AutoUtility currently tracks 48 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2016 Buick LaCrosse. Steering System issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 12 complaints (25% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 5 filings cite a crash, 2 cite a fire, 3 report one or more injuries.
Factual proportion of owner complaints categorized by automotive subsystem in NHTSA records
12 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
9 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
7 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
6 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI for this subsystem.
Specific mechanical, electrical, and driver-assist defect symptoms identified via deterministic narrative analysis
4 complaint narratives describe this symptom.
Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
"I was in a front end collision where the damages were over $20,000.00 and the air bags did not deploy."
"The volt meter on the dashboard keeps dropping below 14 volts and 13.5 volts. The car has been checked by Buick and my mechanic no issues found. Buick has no idea why it keeps doing it neither does my mechanic. The problem is if there is a voltage drop, the computer will shut down the engine..."
"On June 22,2026, I was involved in a frontal impact collision while traveling at approximately 35 mph. The vehicle suffered a catastrophic failure of the entire occupant restraint system. Despite a severe, high-speed frontal impact, the frontal airbags failed to physically deploy, and the seatbelt..."
"While driving down the road goin around 45 mph all of a sudden my steering wheel got so stiff I could hardly steer the car off the road and out of traffic. I didn't hit anything, my power steering just stopped. I put the car into park and turned off the ignition after a few minutes I started it..."
"The contact owns a 2016 Buick Lacrosse. The contact stated that the fuel pump was previously replaced due to the vehicle stalling while driving. The contact stated that the tailgate unintendedly opened while the vehicle was parked and turned off. Additionally, the vehicle jerked while driving from..."
Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2019)
| Model Year | NHTSA Complaints | Crash Reports | Safety Recalls | Detailed Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 Buick LaCrosse | 44 | 5 | 3 | View 2015 Problems → |
| 2016 Buick LaCrosse Current Page | 48 | 5 | 2 | Current |
| 2017 Buick LaCrosse | 34 | 0 | 2 | View 2017 Problems → |
| 2018 Buick LaCrosse | 12 | 0 | 3 | View 2018 Problems → |
| 2019 Buick LaCrosse | 6 | 0 | 2 | View 2019 Problems → |
Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 28 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications
| Vehicle Component / System | Total Complaints | Crash Reports | Fire Reports | Injury Entries | Fatality Entries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steering NHTSA category: STEERING | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Air Bags NHTSA category: AIR BAGS | 4 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Powertrain NHTSA category: POWER TRAIN | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vehicle Speed Control NHTSA category: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fuel & Propulsion System NHTSA category: FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| AIR BAGS,SEAT BELTS,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine & Cooling NHTSA category: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Equipment & Accessories NHTSA category: EQUIPMENT | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Forward Collision Avoidance NHTSA category: FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE,POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Doors, Latches & Locks NHTSA category: LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| POWER TRAIN,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seats & Restraints NHTSA category: SEATS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| STEERING,SUSPENSION | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure & Body NHTSA category: STRUCTURE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tires NHTSA category: TIRES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,SERVICE BRAKES | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility & Wipers NHTSA category: VISIBILITY/WIPER | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Cross-reference safety recalls, crash test safety ratings, and EPA fuel economy for this model year
Key performance indicators, EPA fuel economy specs, powertrain variants, and summary ratings.
Official recall campaigns, safety defect descriptions, and manufacturer free remedy instructions.
NHTSA 5-Star NCAP crash test results, driver assistance systems, and rollover resistance ratings.
EPA fuel economy ratings, electric range, and annual energy cost benchmarks.
Direct, deterministic answers synthesized from verified United States government databases for the 2016 Buick LaCrosse
In official NHTSA consumer records, the most frequently cited issue area for the 2016 Buick LaCrosse is Steering System, appearing in 12 records (25% of submitted filings).
Secondary reported categories include Driver Assistance & Safety Tech (9) and Powertrain & Transmission (7).
AutoUtility does not issue subjective reliability scores or commercial ratings. In official United States government records, NHTSA tracks 48 consumer defect complaints and 2 safety recall campaigns for the 2016 Buick LaCrosse.
Reviewing documented component complaint distributions, recall remedy notices, and active federal investigations provides an objective, evidence-based view of the vehicle's historical safety and defect record.
Among consumer complaint records on file with NHTSA for the 2016 Buick LaCrosse, 5 filings cite a crash, 2 cite smoke or fire, and 3 report one or more injuries.
Incident entries represent consumer descriptions at the time of submission to federal authorities and do not establish mechanical causation or legal liability.
The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database under 49 CFR Part 576.
Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.