2003 Buick Century

1) WHILE DRIVING ON A NARROW, CURVY, HILLY TWO LANE ROAD IN THE DARK I ATTEMPTED TO TURN ON MY HIGH BEAM HEADLIGHTS AS I WAS HAVING TROUBLE SEEING WHICH WAY THE ROAD WAYS TURNING. WHEN I CLICK THE HIGH BEAM SWITCH MY HEADLIGHTS WENT OUT TOTALLY AND I COULD NOT SEE THE ROAD AT ALL. THE HIGH BEAM SWITCH ON THIS CAR IS THE GENERAL MOTORS MULTIFUNCTION SWITCH MOUNTED ON THE STEERING COLUMN. I WENT OFF THE ROAD NARROWLY MISSING A LARGE BOULDER AND TREE. 2) I HAD TROUBLE GETTING THE HEADLIGHTS TO COME BACK ON. MY CAR NOW ONLY HAS LOW BEAM. THE MULTIFUNCTION SWITCH MUST BE FIDDLED WITH AND OPERATED MANY TIME TO TRY TO GETS THE HEADLIGHT TO COME BACK ON. IF I TRY TO GET THE HIGH BEAM HEADLIGHTS TO COME ON THE HEADLIGHTS GO OUT AND I MUST PLAY WITH THE SWITCH TO HAVE THE LIGHTS COME BACK ON. THIS IS A DANGEROUS SITUATION WHEN YOU NEED TO TRAVEL NARROW HILLY ROADS IN RURAL AREAS WITHOUT ANY ROAD LIGHTS. WHEN THE HEADLIGHTS GO OUT YOU BECOME SURPRISED AND NEED A SECOND TO UNDERSTAND WHAT HAS HAPPENED. IN THAT SECOND YOU BECOME A LITTLE DIS-ORIENTED AS YOU ARE TRYING TO GET THE LIGHTS TO COME BACK ON AND TRYING TO STOP. THE FAILURE IS STILL THERE AS I AM TRYING TO GET IT IN FOR REPAIR. 3) I WILL HAVE THE CAR IN FOR REPAIR IN THE NEXT FEW DAY AND WILL ASK FOR THE FAULTY SWITCH BACK. I HAVE A FRIEND WITH CHEVROLET IMPALA WHO TOLD ME HE HAD THE SAND PROBLEM WITH THIS GENERAL MOTORS MULTI-FUNCTION SWITCH. IT IS THE SAME SWITCH IN HIS CAR AS MINE. *TR

WHILE DRIVING HOME ONE NIGHT, MY HEADLIGHTS JUST WENT OUT! THIS HAS HAPPENED OFTEN ENOUGH WE NOW DO NOT DRIVE OUR CAR AT NIGHT IF AT ALL POSSIBLE. THROUGH RESEARCH ONLINE AND TESTING IT OURSELVES, WE DETERMINED THAT THE LIGHTS COME BACK ON IF WE FLICK THE DIMMER SWITCH. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION, AND AFTER READING OTHER'S SIMILAR EXPERIENCES AT ABOUTAUTOMOBILE.COM (15 DIFFERENT ENTRIES), WE BELIEVE THAT THIS IS WORTHY OF INVESTIGATION AND A RECALL BEING ISSUED. WE DID TAKE THE CAR TO A MECHANIC WHO WAS NOT SURE WHAT MIGHT BE THE CAUSE. NOW THAT WE HAVE SOME IDEA, WE WILL RETURN TO HIM AND GET AN ESTIMATE FOR REPAIRS. FROM THE ONLINE RESEARCH, WE CAN EXPECT IT TO COST APPROXIMATELY $600 OR MORE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. *TR

