"How reliable is the 1998 Buick Century?"

"Based on 278 NHTSA complaints, the 1998 Buick Century has a median complaint mileage of 54696 miles. The most common issue is POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION."

"What are common problems with the 1998 Buick Century?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 1998 Buick Century is POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, accounting for a significant portion of the 278 total complaints filed."

1998 Buick Century: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 278 complaints

278

Total Complaints

54,696mi

Median Mileage

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

47,000 25th Percentile

54,696 Median Mileage

78,126 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:HORN

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

STEERING

VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD

VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS

STEERING:RACK AND PINION

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"HORN IS TOO CLOSE TO AIRBAG HOUSING, CAUSING HORN NOT TO BLOW WHEN APLLIED. OWNER IS VERY CONCERNED FOR SAFETY. POSSIBLE DESIGN FLAW. *AK"

"WHILE PUTTING VEHICLE IN REVERSE VEHICLE WILL NOT MOVE. GEAR SHIFT IDICATOR SEEMS TO BE FAULTY. *AK"

"THE LOCATION OF THE HORN BUTTONS MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE TO LOCATE THEM WHEN THE STEERING WHEEL IS NOT IN A STRAIGHT POSITION. THE DEALER IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. CONSUMER INDICATES THAT HE HAS RECENTLY SOLVED THE PROBLEM. *AK"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28