2014 Buick LaCrosse Reliability Data: Problems & Recalls
Good The 2014 Buick LaCrosse has a complaint index of 36 and ranks 10th worst out of 15 model years, earning a Good verdict relative to other LaCrosse years. NHTSA lists 63 complaints, 5 recalls, and 7 crashes tied to this model year.
Based on NHTSA complaints per model-year, not a reliability rating. Methodology
YearToAvoid Scorecard
- Complaint Index
- 36/100
- #10 of 15 LaCrosse years
- Verdict
- Good
- vs. other years of this model
- Complaints
- 63
- unique NHTSA reports
- Recalls
- 5
- distinct NHTSA campaigns
- Crashes
- 7
- reported in complaints
- Fires
- 1
- Injuries
- 4
- Top issue
- Electrical System
- NHTSA overall rating
- 5 / 5 ★
- EPA combined MPG
- 21
- 18 city / 28 hwy
- Injuries / deaths
- 4 / 0
Top 2014 Buick LaCrosse problems
Share of this year’s NHTSA complaints by component group. Groups with 15+ complaints have their own page.
- Electrical System19 (30%)
- Steering12 (19%)
- Other10 (16%)
- Brakes9 (14%)
- Airbags8 (13%)
- Engine7 (11%)
- Suspension, Wheels & Tires7 (11%)
- Seat Belts4 (6%)
- Transmission & Powertrain4 (6%)
- Structure & Body3 (5%)
A complaint can list more than one component, so shares add up to more than 100%. Shares are % of complaints.
What owners report
- Airbags failed to deploy in several low-to-moderate speed collisions, sometimes resulting in injuries requiring medical attention.
- Headlights lose brightness or go dark due to a burned-out ballast or a detached blue plastic trim piece inside the headlight housing.
- The instrument panel went completely blank for several seconds at highway speed before resetting itself.
- Condensation forms on the inside of the windshield in warm weather, obscuring the driver's view even with wipers running.
- One owner reported seat belt pretensioners and airbags firing without full deployment after hitting a deer, with smoke coming from the steering column area.
2014 Buick LaCrosse recalls
5 NHTSA recall campaigns list this model year.
- NHTSA 17V437000Jul 10, 2017Seat Belts40,683 vehicles
Seat belts:pretensioner
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.
Risk: 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.
- NHTSA 16V651000Sep 8, 2016Airbags3,640,162 vehicles
Air bags:frontal:sensor/control module-inactive
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.
Risk: 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.
- NHTSA 14V317000Jun 12, 2014Electrical System14,765 vehicles
Electrical system
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014 Buick LaCrosse vehicles manufactured April 30, 2013, to September 1, 2013. In the affected vehicles, a wiring splice in the driver's door may corrode and break, resulting in the absence of an audible chime to notify the driver if the door is opened while the key is in the ignition. Additionally, the Retained Accessory Power (RAP) module may stay active for ten minutes allowing the operation of the passenger windows, rear windows, and sunroof. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) numbers 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention," and 118, "Power-Operated Window, Partition, and Roof Panel Systems."
Risk: Without an audible indicator, the driver may not be aware that the driver's door is open while the key is in the ignition, increasing the risk of a vehicle rollaway. If the passenger windows, rear windows, and sunroof can function when the vehicle is turned off and the driver is not in the vehicle, there is an increased risk of injury if an unsupervised occupant operates the power closures.
Remedy: GM will notify owners and dealers will inspect the driver door window motor harness, and replace the electrical splice, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began August 2014. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300. General Motors number for this recall is 14235.
2014 Buick LaCrosse fuel economy and fuel cost
- City
- 18 MPG
- Highway
- 28 MPG
- Combined
- 21 MPG
- Annual fuel cost (EPA)
- $3,100
- 15,000 mi/yr
- Fuel
- Gasoline or E85
- Current regular gas
- $4.32/gal
- national avg.
EPA figures; median across configurations of this model year. Estimate your own cost with the fuel cost calculator.
2014 compared with other LaCrosse years
Frequently asked questions
- Is the 2014 Buick LaCrosse reliable?
- Compared to other LaCrosse model years, the 2014 rates Good with a complaint index of 36 and ranks 10th worst out of 15 years tracked, meaning most other years score worse.
- What are the most common problems on the 2014 Buick LaCrosse?
- NHTSA complaint data shows the Electrical System is the top problem area with 19 complaints (30% of all complaints), followed by Steering with 12 complaints and Brakes with 9.
- Does the 2014 Buick LaCrosse have any recalls?
- NHTSA lists 5 recalls for the 2014 LaCrosse, covering seat belts, airbags, electrical wiring in the driver's door, brake rotors, and transmission shift cable adjusters.
- How many airbag-related complaints does the 2014 LaCrosse have?
- NHTSA lists 8 airbag complaints, tied to 6 crashes, with a median failure mileage of 30,915 miles.
- What year Buick LaCrosse should I avoid?
- Based on NHTSA data, 2006, 2008, 2010, and 2011 are rated Avoid, with complaint indexes of 100, 86, 93, and 79 respectively, all worse than the 2014's index of 36.