2018 Buick Encore

Typical pattern

4.6% of complaints about the 2018 Buick Encore came in the first year, which is unremarkable for a 2018 vehicle — around the middle of the 182 model-years on record. The median complaint arrives at 5.3 yr in service. The most-reported system is engine (29 complaints), typically at 6.8 yr or about 98,507 miles.

Complaints: 109
Median age at failure: 5.3 yr
Median mileage: 20,000 n=41
Crash / fire / tow: 14.7% of reports
Safety recalls: 0

In owners’ own words

Engine 4,000 mi 1.0 yr in service

THERE IS A MALFUNCTION WITH THE TURBO HOSE ON A MAJORITY OF 2018 BUICK ENCORE'S THAT REQUIRE A NEW HOSE. THERE IS A NATIONWIDE BACK ORDER ON THESE PARTS DUE TO ALL OF THE REPAIRS. WHEN THIS ITEM BROKE I WAS DRIVING ABOUT 70 MPH ON THE INTERSTATE, THERE WAS A LOUD POP FROM THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT AND THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE APPROPRIATELY.

Engine mileage not reported 4.8 yr in service

Turbo charger malfunction. Confirmed by dealership and had to be replaced. Stabilitrak malfunction. Car is stalling out at a red light or stop sign, and/or jerking hard. Stalled out in middle of an intersection with my children in the car. Ongoing problem.

Engine mileage not reported 4.8 yr in service

Feel like the car is loosing drive/power and not accelerating. I was driving and the engine light started flashing. No power to go up the hill, it could have gone backwards. Car does not accelerate made a whirring noise when it was turned off. Dangerous situation. Service Bulletin #N212338400

Other Encore model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

2018 Buick Encore

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

In owners’ own words

Other Encore model years

How to read this