2002 Buick Rendezvous problems
Owners have filed 690 complaints with NHTSA about the 2002 Buick Rendezvous. Electrical system is the most reported problem area, at 16% of complaints. After that come fuel system (16%) and engine (14%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 690 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 16% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 24 and 11
- Injuries and deaths
- 28 and 2
- Typical mileage
- 68,000 miles 541 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%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 46 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 51 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 106 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 109 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 77 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 56 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 40 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 25 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 18 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 9 |
| 200k+ miles | 4 |
What the data shows
Among the 541 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 68,000 miles. For electrical system specifically, the median reported mileage is about 70,000 miles (82 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 24 complaints mention a crash; 11 complaints mention a fire; 28 injuries reported; 2 deaths reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2002 ranks 1st most-complained-about out of 6 model years of the Buick Rendezvous with enough data (381 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 2 safety recall campaigns.
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.
My wife was involved in a fatal accident on july 2, 2006. She was a promising micro-biologist whom worked on cures for ovarian cancer. She was ran off a road by another driver and sent into a line of trees in our buick rendezvous (2002 cx). The driver-side headlight made direct contact with one tree and the force opened the driver's side door allowing it to be "ripped" off the hinges.
On may 31,2011, we were traveling on highway 82, in nahunta, ga. And a car pulled out in front of me and we crashed at approximately 35 MPH. There were tow people in the front and one person in the back. The shoulder harnesses did not lock and I hit the steering wheel, my wife hit the dash with her face and my daughter was thrown about in the back seat injuring her leg and her shoulder she had just been released from having surgery on.
My 2002 buick rendezvous cxl has a recurring problem with the windshield wipers. When I am driving in the rain and turn on the wipers, they do come on, but unless I turn my vehicle off and remove the key, the wipers will not turn off; nor will they change speeds. I will be taking the vehicle into the dealer for repair this week. *nlm
Buick rendezvous 2002 failure with blown transfer case & transmission, main exhaust pipe loose from head, rear end noise, passenger door sticks.