Engine and electrical issues are among the top complaints received by the NHTSA from vehicle owners
The 2022 Buick Envision is an SUV built by GM for family travel. The automaker claims that the model is “designed to inspire every drive.” However, customers are sounding the alarm that their Envisions have a defective electrical system, malfunctioning engine, and acceleration-brake problems.
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There aren’t a lot of complaints to the National Highway Traffic Administration (NHTSA) about the 2022 Buick Envision, but there are some owners who are frustrated. Engine, electrical systems, and airbags present the most common problems in complaints, but there are also some other issues.
Of course, it isn’t only the NHTSA that gets to hear about problems. A fair number of vehicle owners voice their frustrations on forums and platforms like Edmunds. Let’s take a look.
| Complaint Category | Number of Complaints |
|---|---|
| Engine | |
| Electrical System | |
| Air Bags | |
| Back Over Prevention: Warnings | |
| Power Train | |
| Service Brakes | |
| Back Over Prevention: Rearview System Braking | |
| Electrical System:adas:driver Monitoring:software | |
| Electrical System:body Control Module/bcm | |
| Equipment:electrical:infotainment |
The electrical system is supposed to provide support for starting the vehicle, running the high-tech in-cabin equipment, and for keeping the lights running, but this system is clearly defective in some vehicles.
One NHTSA complaint from an Illinois owner describes how the 2022 Buick Envision started running on its own. It was parked in the garage while he was working in the yard with the vehicle fob in his pocket. He noticed that the SUV was running when he walked into the garage.
So, he “sat in the driver’s seat, put his seatbelt on, depressed the brake pedal, pushed the turn off button and the vehicle turned off.” He then tried unsuccessfully to start the vehicle with the fob alone. The idea was to determine whether the fob alone could start the vehicle, but it didn’t work.
He states, “the fob alone could not start the vehicle as the vehicle was designed to only start when he got in the driver seat, locked the driver’s door, put his seatbelt on, and pushed the start button while in possession of the fob.” He also attempted to start the vehicle with the fob several more times to determine whether the fob could start the vehicle, but he was not successful.
Buick also knows how bad this system is. Service Bulletin #21NA279 states that the starter might need to be replaced because of a serious rattling noise. This is a situation that should never occur, yet GM is okay with shipping out vehicles that don’t operate as they should. Without the ability to start the car, owners are dead in the water. It’s impossible to have any sort of “inspiring drive” if it won’t start in the first place.
The harassing company pays our fees.
The motor is having just as many issues, if not more, underneath the hood of the 2022 Buick Envision.
Another NHTSA complaint from an owner in Georgia states, “The issue is the AutoStop feature and the transmission. When driving, it appears that the gears are not shifting correctly; also, while driving, the RPM has reached a high level of 5 multiple times, which is now a cause for concern. My minor son and I were driving today, and an 18-wheeler started veering into our lane. When I sped up to move over to the next lane, the vehicle hesitated, the engine revved up, and the vehicle started moving slowly.”
Three months later, the same Georgia owner complained to the NHTSA again. The 6-month-old vehicle still had a delay when shifting the gears, resulting in a loss of power, and the infotainment screen had frozen after a software update. “Additionally, when the vehicle is turned off, there is a loud noise (knocking) coming from the front of the vehicle. Also, while driving there has been a burning smell.”
According to the complaint, General Motors couldn’t duplicate the issues, but eventually offered a settlement of repair costs. The owner was planning to submit a lemon law warranty claim.
Again, Buick isn’t naïve about what’s happening with the Envision. Service Bulletin #19NA104 talks about vapor and steam coming out of the front grille because of problems. There’s no way to spin this problem to look good. No one is going to believe that the Envision is the hot SUV to drive, so hot it is steaming. Instead, customers are wise enough to know that there’s a major problem occurring with the engine.
Some of the issues owners are complaining about include the airbags, brakes, no-hands liftgate, and very small air vents in the rear of the SUV.
An airbag-related complaint to the NHTSA from an owner in Kentucky states that the Service Safety Restraint System and airbag light come on and off multiple times every day. But neither Onstar nor the dealer can recreate the issue or find a code to stop it from happening. “It is very distracting when driving and warning bells are sounding” because “messages are popping up that take my eyes off the road.”
There are several complaints on the Edmunds website. A user talks about an acceleration-braking problem. “I’ve had (my) Buick Envision Essence (for) 8 days. I went on a 7.5-hour trip (and) when passing, the gas stuck. RPM was at 5 while pushing (the) brake. It still wouldn’t slow down. I needed to push neutral and again while coming back from my trip, it is winter. Thank God there wasn’t ice cause I’m sure I’d be in a huge accident.”
