2006 Buick Rainier Fuel System Problems

In driving cross country, filled up the fuel tank and resumed travel when the fuel gauge immediately went to empty (I didn’t even have time to drive up the highway ramp back onto the highway). The alerts started ringing and blinking and dash board told me there was no fuel. I went to a gravel area and inspected the engine compartment, under the car and the interior to be sure I was not missing anything, then restarted the SUV. Could not find any issues anywhere, including leaking fuel. I took off the fuel cap and reattached it to be sure there was no problem there. I had no choice but to get on the highway and continue my journey. The problem continued for the following 1000 ish miles. When I got home I contacted my dealer and set up an appointment to look at vehicle. They found the vehicle needing a sensor kit which was a recall back a few years ago. I had the issue repaired which took 3 days. They may have the removed items. Attached please find the invoice from the repair that shows the message numbers, etc from the inspection prior to and during repair. Since this issue was a recall, but I understand not for my vehicle but for many similar SUV’s and Pickups of the same area of manufacture; I feel the same components were used in my vehicle and should be paid for and included in this recall. Attached please find the invoice if I can figure out how to get it attached to this type of format.

THE FUEL SENSOR FOR MY 2006 BUICK RAINIER STARTED TO MALFUNCTION APPROXIMATELY TWO YEARS AGO. I HAD IT DIAGNOSED BY GM DEALER, KING CHEVROLET BUICK GMC OF LONGMONT, COLORADO AND THEY INFORMED ME THE CAR NEEDED A NEW FUEL SENSOR. THE FUEL GAUGE INDICATES THE TANK IS EMPTY, WHEN ACTUALLY FULL. WE DECIDED NOT TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM, DUE TO THE COST. THE BUICK RAN OUT OF GAS NUMEROUS TIMES THROUGHOUT THE LAST 2 YEARS. THREE DAYS AGO THE CAR STALLED ON INTERSTATE 25 WITH PASSENGERS ON BOARD. WE TOWED IT BACK TO KING CHEVROLET BUICK GMC, LONGMONT, CO. AND NOW DIAGNOSED WITH A FAULTY FUEL PUMP WITH AN ESTIMATED COST OF $1400 TO CORRECT THE FUEL PUMP/SENSOR PROBLEM. EACH TIME THE CAR WAS DIAGNOSED BY THE GM DEALER, NOT A WORD WAS MENTIONED BY STAFF/TECHNICIANS ABOUT THE KNOWN FUEL COMPONENT FAILURE. I DISCOVERED THIS ISSUE AFTER SEARCHING THE INTERNET, YESTERDAY. I FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE THAT THIS SERIOUS SAFETY HAZARD IS NOT PUBLICLY ACKNOWLEDGED BY GM CORP AND ITS DEALERS AND A RECALL FOR THESE VEHICLES HAS NOT OCCURRED. SEEMS GM CORP AND KING CHEVROLET BUICK GMC HAVE NO CONCERN FOR CONSUMER SAFETY. *JS

THIS TUESDAY AS I WAS DRIVING DOWN A MAJOR HIGHWAY WITH MY 2 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER, MY 2006 BUICK RAINIER TURNED OFF AND CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP. IT WAS FREEZING COLD AND WE WERE ON A MAJOR HIGHWAY, LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO COAST TO THE SHOULDER AND NO ONE WAS HURT. COME TO FIND OUT I RAN OUT OF GAS. I HAVE NEVER IN MY LIFE RUN OUT OF GAS, MY FUEL GAUGE WAS READING INCORRECTLY. I HAD TO MAKE MY HUSBAND LEAVE WORK, WHILE MY DAUGHTER AND I HAD TO SIT IN THE FREEZING COLD CAR!!! I HAVE AN APPOINTMENT TO FIX THE FUEL GAUGE, AND I WAS INFORMED THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM. GM IS ONLY PAYING HALF THE REPAIR COSTS, ALTHOUGH THEY ADMIT THIS IS A DEFECT. PLEASE HELP, THESE REPAIRS ARE NOT IN MY BUDGET, BUT I ALSO CAN NOT BE STRANDED AGAIN. *TR

THE FUEL GAUGE SUDDENLY SHOWED EMPTY AFTER FILLING AND THEN ABOUT 10 MILES LATER SHOWED FULL. SHORTLY LATER EMPTY AGAIN. THE ERRATIC FUEL READINGS CONTINUE TO DATE. THIS MALFUNCTION IS CREATING A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION. BUICK IS NOT WILLING TO REPAIR OR REPLACE THE FUEL GAUGE. *TR

MY FUEL GAUGE HAS STOPPED WORKING ON MY 2006 BUICK RAINIER. *KB

FUEL GAUGE WORKS ERRATICALLY. WHEN THE GAS TANK IS FILLED COMPLETELY THE FUEL GAUGE READS LOW AND DINGS THE "LOW FUEL" ALARM. GAUGE THEN CLIMBS TOWARD FULL AS YOU SPEED UP AND THEN REPEATEDLY DROPS TO THE LOW FUEL ALARM. THE FAULTY FUEL LEVEL COULD LEAVE YOU STRANDED ON THE HIGHWAY WITH NO GAS IF YOU ARE NOT TRACKING YOUR FUEL LEVEL. *TT

