Selling a junk Buick Century
Any Century sells for scrap or parts, running or not. Below: what owners report most often for each model year, the recalls on file, and which of those change the offer. Enter your ZIP for a buyer near you.
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What owners report about the Buick Century
NHTSA has 1,833 owner complaints on file for the Buick Century, model years 1995 to 2005, the 197th-most of the 423 models in our data. The most-reported components are brakes (207, 11%), engine and cooling (203, 11%), lights (184, 10%). 98 complaints involved a crash, 23 a fire, and 9 say the vehicle had to be towed. The median mileage when the problem was reported is 62,000 miles. The 1999 model year has the most complaints (287). Data as of 2026-10-12.
When the top complaint is brakes, the question for a seller is whether a buyer will resell the car, pull the parts or scrap it. Read our guide to deciding whether to repair or junk: it explains which offers assume the part works and how to describe the car so the price holds at pickup.
Buick Century by model year
| Year | Complaints | Most reported | Crash | Fire | Recalls | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 127 | Brakes | 12 | 1 | 1 | — |
| 1996 | 110 | Brakes | 7 | 1 | 2 | — |
| 1997 | 132 | Electrical system | 4 | 2 | 4 | 100,000 |
| 1998 | 278 | Brakes | 13 | 0 | 4 | 54,848 |
| 1999 | 287 | Engine and cooling | 20 | 5 | 5 | 54,310 |
| 2000 | 249 | Transmission and drivetrain | 11 | 2 | 7 | 64,218 |
| 2001 | 190 | Engine and cooling | 10 | 3 | 5 | 55,000 |
| 2002 | 204 | Engine and cooling | 10 | 7 | 2 | 61,233 |
| 2003 | 170 | Lights | 6 | 2 | 2 | 66,000 |
| 2004 | 51 | Lights | 4 | 0 | 2 | 92,500 |
| 2005 | 35 | Lights | 1 | 0 | 2 | 57,000 |
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not confirmed defects. Median miles is the odometer reading owners gave when they reported a problem, shown only where 20 or more reports include it.
Buick Century recalls
NHTSA lists 13 recall campaigns across these model years, most often for seat belts (3), lights (3), brakes (2). Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer. Before you sell, check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls; a buyer who plans to resell the car will.
- 1997 model year, steering (campaign 09E005000, Feb 2009): DORMAN IS RECALLING 979 STEERING KNUCKLES, DORMAN P/NOS. 697-902 AND 697-903, SOLD UNDER DORMAN'S "OE SOLUTIONS<SUP>TM</SUP>" BRAND NAME, AND NAPA P/NOS. 7-8502 AND 7-8503 WHICH WERE SOLD FOR REPLACEMENT USE ON THE VARIO…
- 1996 model year, other (campaign 07E021000, Mar 2007): CERTAIN DELPHI FUEL PRESSURE REGULATORS, P/NOS. FP10020-11B1, FP10026-11B1, AND FP10027-11B1, SOLD AFTER JANUARY 9, 2007, AS AFTERMARKET EQUIPMENT FOR VARIOUS PASSENGER VEHICLES LISTED ABOVE. THE UNIVERSAL PRESSURE REGUL…
- 1999 model year, lights (campaign 04V375000, Aug 2004): CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES DO NOT CONFORM TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108, "LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT." SOME OF THESE VEHICLES DO NOT MEET THE OVERHEAD SIGN …
- 2000 model year, seat belts (campaign 01V109000, Apr 2001): VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES, EQUIPPED WITH SUNVISOR LOCATED AIR BAG LABELS, FAIL TO CONFORM TO FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLES SAFETY STANDARD NO. 208, "OCCUPANT CRASH PROTECTION." THESE VEHICLES HAVE A MESSAG…
- 2000 model year, air bags (campaign 00V371000, Nov 2000): VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES. SOME OF THESE VEHICLES EXHIBIT A CONDITION IN WHICH THE DRIVER SIDE IMPACT AIR BAG INFLATOR SEPARATES FROM THE AIR BAG MODULE DURING DEPLOYMENT.
What a Buick Century is worth as a junk car
Buyers price a junk Century on four things: its weight at today's scrap steel price (the floor), the parts still on it that can be resold, whether it starts and drives, and how far they have to tow it. None of those come from a complaint database, so use this page to describe the car accurately and our junk car value guide to work out a ceiling for the metal. Then get more than one offer.
Guides for selling this car
Should you junk or repair your car? 
How much is my junk car worth? 
How junkyards price cars 
Catalytic converters and junk cars 
How to prepare your car for the junkyard 
Junk car scams and how to avoid them Other Buick models
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- Buick Park Avenue 1,369
- Buick Lucerne 1,332
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Questions people ask
- What is a junk Buick Century worth?
- What a yard can recover: the car's weight at the current scrap steel price, plus parts it can resell (the catalytic converter, engine, transmission and wheels if they're good), minus towing and processing. The same Century gets different offers from different buyers, so compare at least two. Our value guide shows the public benchmark.
- Will a junkyard buy a Buick Century that doesn't run?
- Yes. Junkyards and junk car buyers take cars that don't start, and most arrange the tow. Tell them honestly whether it starts, whether the engine and transmission are still in it, and whether the catalytic converter is on; those are what change the price.
- Should I fix an open recall before selling a Buick Century?
- Recall repairs are free at a franchised dealer for as long as the car exists. If the car is going for scrap, the repair won't change the scrap price. If a buyer might resell it or pull parts, a completed recall can help. Check your VIN at NHTSA's recall lookup first.
- Where do these Buick Century numbers come from?
- From the complaint and recall data NHTSA publishes for every make and model, counted by model year on 2026-10-12. A complaint is an owner's report, not a confirmed defect, and the count rises with how many of the model were sold.