1987 Buick Century sedan

[Guest Shaffer]

I know that a lot of the 80s American cars are not the best built and in some cases: junk. My parents have owned several early-late 80s GM cars through the years and most turned out to be junk, as well as the few Fords. However, I am looking for a CHEAP car, just to drive to work and not to worry about it getting doors opened against it in the parking lot at work, as I am selling my current work car (1991 Honda Accord) I am considering buying a new car in April, but still will need a work car. I found a 1987 Buick Century 4dr in VGC, priced very cheap. Years ago I owned a 83 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera (same as Chevrolet Celebrity, Buick Century and Pontiac 6000) and they seem to be much better than the problem plagued GM X-cars, while still a far from perfect car, but I have always thought these cars had a nice design. I am assuming that the 87s should be even a little better than the 83s. From owning one of these cars in the past, I know a little of the problems I can expect. I only owned that car for a couple of months, as the previous owner had let the engine freeze and bust and fixed it long enought to sell it, so I really did not get to see the performance of the car. My grandmother did have a 84 Celebrity years ago and it had transmission problems, even at 80K. So does anyone here own a late 80s Century? Are they fairly reliable cars? My cousin has a 95 Buick Century and it has been totally trouble free, but again, it is a 1995. If not the 87 Century, I can also get a great deal on a 1994 Chevrolet Lumina 4dr. I have heard these cars are fairly good. Thanks for any/all information.<p>[ 02-27-2002: Message edited by: Shaffer ]

[Guest scott mich bca # 6619]

Schaffer,<P>I bought my son a 1986 Buick Century. It was the classic story. Belonged to a little old lady, the only drove it in the non-winter months from Minnesota.<P>It had only 39,000 miles, and all the reapir receipts. I had to laught, it had many receipts for batteries, She hardly drove it so the batteries went dead.<P>Anyway, it is a fairly reliable car. We have gone through tires, brakes, alternator, power steering unit, rack & pinion.<P>We only paid $600 for it, so it seem worth while.<P>As far a the one you are considering, odviously have to weigh the price, & the condition.<P>I have always had GM cars, (over 25), some Fords, Chryslers, but my older son has 2 Hondas. He swears by them. When he was considering their purchase, I asked around, and believe it or not, nobody could say anything bad about them. They are suppose to run forever.<P>You be the judge.<P>Scott Mich<BR>1955-76C<BR>1959 Olds SS-88<BR>1978 Pontiac Bonneville Brougham<BR>and a few newer cars!

[Guest]

My brother has an 84 Century with a drive train and interior out of a wrecked 87 Ciera. He has had lots of problems with it, but it may have something to do with the car being taken apart and put back together. <BR> An 87 is getting to be an old car and little annoying problems will start to come out in cars of this age. It will probably get you to work and back just fine though.

[Guest Shaffer]

No way on the rear drive 81-87 GM rear drive cars. We have had our fair share of problems with these cars. In 1990, my parents bought a 5 year old (then 5-year old) 1985 Buick Regal Custom coupe with 70,000 actual miles. The car looked like new. Within 3 weeks, the paint started peeling off of it. Within 2 months, the transmission came out of the car. At 99K, the engine started to go. We kept the car until about 1994 or 1995. My dad worked on the engine all of the time. It started using oil and losing power. The second transmission started to go as well. The gas guage went out on it. The steering column started to mess up. My uncle owned a 85 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme (same car) with the 3.8 V-6. It had 62K when he got it. It was a oone owner car. It started to go @ about 80K. Exact same problems. He did once however own a 1978 Cutlass Supreme 00(first year for this design) and it was a good car. It had the 261? V-8. It had over 300K miles on it and was a very dependable car. However, the rust finally got it, as it was originally a northern car. Now O know that the Cantury can have the same problems as the Regal, such as the gas guage, etc, but I think the drive train may be a LITTLE better. <P>In ragaurds to the Honda Accords in the previous post, they are good cars. Actually I currently own a 1991 Honda Accord LX sedan. Also have owned a 84, two 86s, and this 91 Honda Accord, as well as a 89 Acura Integra and 88 Honda Civic. Some had over 200K and still run good. The 80s Toyotas was as equally as reliable. I just want to sell the 91 Honda now, put t he majority of the money in the bank to use toward the new car I plan to buy in April. Thanks again for all of the replies and help. Tony.

[Guest Shaffer]

FIRST SEE PREVIOUS POST: <P>One thing I forgot to mention about my parents old 85 Buick Regal in my previous post, is that we sold it to a lady for $300. We told her it needed engine and trans work. She said fine. One of our neighbors know the lady. They said she drove the car from here (Tennessee) to Michigan to her hometown. The car made it fine, but somehow, the battery was replaced up there and shorted out and messed up some wires. It was repaired up there and driven back down here. I seen the car later with a older person driving it. Now the car resides at a local salvage yard just down from my house. I can see it as I drive out my driveway. My dad still says it was the worst car he ever owned.