FILLED FUEL TANK AND GAS GAUGE WENT TO EMPTY, TURNING ON THE LOW FUEL LIGHT AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. THE FUEL GAUGE INDICATOR BOUNCES FROM EMPTY TO FULL. AFTER A FEW MILES THE FUEL GAUGE NEEDLE STAYS IN RANGE BUT AS I GET CLOSER TO NEEDING GAS IT DOES NOT READ ACCURATELY AND I CANNOT TELL FOR SURE IF I MIGHT RUN OUT OF GAS. MY CONCERN IS RUNNING OUT OF GAS WHEN IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, FEARING FOR MY SAFETY AND THAT OF ANY PASSENGERS. I BELIEVE THIS IS INDICATIVE OF A DESIGN FLAW AND NEEDS TO BE ADEQUATELY ADDRESSED BY GM. I HAVE A RECALL THAT INDICATES THEY WOULD PAY HALF THE COST AT A GM DEALERSHIP, THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE TO ME. I AM NOT HALF RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS DESIGN FLAW. THIS IS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE AND SHOULD BE COMPLETELY ADDRESSED BY GM. *KB

FUEL LEVEL SENDER IN THE GAS TANK FAILS, GAUGE IS UNRELIABLE AND INDICATED FULL TANK OR EMPTY TANK RANDOMLY. CAN INDICATE A FULL TANK WITH ONLY A LITTLE BIT OF FUEL LEFT. *TR

THE FUEL GAUGE ON MY 2006 BUICK RAINIER IS MALFUNCTIONING. THE PROBLEM STARTED ABOUT 6 MONTHS AGO AND IS NOW CONTINUAL. IT DOES NOT GIVE ACCURATE FUEL LEVELS. SOMETIMES WHEN THE TANK IS FULL, THE GAUGE READS EMPTY, AND VICE VERSA. THIS IS MOST DEFINITELY A SAFETY ISSUE !!! I WAS ON THE FREEWAY THE OTHER DAY AND RAN OUT OF GAS (EVEN THOUGH THE FUEL GAUGE SHOWED NEARLY HALF-A TANK.) THIS COULD'VE RESULTED IN SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH TO MYSELF AND/OR OTHERS. AS I UNDERSTAND IT, THERE ARE MANY INSTANCES OF FUEL GAUGE MALFUNCTIONS ON GMC CARS OF THIS VINTAGE. THERE NEEDS TO BE A GOVERNMENT MANDATED RECALL OF AFFECTED VEHICLES BEFORE LIVES ARE LOST BECAUSE OF THIS COMPONENT FAILURE. MY BUICK DEALER WANTS OVER $500 TO CORRECT THIS PROBLEM, WHICH IS NOT THE RESULT OF WEAR AND TEAR OR CARELESSNESS OR MISUSE ON MY PART, BUT RATHER THE FAILURE OF A CRITICAL SAFETY DEVICE. THE CONSUMER SHOULD NOT BE REQUIRED TO BEAR THIS FINANCIAL BURDEN. *TR

FUEL GAUGE STOPPED WORKING. GAUGE BECAME ERRATIC REPORTING LOW/NO FUEL WHEN TANK WAS FILLED. FUEL GAUGE CONTINUOUSLY BOUNCES BETWEEN FULL AND EMPTY. BEHAVIOR CONTINUES TO EXIST. CAN'T RELY ON FUEL GAUGE TO DETERMINE WHEN A FILL UP IS REQUIRED. CURRENTLY CALCULATING MILEAGE TO NEXT FILL UP BY TRACKING MILEAGE. FLASHING LOW FUEL LIGHT IS DISTRACTING. *TR

FUEL GAUGE IS INTERMITTENT, REGISTERS LOW OR HIGH AT DIFFERENT TIMES WHEN TANK IS KNOWN TO BE FULL OR NEAR EMPTY. CANNOT BE DEPENDED ON TO GIVE ACCURATE INFORMATION. REGISTERS HIGHER THAN ACTUAL AT TIMES, LOWER THAN ACTUAL AT TIMES. SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE DISCOVERY OF THE PROBLEM WE HAVE BEEN AT RISK OF LOW FUEL LEVELS THAT WERE DISCOVERED WHEN REFUELING. INTERMITTENTLY CONTINUES. *TR

THE GAS GAUGE BEGAN READING EMPTY WHEN IT WAS ACTUALLY FULL. WHEN THE TANK WAS INITIALLY FILLED THE GAUGE READ FULL, THEN GO DOWN GRADUALLY WHILE DRIVING UNTIL THE GAUGE READ EMPTY. WHEN THE TANK WAS FULL THE SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT WOULD ALSO LIGHT UNTIL THE TANK WOULD BE AT APPROXIMATELY 3/4. AT 3/4 FULL THE GAUGE WOULD THEN READ CORRECTLY AND THE SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT WOULD GO OFF. ABOUT TWO WEEKS AGO THE FUEL GAUGE STOPPED WORKING COMPLETELY AND ONLY READS EMPTY NOW.

