NHTSA lists 2 safety recalls and 79 owner complaints for the 2016 Buick Encore.
2Safety recalls
79Owner complaints
6Complaints citing a crash
1Complaints citing a fire
Data: NHTSA recall and complaint filesUpdated Sep 28, 2026
Recalled components: air bags. Most-described problem: the check engine light coming on (18 complaints, 23%), then stalling or shutting off while driving (9). Most-reported area: engine (40 complaints, 51%; median mileage when it happened: 48,000). Excludes the Encore GX, which EPA lists alongside the Encore from 2020 to 2022.
2 safety recalls for the 2016 Buick Encore
Newest first. Summaries are NHTSA's own wording. Open a recall for the fix and the full notice.
While being previously remedied for recall 16V-651, the affected vehicles may not have received the complete software update necessary to remedy the recall condition. Without the update, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (SDM) software to activate a diagnostic test. During this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash.
Risk: A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
The fix and full notice
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on August 4, 2017. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 17287.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 Buick Lacrosse and Chevrolet Spark EV, Caprice PPV and SS vehicles, 2014-2017 Buick Encore and Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles, 2015-2016 Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Tahoe, Trax, Suburban and Silverado 2500 and 3500 and GMC Yukon and Yukon XL vehicles, and 2015-2017 GMC Sierra HD 2500 and 3500 vehicles.
NHTSA listing: ENCORE. Components: Air bags: frontal; Air bags: frontal, sensor/control module-inactive; Seat belts: pretensioner. Buick campaign 17287.
In the affected vehicles, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (SDM) software to activate a diagnostic test. During this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash.
Risk: A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
The fix and full notice
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on October 13, 2016. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 16007.
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2015-2017 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD, 3500 HD, Tahoe, Suburban, GMC Sierra 2500 HD and 3500 HD, GMC Yukon, GMC Yukon XL, Cadillac Escalade and Cadillac Escalade ESV vehicles and 2014-2017 Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500, Trax, Caprice Police Pursuit Vehicle, GMC Sierra 1500, Buick Encore, and 2014-2016 Buick Lacrosse, Chevrolet Spark EV and SS vehicles.
NHTSA listing: ENCORE. Components: Air bags: frontal; Air bags: frontal, sensor/control module-inactive; Seat belts: pretensioner. Buick campaign 16007.
Questions about any of these recalls: call NHTSA's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (TTY 888-275-9171) or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
What owners report
Owners have filed 79 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Encore. Below, they are sorted by the problems owners describe and by the areas NHTSA files them under. NHTSA does not verify complaints.
Problems owners describe
Check engine light18 · 23%
Stalling or shutting off while driving9 · 11%
Smoke or a burning smell6 · 8%
Power steering problems or locked steering6 · 8%
Loss of power or limp mode5 · 6%
Hesitation or slow acceleration5 · 6%
Overheating or coolant loss5 · 6%
Engine failure or replacement5 · 6%
Counted from the complaint text: a complaint counts once for each problem it describes (how we match them). Some complaints describe none of these.
Areas named in complaints
Engine40 · 51%
Median 48,000 miles at failure, from 18 reports with mileage
Fuel and propulsion system13 · 16%
Powertrain11 · 14%
Electrical system9 · 11%
Air bags7 · 9%
Steering5 · 6%
Body structure4 · 5%
Most named: body (4)
Unknown or other8 · 10%
A complaint can name more than one area, so shares add up to more than 100%. Mileage is shown where at least 15 owners reported it.
Buick Encore recalls and complaints by model year
The highlighted bars are the 2016 model year. Newer model years have had less time on the road, so their counts are lower. Counting complaints filed in each model year's first three years, the 2019 Encore drew the most (23) and the 2016 drew 16.
Owner complaints
2016: 79 complaintsTap or drag across the chart for other years.
Show as a table
Owner complaints by model year, Buick Encore
Model year
Complaints
2016
79
2017
89
2018
74
2019
86
2020
19
2021
9
2022
8
Safety recalls
2016: 2 recallsTap or drag across the chart for other years.
Show as a table
Safety recalls by model year, Buick Encore
Model year
Recalls
2016
2
2017
2
2018
0
2019
2
2020
2
2021
0
2022
0
Crash test ratings
NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for each version it tested. Rollover risk is NHTSA's estimate of the chance of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.
Tested version
Overall
Frontal
Side
Rollover
Buick Encore SUV AWD
Rollover risk 17.9%
Buick Encore SUV FWD
Rollover risk 19.8%
Questions
What are the most common 2016 Encore problems?
In the 79 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2016 Buick Encore, the problems described most are the check engine light coming on (18), stalling or shutting off while driving (9), and smoke or a burning smell (6). NHTSA does not verify complaints, and one complaint can describe several problems.
Is the 2016 Buick Encore safe?
In NHTSA crash tests every tested version of the 2016 Buick Encore earns 5 stars overall. The table above lists each tested version.
How do I check if my Encore has an open recall?
Enter the 17-character VIN from your dashboard, door jamb or registration at nhtsa.gov/recalls. The lookup lists unrepaired recalls for that exact vehicle. Safety recall repairs are free at Buick dealers.
Sources and method
NHTSA recalls file (NHTSA datasets), dated Sep 29, 2026; every campaign checked against NHTSA's recalls API.
NHTSA owner complaints file, dated Sep 28, 2026. Counted by complaint number, so a complaint naming three components counts once in the total.
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings (NCAP).
NHTSA model names covered: ENCORE.
Complaint counts are unverified owner reports. They rise with sales volume and time on the road, so compare model years with care. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.