any skinny on a 2008 lacrosse?

Joined
Jul 26, 2004
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Location
New Bri-en, CT
Woman @ work wants a bomber car for a year until she had enough $ for a new Crosstrek; Price range is 2-5K.

I was gravitating to Honda/Yota route because they are well regarded for their longevity even with sketchy maintenance.

But I come across this

https://newlondon.craigslist.org/cto/d/pequabuck-low-mileage-2008-buick/7115102647.html

She is about 5' 9" so maybe this is a good car for her? I don't like red, she probably doesn't either but this thing is clean, old person owned, probably never seen a flake; Hard not to consider it, seeing a 3 or 4K honda or toyota would be significantly less of a car.

We have some people on here with some very good knowledge of the GM shortcomings (I grew up in a GM family, the last car being a 1992 LeSabre, i got rid of in 2003)

Any recurring or unaddressed issues with Gen III? Was the intake issue and coolant tube fixed on these?

Appreciate any feedback.

-Thomas
 
Tough to beat a 3800 GM. Not a fan of the styling on this generation, but it's a solid and comfortable ride. If it's well maintained and as clean as it looks, I don't think you can do better for under $4k.
 
Why is the car red but the rocker panels black? Is that an OE paint scheme?

I sold one a few years back for my brother-in-law's wife. Higher mileage, no rust, couple nuisance CEL codes, got $2100.

This car looks like a flipper/ curbstoner /dealer, FWIW.

As you know, CT has no safety inspection but is surrounded by states that do, so that could funnel clunkers through your dealers.
 
Originally Posted by eljefino
Why is the car red but the rocker panels black? Is that an OE paint scheme?

I sold one a few years back for my brother-in-law's wife. Higher mileage, no rust, couple nuisance CEL codes, got $2100.

This car looks like a flipper/ curbstoner /dealer, FWIW.

As you know, CT has no safety inspection but is surrounded by states that do, so that could funnel clunkers through your dealers.


It does look like a flipper car. I'm pretty sure the rockers were factory black plastic like that, but need to be checked for rust. Looks like it has been in a front end accident too, that upper tie bar has been painted. Not a deal breaker, but needs to be looked at closely.
 
Definitely priced a bit high, and it looks like it's had paint work both front and rear.

That being said, the W-body is about as solid as it gets, and the 3800 SIII it a great engine. The aluminum upper plenum and metal lower intake gaskets pretty much solved the coolant issues, I can't remember if the SIII used factory aluminum coolant elbows or still plastic, either way they're easy to change. It's a solid, cheap, reliable platform.
 
I like it.

Smooth ride. Pretty good price. Hang some white fuzzy dice and crank the Snoop-dog.

I looked up some pics on gOOgle. It seems the red ones come with black rockers.
 
Originally Posted by Quattro Pete
Originally Posted by CT8
2020
2008
_______
18 that is old.

Yeah, math is hard.


Yeah, Math is math; CT8 understands.

I guess i need someone to explain what the tie bar is

Car appears to be on the other side of the state, even tho it is listed for eastern CT; (??) probably outside of where the woman @ work is willing to travel for a car.

Thanks for the responses.
 
Originally Posted by simple_gifts


I guess i need someone to explain what the tie bar is



Top of the radiator support. There's paint all over the bumpers. Given as sloppy as things were in '08 and stickers intact, that may have been GM's own handiwork.

That is one ugly car, but the price is probably fair.
 
I own the 2007 model. I've owned several 3800 Series cars. All but this Series III and a Supercharged Ultra had gasket issues but overall good cars. You will likely need struts on the corners if not done already.

If available for under $3500. Take it.
 
As has been noted, there's been some type of issue with an accident. The (normally black) rubber bump stops for the hood have been painted Scarlett Red. The fact that there is zero explanation for that, but sentence after sentence talking about how pristine it is means you should be cautious.

The 3800 Series III is pretty bomb proof - the coolant elbows should be replaced if they haven't already. The 4L65E transmission is the wild card - it can fail at any time or go 300,000 miles without trouble.
 
Pics of woman?
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Originally Posted by Squirrelee
The (normally black) rubber bump stops for the hood have been painted Scarlett Red.


I was wondering about that too. Maybe just sloppy GM craftsmanship as mentioned by the other poster?
 
I had one from 2015-2018. I wanted to keep it indefinitely, but an airbag problem, as well as the impending rust, got me to move on. Check this one closely for rust: rear dog legs (in front of rear tires), just behind the front wheels, and the rockers. They do rust pretty badly starting about 10 years old here (well, my 2006 had been touched up in several spots in 2015 when I bought it).
The rockers were black stock on the base (CX model), so that checks out.
I really enjoyed it, but it did require more work (aforementioned airbag sensor, suspension parts - tie rod, stabilizer bar, bushings, caliper leak, coolant loss from plastic elbows, $timing cover gasket leak$, etc) than I felt a ten-year-old car with 150k miles should have (all that in two and a half years). The intake gasket was supposed to be fixed by 2008 but my 2006 had a threat of that blowing to boot.
Incredibly comfortable and 27-30 mpg on the open road. As mentioned, the 3800 S3 is a fantastic engine. I still miss the car, and wish I had it sometimes when on long interstate journeys. One heck of a road car. But I did have more trouble with it that would've been ideal, though it did feel solid. There's a large trunk but a surprisingly tight backseat.
Pretty feature-rich in general, a good sound system, good a/c, comfortable ride... certainly a premium product in its day. Man, now I'm missing mine again.
 
The colored bump stops seem to be OE also along with the rocker black moldings on the CX trim level. These are white on a white car.

[Linked Image]
 
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