2018 Buick Encore problems: recalls, complaints and whether this is a year to avoid
The 2018 Buick Encore has 74 owner complaints on record with NHTSA, which ranks it 3 of 4 Buick Encore model years by complaint volume. The worst year is 2015 (124); the cleanest is 2014 (60).
Is 2018 a good year for the Buick Encore?
Complaint volume is fairly even across this nameplate, so the model year is a weaker signal here than it is on many cars. Read the components below rather than the totals.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Recall entries |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 ← this page | 74 | 0 |
| 2016 | 80 | 2 |
| 2015 | 124 | 4 |
| 2014 | 60 | 4 |
Older years have been on the road longer and collect more complaints for that reason alone, and a year that sold in higher volume collects more while being no worse.
This retrieval holds 4 of the nameplate’s model years. 2017 is absent, which means no records came back for it — not that it was clean. The ranking above is among the years shown.
The 2018 accounts for 22% of every complaint filed against the Buick Encore in this retrieval, which works out to 9.2 complaints per year on the road across the 8 years since it was sold new — the figure to compare against other years, because it removes the advantage a newer car gets simply from having had less time to accumulate reports.
Complaint volume is broadly flat against the 2016 (0.9×), so on this measure the two years are interchangeable and the choice between them comes down to condition and price rather than the model year.
What do owners report on the Buick Encore?
Across every Buick Encore year, not the 2018 alone — NHTSA does not split component totals by model year.
- Engine — 69 reports
- Electrical System — 42 reports
- Steering — 40 reports
- Power Train — 38 reports
If your 2018 is doing something now, these are the guides for that system — each opens with whether it is safe to keep driving:
Which other Buick Encore years should you compare?
← 2016 Buick Encore · All Buick Encore years
If you are deciding between years, the table above is the short answer and the Buick Encore page carries the full run with the component breakdown. Before money changes hands, run the VIN for open recalls and read the inspection checklist — ten minutes in the seller’s driveway finds most of what matters.
Check a 2018 before you commit
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