[NTX5467]

By 1987, most of the mechanical problems of those A-body fwd cars were well sorted out and gone. There were no suprises in the engine, transaxle, or anywhere else by then. The only recalls and such I remember (at the dealership level) were due to post-production changes in the headlight switches and things, but nothing serious.<P>Just because the car is low mileage, it's still that old. That means rubber items (i.e., seals and such) will deteriorate with the lower mileage due to age issues. Including in the rack and pinion steering gear.<P>If the car looks good and checks out ok, there should be no problems--I suspect. It's your money, spend it as you desire. Be an informed consumer.<P>The only thing about those particular cars is the wall-to-wall taillight assembly. Over $500.00 (for the part from the dealer) to replace and basically none in the salvage yards either.<P>The Lumina (and similar GM cars) use the same engine as the Century you mention. But you have a "utility" Chevrolet instead of a nice Buick. The later version GM midsize vehicle will ride and handle better than the '87 car plus having other upgrades and improvements in design and operation.<P>As for Hondas, they're like other imports in that they can be very reliable, but maintenance intensive (compared to American products) and more expensive to fix when they do break. The resale might be better on them, but that would work against them in what you're trying to do. But finding a pristine Honda at that price is pretty impossible--especially the pristine part (by my observation).<P>Look how much fun you could miss by just keeping your existing vehicle for a little while longer.<P>NTX5467

[Guest]

I have another suggestion for you Tony. How about a late 70's B-body w/ a 250 L6? My car before the 225, and first, was a '78 Impala w/ the 250 in it. I bought it for $500 from a nice elderly couple down the street from my dad's home in Florida. Perfect transportation for getting to and from work, or in my case it was school. The 250 L6, while not a Buick motor , is still a very reliable motor that can go forever. They aren't powerhouses, but will get you where you need to go. I bought the car w/ I think about 135,000 mi. on it. It now has over 160,000 and is driven by my stepdad on the streets of Brooklyn. It gets about 15-17 mpg and that is with a monojet that could stand a rebuild.

[56Roadmaster]

why don't you pick up something 81-87 rear wheel drive, like the Regal, with a small v-8 and O/D or with the 3.8v-6 these are tried and proven cars, and parts still readily availible, in good tune you can get 22-23 mpg or better. They are relatively low maintenance cars, and they are Easy to work on plus the parts interchange easily with older/other GM rwds....thats my take!

[Guest Shaffer]

NTX, the year Century I am considering is a 1987, which only has 3 lights on each side. My cousins 95 Century does have the full-width taillamps, like the late 80s Skylarks. The Lumina also is basically a Cutlass Supreme / Buick Regal and Pontiac Grand Prix. All of those cars was proven to be fairly reliable. 73Electra: I would not mind having a 77-80 Impala with the I-6. However, I think the 6-cyls are rare. Those inline 6cyls was very good engines. Actually I think all I-6s are good engines. I think all of the 77-90 B-body GM cars was good cars. The 700 transmission on some was known for early failure I think. My 89 Pontiac Safari has this trans, but it is still good. Thanks again for the info on the Centurys.<p>[ 02-18-2002: Message edited by: Shaffer ]

[Dave@Moon]

I had an '86 Celebrity wagon with the 2.5 liter. It was an OK car, slow as a dog over 40 mph, but it got great gas milage (25 mpg city in a wagon). I bought it 7 years old with 59,000 miles for less than $4000. I only kept it for a year, because....<P>I remember three big things about the car.<P>#1, the tranny had been fried and new fluid put in it to cover it up. Within 500 miles I was getting very rough shifts and the red fluid had been burnt brown. (I never hauled anything heavier than groceries in it.) The Chevy dealer had to rebuild the entire unit for me, to the tune of $1300 in parts. Thank God for warrantees.<P>#2, that 2.5 was the hardest motor to work on of any I've owned. I don't know if that car had a tough life of what, it was in very good shape with original paint and a clean interior. However, it seemed like everything in that engine compartment was held together with locktite. I once spent (no exaggeration or hyperbole) 1 1/2 hours removing the rotor (which didn't have so much a set screw holding it in. I thought I was going to pry the distributor off the back of the block! <P>And #3, I spent a fortune chasing a problem with a front end wobble on that car. It drove fine for 5-10 miles, then a slight wobble would creep in to the steering wheel. Axles, bearings, rotors, ball joints,....nothing helped. Then Tom and Ray Magliozzi (Click & Clack) printed an artical on a Toyota with this problem. It waa a bad power brake booster, which wasn't allowing the calipers to completely retract. (It killed the guy in the Toyota by boiling his brake fluid! )<P>Other quirks: A <B>3</B> quart oil sump only! Dashboard was held together with cheap plastic nuts and bolts, rattled constantly. Ten (count 'em, 10) brake light bulbs! Notoriously bad power steering racks )although mine was good), watch for stiff/slow action and resistance when cold.<p>[ 02-18-2002: Message edited by: Dave@Moon ]

[Guest Shaffer]

My grandmothers old 84 Celebrity had transmission problems. After the electrical was disconnected, it worked fine.

