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Buick Century

482 messages,  Last post on Jun 05, 2012 at 7:22 AM

You are in the Buick Century Forum.

What is this discussion about? Buick Century, Sedan

Messages Page 26 of 49

#249 of 482 Intake gasket leaks.. by artwis

Feb 01, 2002 (4:01 pm)

We had a 1995 Lumina LS with the 3.1 and no leak. Also 1999 Venture with 3.4 engine which had the leak at 12k but never put a drop on the floor. They caught it when changing the oil etc. Fixed under factory warranty. Just had the intake manifold gasket start leaking on my 1997 Silverado with 5.7 liter engine at 55k. It would leak 3 drops overnight when it was really cold out. Paid for by extended warranty. Did it turn me off on GM? No way! As I posted above we just purchased a new Century. As you look through the forums here notice that Buick Centuries have very few posts about problems compared to other vehicles. The reliability of the 3.1 engine is hard to beat. Just take care of them with regular maintenance. As yurakm said if you do get the leak it's not catastrophic. It probably won't happen and IF it does its not really that large an expense to fix when you can figure not much else will probably ever go wrong with that 3.1 engine
Art

#250 of 482 usaf52 by artwis

Feb 01, 2002 (4:05 pm)

Only 10k miles and 10 months old, BUY IT! Sounds like a good deal to me!
Art

#251 of 482 Also liked Century for micron air filtration system by usaf52

Feb 01, 2002 (4:09 pm)

If it helps. Since I have allergies, I figured this car would fit the bill, since I like it, the price is right and the air filtration system might help allergies. I see the replacement filter for the cabin filter is about 50 bucks so it should be a quality set up. According to Buick it should filter out pollen and road dust. Any thoughts on this?

#252 of 482 micron filter.. by artwis

Feb 01, 2002 (5:39 pm)

We had one on the 95 Lumina but don't think we ever changed it. Should help some for those who have allergies. The darn things are awful expensive though. I have a huge micron filter on our furnace and it only costs $25. We're not taking delivery on our Century til next week but I'll look then to see how hard it is to change. Maybe someplace like www.gmpartsdirect.com may have them cheaper.
Art

#253 of 482 Question... by johnlw

Feb 05, 2002 (11:08 am)

The Century I inherited has a great sounding stereo. I think there are six speakers, tweeters, it sounds great.
 
Only problem I have is that the car came with a cassette player, and I want a CD player.
 
Anyone have any idea what it would cost to switch the unit to one with a CD player? Also, would I be better going to the dealer or to a car stereo shop? Any input is appreciated.

#254 of 482 A little help by jpelder

Feb 05, 2002 (12:26 pm)

Do you want a CD player or CD Cassette? The reason I am asking is because I believe the factory CD/Cassette models are prewired for 8 speakers. I'm sure you could do some splicing if you had to, but it's nice to be able to just connect a plug. If you don't need the cassette, I'm sure it's easy to swap for a CD only unit.
 
I was looking to do the same thing on my Alero, and the dealer said it was not as simple as swapping the radio. I have my doubts about this, but that was his "enlightened" opinion.
 
Maybe it's the acoustics of the Century, but the 6 speaker system sounds awesome. In my opinion it is superior in sound to most other 8 speaker systems, unless you really need 200+ watts.
 
You may want to check Ebay, they usually have relatively new units for sale from people who upgrade. THey may be able to answer some questions too.

#255 of 482 RE: Buick Century by usaf52 by dtownfb

Feb 05, 2002 (1:38 pm)

You should be able to get a lower price then the $14,900 they are offering. Try offerign $12,000.
 
Reason why I say that is there are tons of buicks availbale on the used car market. They are a popular fleet and rental vehicle so there are tons of 1 year old Buicks around.

#256 of 482 CD player.. by artwis

Feb 05, 2002 (3:38 pm)

I know in some GM cars the radio head is part of the computer system and is used to control things other than the radio, cassette, cd etc. That is why they can't just be swapped out. I believe the Impala, Lesabre and others are this way. Go to a radio seller and ask some questions. They will know if it is an easy swap on the century or if it can't be done. Depends on the model of GM car.
Art

#257 of 482 jpelder by yurakm

Feb 05, 2002 (4:44 pm)

My 2000 Regal have CD + cassette combo with 6 speakers. So, most probably the combo is compatible with 6 speakers for Century.
 
However, GM replacement radio must be expensive.

#258 of 482 dtownfb by usaf52

Feb 05, 2002 (4:46 pm)

You're right, there are many Centurys on the used car market. I went on Autotrader, and searched 2001 only in a 200 mile radius. I came up with 253 Centurys. I randomly checked VIN's and found every one I checked was a lease. But the difference is very few had mileage in the low teens. The average mileage for the 2001 Century was about 20+K.

Messages Page 26 of 49

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