2018 Buick Enclave problems & reliability
64 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2018 Buick Enclave. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
1 complaint report injuries (1 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2018 Buick Enclave vehicles were involved in 16 fatal crashes with 7 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes → | 20 | 31% |
| Power Train → | 15 | 23% |
| Engine → | 13 | 20% |
| Electrical System | 9 | 14% |
| Unknown OR Other | 8 | 13% |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 4 | 6% |
| Forward Collision Avoidance | 3 | 5% |
| Air Bags | 2 | 3% |
| Back Over Prevention | 2 | 3% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 2 | 3% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 25,793 miles (middle 50% between 16,938 and 62,250 miles), based on 30 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“I am submitting this letter to formally report two ongoing issues with my 2018 Buick Enclave. First, I have experienced persistent problems with the emissions purge valve. My vehicle has repeatedly triggered diagnostic trouble code P0496, indicating a malfunction in the purge valve system. I am aware that this issue…”
Suspension · filed Jun 8, 2026
“The contact owns a 2018 Buick Enclave. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle shut off and failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where the alternator was replaced 4 times before the dealer diagnosed that the failure was due to oil leaking onto the alternator and the…”
Engine and Engine Cooling · filed May 26, 2026
“After two transmission flushes and being told by a Buick dealership's service technicians that nothing is wrong with the vechile's transmission, it has now failed completely at ~90k miles.”
Power Train · filed May 12, 2026
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Technical service bulletins
1,026 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2018 Buick Enclave. The 10 most recent:
PI to help diagnose A/C concern
PIT5099J · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 21, 2026
This preliminary information communicates information about how to determine if a wheel and tires size change is available.
PIT3271Q · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 1, 2026
This Preliminary information communicates the steps on how to save a GDS2 Session Log and upload to a Technical Assistance Case in CX Connect.
PIP6104 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 9, 2026
This preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email GDS2 session logs into Technical Assistance.
PIP4902V · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 9, 2026
This preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email GDS2 session logs into Technical Assistance.
PIP4902U · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 8, 2026
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that have had multiple repair attempts that are being performed on customer’s vehicles that exhibit vibration conditions…
PIT5214G · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 20, 2025
New Vehicle Monitoring Programs Section in IVH
13598 · Other · issued Sep 9, 2025
This preliminary information advises a dealer on how to email GDS2 session logs into Technical Assistance.
PIP4902T · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 14, 2025
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that have an intermittent no crank, no start, or start stall concern with the security light coming on. Technician may…
PIC5650M · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 7, 2025
Amendments to the Song-Beverly Act (SBA) California warranty law provides vehicle owners with an opportunity to submit a written notice to GM before filing a lawsuit seeking a vehicle repurchase. If such a notice is not…
N252494770-01 · Service Campaign · issued Jun 20, 2025
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
No NHTSA recall campaigns name the 2018 Buick Enclave in our current data. Recalls may apply only to certain VIN ranges — always confirm with a VIN check.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2018 Buick Enclave?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 25,793 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.