Most common 2000 Buick Century problems
Share of the 193 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.
Buick Century complaints by model year
Best Century years: 2005, 2004, 1996. Years to avoid: 1999, 1998, 2000. Compare all years →
2000 Buick Century recalls (5)
Seat belts
Vehicle description: certain passenger vehicles, equipped with sunvisor located air bag labels, fail to conform to federal motor vehicles safety standard no. 208, "occupant crash protection." these vehicles have a message area less than 30 cm which does not meet the requirements of the standard.
Remedy: GM will mail a new bilingual air bag label with installation instructions. However, the customer May bring the label to their dealer for installation free of charge. Owner notification began May 4, 2001.
Air bags › Side/window
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. Some of these vehicles exhibit a condition in which the driver side impact air bag inflator separates from the air bag module during deployment.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the side impact air bag module.
Seat belts
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles, light duty trucks, sport utility vehicles, and Mini vans equipped with trw seat belt buckle assemblies. The buckle base of these seat belt assemblies were not properly heat treated and therefore do not pass the load bearing requirement of federal motor vehicle safety standard no.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the vehicle's safety belt buckle assembly date codes and, if necessary, will replace any safety belt buckle assembly.
Fuel system, gasoline › Storage › Tank assembly › Filler pipe and cap
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. The clamp that secures the flexible fuel fill hose to the metal fill tube May be loose and could separate.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the fuel hose fill neck clamp and, if necessary, reposition and tighten the clamp.
Service brakes, hydraulic › Foundation components › Drum
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles equipped with rear drum brakes. The bolt head(s) on the rear spindle rod can separate.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the rear spindle bolts.
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into a possible defect involving the 2000 Buick Century:
Accelerator cable detaches from throttle
There is no summary currently available
What 2000 Buick Century owners say
Transmission & drivetrain all 48 →
Defective odometer readings, gear indicators disappeared. The odometer reading disappeared, and the gear indicator disappeared on instrument cluster. I have no way to read my odometer, nor do I know what gear I am in, prnd21. Now I can accidently be in reverse and not even know it. This is an extremely dangerous situation, and there should be a recall on this. Mechanic charges $100.00 to fix, and also states they can insert any odometer reading that I would like to have. This should be illegal. I no longer have a valid odometer reading for my yearly inspections, or if I were to sell my vehicle. I could drive in 1st gear and burn up my transmission and shut down in the middle of the interstate and cause a serious accident or be run over for dead stopped on roads. My instrument panel has not had an accurate fuel guage reading in years, it comes and goes. …
Two hundred miles away from home I started having tansmission problems on my 2000 Buick Century, limited edition, with 33,000 miles on it. Brought the car brand new and maintained it religiously. Shifting was extremely harsh. Did OK going 55 - 65 miles an hour on the freeway. Non freeway driving it went back to harsh shifting, whining engine, slow acceleration. Took it in to the dealer next am. Was told my car was out of warranty, and that pressure control solenoid valve needed to be replaced to the tune of $750. After talking with the assistant service manager, they agreed to a 50-50 split. However, I feel GM is solely responsible. They were aware of this two years ago. Fortunately, I wasn't stranded in the desert in 100 degrees temperature with my young grand children. It is my understanding that GM had issued a bulletin regarding this defective part. …
Brakes all 31 →
Dt*: the contact stated while applying slight brake pressure at 5 MPH on a city street, the brake pedal went all the way down into the floorboard and the vehicle crashed into the rear of another vehicle without warning. The contact was wearing a seat belt, but minor injuries were sustained. Minor damage was sustained to the front of the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to a dealer who determined the brake lines were corroded. The vehicle was exposed to extreme winter weather and road salts. The manufacturer was not notified. A police report was taken.
Tl contact owns a 2000 Buick Century. While driving 40 MPH the contact applied the brakes and heard a grinding metal sound coming from the brakes. The brakes failed to engage properly causing the contact to crash into a vehicle. There were no injuries. A police report was written for the incident. The vehicle was currently being diagnosed by the repair shop. There were no prior warnings. The current and failure mileages were 150000. The VIN was not available. Updated 10/05/10 updated 10/07/10
Engine & cooling all 27 →
Tl*- the contact owns a 2000 Buick Century custom and complained about the following problems: the lower intake manifold gasket, the thermostat, and water pump. These components had to be replaced because the vehicle was overheating. The rear brake shoes and a leaking cylinder also had to be replaced. The rear drums, and the switch on the driver's side for the power windows where replaced due to possible fire concerns. In addition, the right outer tie rod end on the passenger's side wheel was loose and had to be repaired. Since the vehicle was inherited in 2003 all the aforementioned failures had to be replaced or repaired starting in 2005. The contact spoke with the manufacturer, and they stated they would not reimburse the contact because there was no relationship established with the dealer since the vehicle was purchased. …
Tl* the contact owns 2000 Buick Century. The contact stated that the service engine warning light illuminated intermittently. Additionally, the vehicle was shaking violently and became extremely difficult to steer. The failure would occur while the contact was in drive, park or reverse. The contact also stated that there was a constant burning odor near the front end of the vehicle. The contact referenced NHTSA campaign id numbers: 09e005000 (steering), 07e021000 (fuel system, other) and 00V160000 (fuel system, gasoline) but was not included in any recall. The vehicle was not inspected or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was unknown.
2000 Buick Century engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1L 6-cyl | 4-speed automatic | FWD | 18 / 27 / 21 |
EPA ratings. Class: Midsize car.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2000 Buick Century a good car?
Based on 193 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 2000 Century rates use caution: 1.6× as many complaints as a typical year of the Century at the same age. It is one of the Century years we suggest avoiding. Complaint counts don't account for sales volume or individual maintenance, so have any used car inspected before buying.
What is the most common problem with the 2000 Buick Century?
The transmission & drivetrain — 48 complaints, 25% of all complaints for this model year, most often about automatic transmission. Next are the brakes (31) and engine & cooling (27).
How many recalls does the 2000 Buick Century have?
There are 5 recalls for the 2000 Buick Century, the most recent from April 6, 2001 (seat belts). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer — check whether yours has been done with the VIN recall check.
What are the best and worst years of the Buick Century?
The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 2005, 2004 and 1996. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 1999, 1998 and 2000. See the full Buick Century years comparison.
At what mileage do 2000 Buick Century problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 61,000 miles; 32% of problems with a recorded mileage started before 50,000 miles.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.