I WAS DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE TO VISIT FRIENDS AT ABOUT DUSK. I ALWAYS DRIVE WITH THE HEADLIGHT SWITCH IN THE "AUTO" POSITION, BUT BECAUSE OF WEATHER CONDITIONS I SWITCHED TO THE "MANUAL ON" POSITION. I CONTINUED TO DRIVE FOR ANOTHER HOUR AND WHEN I GOT TO WITHIN 10 MINUTES OF MY DESTINATION, THE INTERIOR DASH LIGHTS AND RADIO STARTED FLASHING. MY HEADLIGHTS WERE ALSO GOING OFF AND I COULD HEAR THE RELAY ON THE COMPUTER (PASSENGER SIDE) CLICKING. I STOPPED AND INSPECTED FOR A SHORTED WIRE BUT FOUND NONE. I SWITCHED TO THE "AUTO" POSITION AND WAS ABLE TO COMPLETE THE DRIVE AND RETURN BACK HOME WITHOUT RECURRENCE. TESTING IT AGAIN AT HOME THE HEADLIGHTS WOULD GO ON AND OFF IN THE "MANUAL ON " POSITION. AFTER EXERCISING THE HEADLIGHT SWITCH THROUGH ALL THE POSITIONS NUMEROUS TIMES, I COULD NOT REPRODUCE THE PROBLEM.. I BELIEVE THAT THE PROBLEM WAS CAUSED BY A UNUSED CONTACT ON THE HEADLIGHT SWITCH THAT BECAME OXIDIZED AND THE LOW VOLTAGE CAUSED THE LOSS OF HEADLIGHTS AND REACTION WITH THE COMPUTER CONTROLLING THEM. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS DESIGN TO BE DRIVING AT INTERSTATE SPEEDS AND LOOSE YOUR HEADLIGHTS. *TR

WAS DRIVING AFTER DARK ON COUNTRY ROAD. SWITCHED ON BRIGHT LIGHTS AFTER A FEW SECONDS HEADLIGHTS WENT OUT. PULLED OVER TO SIDE OF ROAD. PULLED LIGHT SWITCH ON AND OFF SEVERAL TIMES AND LIGHTS CAME BACK ON. WAS AFRAID TO USE BRIGHT LIGHTS AGAIN. IS VERY DANGEROUS AS WAS I WAS ON STRAIGHT AWAY AND LITTLE TRAFFIC AT THE MOMENT. COULD HAVE BEEN ON A CURVE AND COULD HAVE RESULTED IN CRASH AND OR LOSS OF LIFE OR AT LEAST INJURIES. WILL GO TO MECHANIC MONDAY AND HOPEFULLY CAN GET REPAIRED. WAS LOOKING FOR SAFETY BULLETIN AND OR RECALL OR ADVISORY. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 BUICK CENTURY. WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS AT NIGHT, THE HEADLIGHTS DIM. WHEN THE HIGH BEAMS ARE ACTIVATED, THE HEADLIGHTS ILLUMINATE AGAIN. THE CONTACT HAS SEEN IDENTICAL FAILURES LIKE THIS ON THE INTERNET. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 57,000. UPDATED 12-01-08 *BF THE DEALER STATED THE VEHICLE NEEDED A NEW MULTI-FUNCTION SWITCH. UPDATED 12/02/08. *JB

WHILE DRIVING HOME FROM WORK ONE EVENING RECENTLY, I ATTEMPTED TO DIM MY LIGHTS FOR AN ONCOMING VEHICLE AND WAS SHOCKED TO FIND I HAD NO LOW BEAMS. I ONLY HAD HIGHBEAMS. HAD TO REPLACE THE DIMMER SWITCH, WHICH OF COURSE OPERATES EVERYTHING ELSE. ABOUT A MONTH AGO, MY LIGHTS WENT OUT FOR ABOUT 30 SECONDS, THEN NO PROBLEMS UNTIL I LOST MY LOW BEAMS. *TR

AT TIMES WHEN USE THE DIMMER SWITCH ON MY 2003 BUICK CENTURY, THE HEAD LIGHTS GO OUR COMPLETELY. WHEN I REFLICK THE DIMMER SWITCH, THE LIGHTS WILL COME BACK ON, THIS PROPOSES A DANGEROUS SITUATION, ESP. IF ONE DOESN'T KNOW THAT REFLICKING THE SWITCH WILL SOLVE THE PROBLEM. THE SITUATION IS EVEN MORE DANGEROUS IN THE LATE TWILIGHT, WHICH IS WHAT HAPPENED W/ MY WIFE. SHE DROVE SEVERAL MILES BEFORE ARRIVING HOME, COMPLETELY UNAWARE THAT SHE WAS DRIVING W/O HEADLIGHT. I JUST RETRIEVED MY BUICK FROM THE REPAIR SHOP, WHERE THEY INSTALLED AN ENTIRE UNIT FOR ME AT A COST OF 500.00. MORE THAN LIKELY THIS PROBLEM HAS OCCURRED WITH OTHER CENTURY OWNERS. THE REPAIR COST WAS BAD ENOUGH, BUT THE SITUATION COULD HAVE BEEN DEADLY, IF I HAD NOT DETECTED THE PROBLEM AND HAD IT REPAIRED. *TR