APPROXIMATELY 3 MONTHS AGO AFTER FILLING MY TANK AND STARTING MY 2006 BUICK RAINIER THE GAS GAUGE READ PAST 'EMPTY' AND THE 'LOW-FUEL" WARNING LIGHT CAME ON. THIS CONTINUED FOR SEVERAL DAYS AFTER FILL-UP AND FLUCTUATED BETWEEN FULL, EMPTY AND ALL POINTS IN BETWEEN. IN ADDITION THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON WITH EACH FILL-UP. AFTER DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 15 TO 20 MILES THE GAUGE WOULD RETURN TO MORE ACCURATE READINGS. HOWEVER, MOST RECENTLY THIS IS NO LONGER THE CASE AS THE FALSE GAS GAUGE READINGS, LOW-FUEL AND CHECK ENGINE WARNINGS HAVE BECOME CONSTANT AND I CAN NO LONGER TRUST THEM AT ALL. THIS IS A HUGE PROBLEM WITH A $500 + PRICE TAG WHICH CONSUMERS SHOULD NOT HAVE TO BEAR. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 BUICK RAINIER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT AFTER REFUELING, THE FUEL GAUGE WOULD NOT READ THE ACTUAL LEVEL OF GASOLINE IN THE FUEL TANK. IN ADDITION, WHEN REFUELING, THE PUMP WOULD SHUT OFF BEFORE THE TANK WAS HALF FULL. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INSPECTED BY A DEALER OR REPAIRED. THE DEALER WAS CONTACTED AND THEY INFORMED HER THAT THEY ARE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 50,000. THE VIN WAS UNAVAILABLE. UPDATED 09/01/2011 *LN

THE GAS GAUGE BEGAN READING EMPTY WHEN IT WAS ACTUALLY FULL. THIS STARTED ON 03/03/2011 WITH THE ODOMETER READING ABOUT 70K. IT NOW HAS ABOUT 76K ON THE ODOMETER. WHEN THE TANK IS INITIALLY FILLED THE GAUGE WILL READ FULL, THEN GO DOWN GRADUALLY WHILE DRIVING UNTIL THE GAUGE READ EMPTY. WHEN THE TANK WAS FULL THE SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT WOULD ALSO LIGHT UNTIL THE TANK WOULD BE AT APPROXIMATELY 3/4. AT 3/4 FULL THE GAUGE WOULD THEN READ CORRECTLY AND THE SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT WOULD GO OFF. *TT

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS 2006 BUICK RAINIER. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 50 MPH, THE ENGINE SERVICE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED AND THE FUEL GAUGE REGISTERED AN INACCURATE READING OF ZERO. THE FAILURE OCCURRED WHENEVER THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER WHERE THEY REPLACED THE FUEL GAUGE SENSOR. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 54,414.

MALFUNCTIONING GAS GAUGE DURING VEHICLE OPERATIONS. *TR

APPROXIMATELY 6 MONTHS AGO AFTER GETTING GAS AT A GAS STATION, I NOTED MY GAS GAUGE IN MY 2006 BUICK RAINIER TO READ "EMPTY" DESPITE HAVING JUST FILLED IT WITH GASOLINE. FOR A SHORT TIME AFTERWARDS, MY GAS GAUGE FLUCTUATED DESPITE MY GAS LEVELS. MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ALSO CAME ON EVERY TIME I FILLED UP MY TANK. STILL TO THIS DAY, MY GAS GAUGE CONTINUES TO READ "EMPTY" ALL THE TIME DESPITE FILLING IT UP WITH GAS. THEREFORE, I NEVER KNOW EXACTLY HOW MUCH GAS I TRULY HAVE IN MY GAS TANK AT A TIME AND WORRY ABOUT RUNNING OUT OF GAS FREQUENTLY. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 BUICK RAINIER. WHILE PARKED, THE CONTACT REFUELED THE VEHICLE AND NOTICED THAT THE FUEL GAUGE INDICATOR WAS FLUCTUATING IN BETWEEN READINGS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING WHERE THE TECHNICIAN INDICATED THAT THE FUEL LEVEL SENSOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THERE WAS AN OPEN INVESTIGATION UNDER NHTSA ACTION NUMBER: PE11014 (FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER:STORAGE:FUEL GAUGE SYSTEM) THAT COULD POTENITALLY HAVE BEEN RELATED TO THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 57,600.

FUEL GAUGE ON OUR 2006 BUICK RAINIER DOES NOT DISPLAY THE CORRECT READING FOR THE AMOUNT OF FUEL IN THE TANK. IT FREQUENTLY READS EMPTY WHEN THE TANK HAS BEEN FILLED, AND THEN READS ANYWHERE THROUGHOUT THE RANGE OF THE GAUGE, CHANGING WHILE DRIVING AND OR WHEN SHUTTING THE VEHICLE OFF AND RE-STARTING. WE NEVER GET A CORRECT READING OF THE GAUGE, AND THEREFORE NEVER KNOW WHEN WE MAY RUN OUT OF GAS. THE PROBLEM STARTED DURING THE FALL OF 2010 AND REMAINS TO THIS DAY. *TR