Other Edmunds comments have relatively minor complaints. For instance, one user states that the Envision no longer has air con controls for passengers traveling in the rear seat. Also, “the air vents back there are small and the output is not very strong.”
Another critical comment brings up several issues:
All these issues add to the general frustration of 2022 Buick Envision owners.
Think you have a lemon? Sit back and let the experts work out your lemon case at no cost to you. The law makes Buick pay legal fees. You may be able to get your lemon out of your life. Every year, auto manufacturers buy back, replace or pay cash settlements to thousands of ‘lemon’ owners like you.
Brian Jones spent more than 30 years working as an ASE Certified Master Tech and Parts Specialist at multiple dealerships. Brian has become an authority in the industry, traveling across the country to consult for car dealerships and contributing his expertise as a writer for several major automotive publications. In his spare time, Brian enjoys working on pickup trucks, muscle cars, Jeeps and anything related to motorsports.
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I have a 2022 Buick Envision ST. My check engine light came on and 1 dealership told me it was the fuel sensor. They replaced it and gave it back. I had it back for less than a day and started having major issues. I took it to another dealership after contacting General Motors. The dealership called yesterday and said that the transmission needed to be replaced and that fluid from the transmission was mixing in with the engine oil so it would most likely need to be replaced as well. This is a beautiful car but a complete mess. I will be getting rid of it once it’s fixed.
Oh and by the way the transmission and engine are on back order, so they don’t know when it will be fixed. The dealerships don’t have loaner vehicles so GM told me that I would need to pay upfront for my own rental car and they would reimburse me when the car is fixed. I literally had to threaten them with a lawsuit to get them to pay upfront for the rental. My car has both warranty’s, there is no reason I should have to pay for a rental car and a car note.
I purchased my 2022 Buick Envision ST with 7 miles. The active noise cancellation with Buick quiet tuning is a joke! It sounds like the road is inside my car. This has been in for repair multiple times and the dealership notes the noise but there has been no repair, other then most recently that a radio update has corrected the issue, but no test drive was performed. The heated seats are supposed to turn on in auto start mode, that doesn’t work, park assist hasn’t work for any time have owned the car. My car tries to go into park assist mode while driving down the road, the radio goes out, the screens dim as if my outside lights are on, the hands free liftgate does not work, the leather is bubbling all over, I can hear a hissing sound coming from my gas pedal every time I accelerate which was told is my turbo, service driver assist warning pops on, there is a green gear light that has popped on that is not in the owners manual , so many electrical issues the front camera needed replacing, the coaxial cable needed replacing, the front collision alerts even while it is deactivated, the auto stop doesn’t always work.. the car blows out heat when the air is on. It is endless! 14 months into owning and 30 plus days out for repair and my car is still not fixed!
There have been a few problem with our 2022 buick. The car speaker cutting on with just a LOUD sound of static. No music, fob was in the house. Dome light coming on when we driving. Sometime the radio wont come on when starting the car. Took it to the dealership and told them about the static and other issues. It would do it until they closed the door. The head guy over the department said it scared the hell out of him. Never heard or seen anything like it. He said radio speakers are not covered under warranty. They should have a recall for these issues cause it all falls under electrial.
Numerous times my driver and passenger windows rolled down on its own. One time that it happened, someone stole belongings out of my vehicle. I have a 2022 Buick Envision Avenir.
I had just finished washing and drying my 2022 Buick Envision, when I returned to the vehicle after cleaning up the front driver and passenger windows were down. I did have the fob in my hand, but my car is not equipped for this function.
I have a 2022 Buick envision preferred. So far the only issue is that the audio component keeps bliping out occasionally. It does not have navigation and I have to rely on Bluetooth with my phone. When I try to use navigation on my phone that is mirrored to the car, it keeps going off and I have to pull over and reprogram it. Dealer tells me it can’t be fixed. When I got the car, the salesman at the dealership told me navigation chip could be added after purchase for around $500.00. After purchase I was told by the maintenance depth that adding navigation is not possible. I contacted the CEO of General MOTORS VIA CERTIFIED LETTER who declined to respond in any way. All I can say is Goodbye GM.
I was vacuuming in my house with the key fob in my pocket. Wen I went to empty the dust bin into trash in garage, my car was running!. I went inside the car and shut it off and then called my dealer. He told me 1. I should not have the fob in my pocket and, 2. I somehow did a remote start. He said the car would shut itself off at about 10 minutes. This is a 2021 Buick Envision with 8,000 miles on it. Dealer indicated it was MY mistake having the key on my person.