complaint:
"our vehicle started losing pick up and go in the middle of driving about 2 weeks ago. check engine light came on, so we took the vehicle to identify the issue. error codes p0299 turbo/super charger underboost issue was identified. we called the dealership and were told the part is on backorder until maybe july. even after market parts apparently are unavailable because gm is purchasing them. we contacted service manager at dealership because we are without a car that we are paying for and there is a huge concern that if the part is this difficult to obtain, there must be an undisclosed issue going on here. the service manager said they are only able to obtain updates for parts once the part is ordered, but also did confirm there is ( not necessarily a backorder, but the part is hard to come by!?!). he could not answer why. he did encourage us to contact consumer affairs to escalate our concerns. we did contact consumer affairs and were directed to contact nhtsa. we currently are without our vehicle that we continue to pay for and continue on this journey of tell this person or department and we are getting nowhere fast. something bigger is obviously going on here and as always the paying customer continues to be the one paying for it. we want the part and it would be nice to not be inconvenienced with scrambling everyday on how to get to/from work and how to get to/ from caring for elderly parents who are in need of our assistance to eat, bath and remain safe. this issue is a huge inconvenience and truth needs to be told by gm/buick."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2021-01-05
Complaint:
"yesterday i started the vehicle up and it quit. so i started it again and it ran. then today, i was backing out and it died out. i started it up again and drove towards home. then i was traveling 40 plus miles an hour when the car shut off. i hit the brakes and it started rocking. i was almost hit from the car behind me. i had it towed to the buick dealership."
Components Involved: ENGINE
Date of incident: 2018-02-05

Recalls for the 2016 Buick ENCORE

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"general motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2015-2017 chevrolet silverado 2500 hd, 3500 hd, tahoe, suburban, gmc sierra 2500 hd and 3500 hd, gmc yukon, gmc yukon xl, cadillac escalade and cadillac escalade esv vehicles and 2014-2017 chevrolet corvette, silverado 1500, trax, caprice police pursuit vehicle, gmc sierra 1500, buick encore, and 2014-2016 buick lacrosse, chevrolet spark ev and ss vehicles. in the affected vehicles, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (sdm) software to activate a diagnostic test. during this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash."
Consequence:
A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
Remedy:

GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on October 13, 2016. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 16007.

Component(s) Involved: AIR BAGS > FRONTAL
Date of incident: 2016-09-08
Recall:
"general motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 buick lacrosse and chevrolet spark ev, caprice ppv and ss vehicles, 2014-2017 buick encore and chevrolet corvette, silverado 1500 and gmc sierra 1500 vehicles, 2015-2016 cadillac escalade and escalade esv, chevrolet tahoe, trax, suburban and silverado 2500 and 3500 and gmc yukon and yukon xl vehicles, and 2015-2017 gmc sierra hd 2500 and 3500 vehicles. while being previously remedied for recall 16v-651, the affected vehicles may not have received the complete software update necessary to remedy the recall condition. without the update, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (sdm) software to activate a diagnostic test. during this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash."
Consequence:
A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
Remedy:

GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on August 4, 2017. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 17287.

Component(s) Involved: AIR BAGS > FRONTAL
Date of incident: 2017-07-10

BUICK Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

BUICK ranks 20 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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