1997 Buick Park Avenue Consumer Reviews

97 Park Avenue Ultra

Written by: topnotch36580 on 01/10/2007

Vehicle

1997 Buick Park Avenue 4 Dr Ultra Sprchgd Sedan

Review

This has been a very reliable car and is very comfortable to drive and is user friendly.

Favorite Features

Suggested Improvements

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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Big car, great gas mileage

Written by: TMM on 07/20/2005

Vehicle

1997 Buick Park Avenue 4 Dr Ultra Sprchgd Sedan

Review

I bought this so I could have a big luxury car, yet also wanted to be able to get wife and all 4 of my kids in if necessary. Great on cruising interstates, and pretty good on curvy roads as well. It's very roomy and comfortable with a large trunk. Surprisingly great gas mileage, around 27-30 on highway. It has served my purposes well as a luxury car for business driving, yet it's good for family trips. It's reliable with no mechanical or engine problems, and gets good gas mileage for a car of this size to boot.

Favorite Features

Smooth ride particularly on highways, and surprisingly good gas mileage.

Suggested Improvements

Automatic moisture sensing wiper system is overly sensitive and I would prefer to just manually adjust intermittent wipers.

3 out 3 people found this review helpful

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Broken Buick

Written by: Joe R on 06/05/2005

Vehicle

1997 Buick Park Avenue 4 Dr STD Sedan

Review

I bought this car from the original owner when it was 3 years old. The car has a pretty good ride and is comfortable. The biggest problem with this car is that many things have gone wrong with it and were expensive to fix. There was a problem with a plastic piece by the manifold that melted and filled the crankcase with antifreeze ($900). Water pump ($300) Some timing sensors ($550). Alternator, battery, serpentine. ($500). Starter ($300). Wipers won't return.

Favorite Features

Passenger Climate Control, Leather power seats, Automatic climat control, Controls on steering wheel, Wiper sensors

Suggested Improvements

Just make it more reliable.

5 out 5 people found this review helpful

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Disappointment

Written by: BootsyClay on 11/16/2004

Vehicle

1997 Buick Park Avenue 4 Dr STD Sedan

Review

We bought this used from a reliable friend mechanic. In no time the paint was fading and peeling, the plastic manifold broke & quite a big repair bill even fixing it ourselves & buying parts on the net. Air conditioning went & had to replace condensor etc, The front power seat mechanism works, but is popped out of the seat. Seatbuckles broke. Something has happened to the struts. We've nearly always owned GM since my husband retired from there. Owned an Olds that went almost 300K miles until hit when stopped. Only one time failed to start when the timing chain needed replacing at way over 100K. We have lost a bundle on this Buick. Really a shame and sorrowful!

Favorite Features

Heated seats, automatic wipers that come on when needed but none of this worth the problems with it and money lost.

Suggested Improvements

Of course the manifold was wrong from the beginning and I don't know what to fix such a car as this, but it seems like GM should have known better than to put out a car of such a disaster. Too bad at our age and such Buick satisfaction we get one like this.

3 out 3 people found this review helpful

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AVOID AVOID AVOID

Written by: jim kirk on 10/06/2004

Vehicle

1997 Buick Park Avenue 4 Dr STD Sedan

Review

This is the worst car I have ever owned in my life. Poor engineering, poor build quality, terrible reliability. Every time I get in it, I wonder if it will end up on the tow truck again. My plastic intake manifold cracked, the coolant mixed with the oil and destroyed the engine. Cost 4,000 plus for a used engine. Other problems include 10" of water in trunk, failed steering rack, warped brake rotors, cracked leather, failed heated seat, constant electrical problems, broken door handle, door lock switch fell into door, burned out (and irreplaceable) dash lights. AC compressor bearing grinding, water pump, wonkie transmission. I rate this car a ZERO, but the scale doesn't go that low

Favorite Features

The compass in the mirror. Other than that, nothing.

Suggested Improvements

GM should recall these cars and install an aluminum intake manifold (like they have now put back on the 2004's after 8 years of problems. I chased GM all the way to small claims court on this issue. Don't take screw you for an answer. Hound them to death if you have to.

8 out 11 people found this review helpful

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Good decision

Written by: jam4568 on 07/11/2004

Vehicle

1997 Buick Park Avenue 4 Dr STD Sedan

Review

I am very happy to have purchased this vehicle. Because of it's high depreciation, I got a real bargain. It is a loaded luxurious sedan in perfect condition with low milage for a great price.

Favorite Features

Suggested Improvements

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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Cruising Machine

Written by: avcad on 04/11/2004

Vehicle

1997 Buick Park Avenue 4 Dr Ultra Sprchgd Sedan

Review

Large, comfortable, powerful automobile. Very good servicability except for belts. Excellent reliability through 143,000 miles.

Favorite Features

Powerful engine, luxurous interior.

Suggested Improvements

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Love My Ultra

Written by: JrRidge on 02/20/2004

Vehicle

1997 Buick Park Avenue 4 Dr Ultra Sprchgd Sedan

Review

I purchased my Ultra in Woodbridge Virginia with 74,500 miles and it has been a great car. I like the size of the car and it rides like a limo on the highway. The only problems I've had was with getting the fan, supercharger belts and water pump replaced at 125,000 miles for over $700. I've also had the front brake roters replaced twice due to warpage. The car runs great still and I now have over 144,000 miles on it. I believe I'll get over 200,000 on it like the Olds Regency I still own with over 211,000 miles on it which my son crashed it for me.

Favorite Features

Heated seats, auto whipers, traction control, 2 zone heating/cooling, power and gas mileage, handling and ride, hell everything...:)

Suggested Improvements

None

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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1997 Disaster

Written by: Judd on 12/07/2003

Vehicle

1997 Buick Park Avenue 4 Dr STD Sedan

Review

I purchased this low milage car just recently from a person I know well. He took painstaking care of it. It looks brand new inside and out. Within two months the door lock button popped inside the door. The transmission failed and cost $1975 to rebuild. The ash tray broke and won't stay closed. The volume button on the steering wheel functions some of the time. The self- leveling feature has failed and I shudder to think what that will cost to fix. This could be a wonderful car if it was better built. I have had many GM cars over the years most of them purchased new (I still have my 84 El Camino) but this is the last one.

Favorite Features

Ride (until the self-level feature broke), interior comfort, heated seats, key controls on the steering wheel (until the volume control malfinctioned), auto variable wipers, driver preference memory system and the sound system.

Suggested Improvements

One word....RELIABILITY. The 97 Park Ave is a disaster. GM should be ashamed.

3 out 3 people found this review helpful

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This Car Has Great Potential

Written by: Susannah111 on 10/20/2003

Vehicle

1997 Buick Park Avenue 4 Dr STD Sedan

Review

We went from an S-class Mercedes to this car and find it much roomier, more comfortable, and far better on gas (28-29 mpg highway driving.)

Favorite Features

The leather seats are excellent and adjustments make it a fine touring car. For a large car, the Buick is surprisingly peppy and responsive.

Suggested Improvements

Like some others, our car's plastic manifold plenum leaked. Fortunately, we caught it early. But it still required $400+ in repairs. It is irresponsible for Buick not to recall these models and fix this defect. It's a great way to lose customers!

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