Vehicle Data Hub

2016 Buick Regal problems

NHTSA has received 61 complaints about the 2016 Buick Regal, and 16% of them involve steering. Next are electrical system (10%) and engine (10%).

At a glance

Complaints
61 filed with NHTSA
Most reported
Steering 16% of complaints
Crashes and fires
0 and 0
Injuries and deaths
1 and 0
Typical mileage
25,000 miles 32 complaints with mileage

Source: NHTSA owner complaints

Where the complaints are

Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.

  • Steering 16%
  • Electrical system 10%
  • Engine 10%
  • Lighting 10%
  • Cruise control 8%
  • Drivetrain & axles 8%
  • Brakes 7%
  • Body & structure 5%
  • Wipers, windshield & visibility 5%
  • Forward collision avoidance 3%

When problems show up

Complaints by mileage, 2016 Buick Regal Complaints by odometer reading in 20,000-mile steps. The median is about 25,000 miles. 0k to 20k miles: 14 complaints 20k to 40k miles: 9 complaints 40k to 60k miles: 3 complaints 60k to 80k miles: 0 complaints 80k to 100k miles: 2 complaints 100k to 120k miles: 3 complaints 120k to 140k miles: 1 complaints 140k to 160k miles: 0 complaints 160k to 180k miles: 0 complaints 180k to 200k miles: 0 complaints 200k+ miles: 0 complaints 040k80k120k160k200k miles Typical: 25,000 miles
Based on 32 complaints that include mileage. 81% were reported before 60,000 miles. The amber marker shows the median: half of these complaints happened before that mileage.
View the numbers
MileageComplaints
0k to 20k miles14
20k to 40k miles9
40k to 60k miles3
60k to 80k miles0
80k to 100k miles2
100k to 120k miles3
120k to 140k miles1
140k to 160k miles0
160k to 180k miles0
180k to 200k miles0
200k+ miles0

What the data shows

Of the 32 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 25,000 miles.

Safety-related details: 1 injury reported. Its complaints are less severe on average than those of 93% of model years in our database.

Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2016 ranks 16th most-complained-about out of 24 model years of the Buick Regal with enough data (42 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 1 safety recall campaign.

What owners wrote

A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.

Interior Chrome Driver Door Handle: The chrome film splits which caused a sharp edge on the edge of the chrome film of the door handle. I cut the edge of my finger on this sharp edge. When I took my vehicle in to have this handle replaced, I had to purchase the entire Driver's Side Door Panel just to get the handle. When speaking to my Service Rep, he informed me of another elderly customer that also cut their finger on their door handle.

December 2021 Injury

When backing out of a dark area (such as a garage) into bright light, or when leaving a dark tunnel into bright light, the backup display or forward navigation display become unusable due to contrast ("washout") issues. The system in the buick is a single sensor system (it also controls the automatic head lights) that requires 20-30 seconds to adjust contrast after a transition from dark to light.

Reported at 125 miles, April 2016

Suddenly after leaving costco gas station and driving "no" display of millage. Speed gauges and all critical information went blank/black on drivers dash board with critical lights display showing trouble with vehicle by displaying yellow; and red exclamations; skid tire and no gauge readings for engine temkp; or nothing!. On star gave negative results for emergency help. Dealer stated car was reprogramed last week. Previous radio and blue tooth trouble reported to GM. They seem to ignore me.

Reported at 16,000 miles, April 2016

The contact owns a 2016 Buick Regal. The contact stated while driving 35-40 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle started sputtering. The contact veered to the side of the road and turned off the vehicle for 5-10 minutes. The contact stated that upon restarting the vehicle, the failure was no longer present. The contact drove to the residence. The contact stated that the failure recurred while driving.

Reported at 85,900 miles, March 2024

Other model years of the Regal

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