Buick Enclave Air Bags Problems
Owners have filed 770 complaints with NHTSA about air bags problems on the Buick Enclave across 16 model years. The 2014 model year has the most (205). The words owners use most often: “air bags contacted” (23% of reports).
- 770air bags complaints
- —median miles at failure
- 43mention a crash
- 31mention an injury
- 8related recalls
- $1,150typical repair cost reported by owners
- 38%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Air bags contacted: mentioned in 180 of 770 complaints (23%)
How much does it cost to fix?
Owners who wrote down what they paid or were quoted put the typical air bags repair on the Buick Enclave at $1,150, and half of them between $730 and $1,350.
Based on 17 NHTSA complaints about this problem alone that state a repair bill or quote (2013–2023), converted to 2026 dollars with the U.S. consumer price index. These are owners' own figures, not a quote: they include dealer quotes, and owners who file complaints often faced larger repairs, so they can run higher than typical shop prices. Prices vary by shop, region and warranty coverage. How we calculate this.
At what mileage do air bags problems happen?
Based on 200 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 770 complaints, 43 mention a crash, 2 a fire, 31 an injury.
Buick Enclave air bags complaints by model year
| Model year | Air Bags complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Enclave | 1 | 3% | 14,300 |
| 2024 Enclave | 1 | 14% | — |
| 2023 Enclave | 1 | 5% | — |
| 2020 Enclave | 1 | 2% | — |
| 2019 Enclave | 2 | 5% | 7,712 |
| 2018 Enclave | 2 | 3% | 83,000 |
| 2017 Enclave | 145 | 81% | 64,000 |
| 2016 Enclave | 110 | 78% | 89,000 |
| 2015 Enclave | 105 | 61% | 97,000 |
| 2014 Enclave | 205 | 70% | 87,750 |
| 2013 Enclave | 10 | 14% | 53,000 |
| 2012 Enclave | 21 | 16% | 75,000 |
| 2011 Enclave | 38 | 18% | 55,500 |
| 2010 Enclave | 6 | 2% | 88,100 |
| 2009 Enclave | 9 | 4% | 75,673 |
| 2008 Enclave | 113 | 21% | 85,000 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (8)
Air bags:frontal:driver side:inflator module
Model years: 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017
Problem: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014-2017 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, and GMC Acadia vehicles. The driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment, due to a manufacturing defect.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Dealers will replace the driver's air bag module, free of charge. GM began mailing final owner letters February 23, 2024 and will continue mailing through December 2025. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N232404980.
Air bags:frontal:driver side:inflator module
Model years: 2015
Problem: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Acadia vehicles. The driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment, due to a manufacturing defect.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Dealers will replace the drivers air bag module, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 23, 2023. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300; Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N222366190.
Air bags:side/window:curtain
Model years: 2021, 2022
Problem: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Chevrolet Traverse and 2021-2022 Buick Enclave vehicles. The harness connector to the left or right side roof rail air bag may have incompatible electrical terminals, which could prevent the air bags from deploying in a crash.
Risk: Roof rail air bags that do not deploy as intended increase the risk of injury in a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the harness connector to the roof rail air bags, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on April 29, 2022. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N212352140.
Air bags:frontal:driver side:inflator module
Model years: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017
Problem: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2008-2017 Buick Enclave and 2013-2017 Chevrolet Traverse vehicles. The driver's air bag inflator may explode during deployment, due to a manufacturing defect.
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Dealers will replace the driver's air bag module, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters were mailed on November 3, 2021. Owner notification letters were mailed on January 10, 2022. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300 or Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020. GM's number for this recall is N212349040.
Air bags:sensor:frontal impact
Model years: 2021
Problem: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2021 Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave vehicles. During service by dealers, certain vehicles may have received incorrect air bag calibration software that may affect frontal airbag deployment.
Risk: Air bags that do not deploy as intended can increase the risk of injury.
