Selling a junk Buick Lesabre
Any Lesabre 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.
Step 3 of 3 · Get your offer
Prefer an instant online offer?
Peddle quotes online in every state and arranges the pickup. You give your details to Peddle, not to us.
If you sell through this link, Junk Cars Nation may earn a referral fee. It doesn't change your offer.
What owners report about the Buick Lesabre
NHTSA has 3,868 owner complaints on file for the Buick Lesabre, model years 1995 to 2006, the 118th-most of the 423 models in our data. The most-reported components are engine and cooling (617, 16%), visibility and wipers (563, 15%), electrical system (439, 11%). 192 complaints involved a crash, 250 a fire, and 15 say the vehicle had to be towed. The median mileage when the problem was reported is 65,000 miles. The 2000 model year has the most complaints (851). Data as of 2026-10-12.
When the top complaint is engine and cooling, the question for a seller is whether a buyer will resell the car, pull the parts or scrap it. Read our guide to selling a car with a blown engine: it explains which offers assume the part works and how to describe the car so the price holds at pickup.
Buick Lesabre by model year
| Year | Complaints | Most reported | Crash | Fire | Recalls | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 235 | Air bags | 18 | 3 | 1 | 100,000 |
| 1996 | 121 | Engine and cooling | 10 | 0 | 2 | 89,492 |
| 1997 | 514 | Engine and cooling | 30 | 49 | 2 | 96,000 |
| 1998 | 518 | Engine and cooling | 20 | 64 | 1 | 70,865 |
| 1999 | 268 | Engine and cooling | 26 | 36 | 2 | 76,939 |
| 2000 | 851 | Visibility and wipers | 33 | 43 | 5 | 60,000 |
| 2001 | 460 | Visibility and wipers | 13 | 25 | 0 | 60,500 |
| 2002 | 381 | Visibility and wipers | 17 | 16 | 2 | 62,000 |
| 2003 | 209 | Body and structure | 12 | 5 | 1 | 50,400 |
| 2004 | 212 | Electrical system | 4 | 6 | 0 | 66,300 |
| 2005 | 95 | Electrical system | 9 | 3 | 0 | 55,100 |
| 2006 | 4 | Suspension | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
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 Lesabre recalls
NHTSA lists 12 recall campaigns across these model years, most often for lights (2), fuel system (2), 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.
- 1998 model year, fuel system (campaign 04V090000, Feb 2004): ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH 3800 V6 (L36) ENGINES AND CERTAIN DELPHI FUEL PRESSURE REGULATORS, THE REGULATORS HAVE A MUCH HIGHER THAN USUAL RATE OF FUEL LEAKS. A LEAK CAN ALLOW FUEL TO ENTER THE INTAKE MA…
- 2002 model year, air bags (campaign 02V222000, Aug 2002): CERTAIN PASSENGER, MINI VANS, AND SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES HAVE AN AIR BAG INFLATOR ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE THAT COULD FRACTURE AT A WELD DURING A DEPLOYMENT.
- 2002 model year, steering (campaign 02V067000, Mar 2002): CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES WERE BUILT WITH MISSING OR UNDER-TORQUED STEERING GEAR ATTACHMENT BOLTS. IF A BOLT IS MISSING, THE DRIVER MAY NOTICE UNEVEN STEERING RESPONSE OR UNUSUAL NOISES DURING TURNS.
- 2000 model year, brakes (campaign 00V114000, Apr 2000): VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES. SOME OF THESE VEHICLES HAVE INTERNAL FLUID LEAKS IN THE BRAKE HYDRAULIC CONTROL UNIT.
- 2000 model year, lights (campaign 99V355000, Dec 1999): VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES. THESE VEHICLES DO NOT CONFORM TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF FMVSS NO. 108, "LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT." THE HEAD LAMP ADJUSTMENT DEVICE HORIZONTAL ADJUSTER MAY …
What a Buick Lesabre is worth as a junk car
Buyers price a junk Lesabre 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
How to sell a car with a blown engine 
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
- Buick Enclave 3,230
- Buick Regal 3,183
- Buick Lacrosse 2,926
- Buick Century 1,833
- Buick Rendezvous 1,798
- Buick Park Avenue 1,369
- Buick Lucerne 1,332
- Buick Encore 910
Questions people ask
- What is a junk Buick Lesabre 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 Lesabre gets different offers from different buyers, so compare at least two. Our value guide shows the public benchmark.
- Will a junkyard buy a Buick Lesabre 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 Lesabre?
- 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 Lesabre 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.