[Guest]

How about considering the GM front wheel drive Pontiac Bonneville, Buick Park Avenue/Lesabre, Olds 88 or 98? My first 87 Bonneville I scrapped out after 147,000 miles as the trans needed work and while it ran well, the body was going to pieces which the early ones were known for. I am now driving a 92 Bonneville that I bought with 88,000 miles on it, now has 115,000 on it, and it runs fine with no problems. The 3800 engine has come a long way since they changed it to a transverse mounting,with fuel injection and a better oiling system. I have another Buick with a 3800 also at this time that has in excess of 125,000 miles on it and it has only had a water pump replaced on it.

[Guest]

How about considering the GM front wheel drive Pontiac Bonneville, Buick Park Avenue/Lesabre, Olds 88 or 98? My first 87 Bonneville I scrapped out after 147,000 miles as the trans needed work and while it ran well, the body was going to pieces which the early ones were known for. I am now driving a 92 Bonneville that I bought with 88,000 miles on it, now has 115,000 on it, and it runs fine with no problems. The 3800 engine has come a long way since they changed it to a transverse mounting,with fuel injection and a better oiling system. I have another Buick with a 3800 also at this time that has in excess of 125,000 miles on it and it has only had a water pump replaced on it.

[Guest Shaffer]

I would like to have a 87-91 Bonneville. I have always liked the styling on the 87-88 Bonnevilles. But, as a work car, I want to keep the price very low, as I plan to buy a brand new car (or at least a 99-01). The 87-88 Bonnevilles are scarce around here. I have not seen one for sale in a long time. I also think the 92-95 Bonnevilles are very nice cars as well. Oddly, I like the base SEs better than the SSE or SSEi. My grandfather almost bought a 1995 Bonneville SSE a few years ago, but like a idiot, I talked him into buying a 90s Mazda 929. The 929 is still a nice car, but it is a little on the dull side.<p>[ 02-19-2002: Message edited by: Shaffer ]

[Guest Shaffer]

Here is a link to a 87 Buick Century very similar to the one I am considering buying. <BR> <A HREF="http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1805911661" TARGET=_blank>http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1805911661</A> <P>However, it looks like I might really get the 1994 Lumina sedan instead. It is a very nice car and it is priced way below wholesale.

[Guest]

Greetings!<BR>Don't know about the '87, but I had pretty good luck with an 89 Century (3.3 motor)<BR>Bought it w/97,000, sold at 170,000<BR>steering a bit sloppy, but still original rack, ball joints.<BR>gave it struts and shocks at 120,000<BR>replaced water ppump, serp belts, alternator, brakes, brakes, tires, trans fluid change, etc. -normal stuff. I even gave it plugs at ? 130k?<BR>ran GREAT. Trans fine. strong motor. on highway, LA to Grand Junction and back, 28MPG with family and running 65-75 most of the way.<BR>does have vibration/hop in front end(?), so does my '91 Century.<BR>cheers<BR>Jay

[Guest nailswede]

<p>[ 02-22-2002: Message edited by: Anders Larsson ]

[Guest Shaffer]

The interior looks nice, but that was the only photo that was working.

[Guest Shaffer]

As it may turn out, I may be buying a 1994 Chevrolet Lumina instead. The Buick version of the Chevrolet Lumina as we all know is the Buick Regal FWD. I think they are fairly good cars. I can the car way below wholesale. Still priced at $495., I think the 87 Century would be a good deal.

[Guest nailswede]

shaffer: but i can see them all now when i click on the link <BR>i had problems earlier today with them,so i emailed the pics to the webmaster on buicksnet,and after that att least i can see them

[Guest nailswede]

one more try to show you my century <A HREF="http://www.buicks.net/show_and_shine/Anders/Anders.html" TARGET=_blank>http://www.buicks.net/show_and_shine/Anders/Anders.html</A>

[Guest Shaffer]

Now all of the photos are working. Neat car. Not many like that around.

[Guest Shaffer]

I passed on the Century and bought the 1994 Chevrolet Lumina. It runs like a new car. The 3.1 V6 and 4-speed automatic are smooth as silk. I do have to replace a fender, as one is dented and install the small rear window in the rear door. Thanks again for all of the info on the Centurys.