Fix: Dealers will update the air bag calibration software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on July 29, 2021. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 and Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300. GM's number for this recall is N212340220.
Air bags:critical fasteners
Model years: 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017
Problem: General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2010-2015, 2017 Buick Enclave, 2010-2019 Chevrolet Traverse, and 2011-2016 GMC Acadia vehicles. The side curtain air bags may not be properly attached.
Risk: Unsecured side curtain air bags may not perform as intended, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, if necessary, realign or replace the weld nuts, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 24, 2021. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N202321200.
Air bags:side/window:curtain:inflator
Model years: 2020
Problem: General Motors, LLC. (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT5 and XT6, Chevrolet Blazer, Silverado 1500, 2500 and 3500 and Traverse and GMC Acadia and Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500 vehicles. The diffuser component of the Roof-Rail Air Bag (RRAB) inflator may not have been properly crimped to the inflator and could separate from the inflator during air bag deployment.
Risk: If the diffuser separates from the inflator during deployment, RRAB performance may be degraded, increasing the risk of injury in a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the suspect RRAB modules, free of charge. The recall began September 3, 2020. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-333-4223, or Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300. GM's number for this recall is N202305380.
Air bags:side/window
Model years: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2008-2013 Buick Enclave and GMC Acadia and 2009-2013 Chevrolet Traverse and 2008-2010 Saturn Outlook vehicles. In the affected vehicles, increased resistance in the driver and passenger seat mounted side impact air bag (SIAB) wiring harnesses may result in the SIAB and seat belt pretensioners not deploying in the event of a crash.
Risk: Failure of the side impact air bags and seat belt pretensioners to deploy in a crash increase the risk of injury to the driver and front seat occupant.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected harness connections with soldered connections, free of charge. The recall began on June 16, 2014. Buick owners may contact the owner center at 1-800-521-7300, Chevrolet owners at 1-866-694-6546, Saturn at 1-800-553-6000, and GMC owners at 1-866-996-9463. GM's number for this recall is 14030. Note: Vehicles repaired as part of Customer Satisfaction Campaign 10085 and special coverage 10335 have already had the subject condition repaired and therefore are not included in the safety recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
The contact owned a 2013 Buick Enclave. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH and attempting to make a right turn around a curve, the driver-side curtain airbag deployed unexpectedly and struck the contact's left temple, causing the contact to lose consciousness. While unconscious, the…
The vehicle has issues with the air bags and seats. If you move the seat the airbag light comes on. There were open recalls and while the dealership says they are repaired, this is an ongoing issue and the fixes appear to only be temporary.
The contact owned a 2025 Buick Enclave. While the contactâs daughter was driving through an intersection on a green light at an undisclosed speed, a truck crashed into the front driverâs side of the vehicle. Upon impact, the air bags failed to deploy. The contact and his wife and daughter were…
We keep getting notifications that our 16 yr/old daughters car has an airbag safety recall with communication on it about how "quick" and "easy" it is to have the airbag recall repaired but it is ALL LIES! We have been waiting almost 1 year and the dealerships still can't get a replacement airbag…
I am seeing that these have been repaired, when in fact it has not been repaired.
Frequently asked questions
Do all Buick Enclaves have air bags problems?
No. NHTSA has 770 owner complaints about air bags for the Buick Enclave. Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the Buick Enclave air bags?
Yes: 8 safety recalls list air bags. Check your VIN on NHTSA.gov to see whether the fix was done on your car.
How much does it cost to fix air bags problems on the Buick Enclave?
Owners report a typical cost of $1,150 (half paid between $730 and $1,350), from 17 complaints that state a repair bill or quote, in 2026 dollars.
What do owners say about air bags problems on the Buick Enclave?
The most frequent phrase is “air bags contacted”, in 180 of 770 complaints.
Other Buick Enclave problems
- Steering problems (443)
- Power Train problems (360)
- Engine problems (350)
- Electrical System problems (278)
- Structure problems (175)
- Service Brakes problems (105)
See all Buick Enclave problems.