1990 Buick Riviera Recalls

Recalls on record Updated July 2026

The 1990 Buick Riviera has 4 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 206,377 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 16 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the air bags. Last updated July 5, 2026.

Recall campaigns

SEAT BELTS 95V110000 1995-05-31 113,343 affected
Defect

THE FRONT OUTER SHOULDER BELT WEB SEW STOP CAN BECOME STUCK IN THE RETRACTOR. THE BELT CAN BE DIFFICULT TO PULL OUT OF THE RETRACTOR AND SOME OCCUPANTS MAY NOT BE ABLE TO FASTEN THE BELT.

Consequence

THIS CONDITION CAN PREVENT A PERSON FROM USING THEIR RESTRAINT SYSTEM RESULTING IN AN INCREASED RISK OF INJURY IN AN ACCIDENT.

Remedy

DEALER WILL INSTALL A WEBBING STOP BUTTON IF THE CUSTOMER REQUESTS REPAIR.

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 91V158000 1991-09-13 18,904 affected
Defect

BRAKE INDICATOR LIGHT MAY NOT LIGHT WHEN IGNITION IS IN THE "ON" POSITION, THE PARKING BRAKE IS APPLIED, AND THE SHIFT SELECTOR IS IN THE PARK OR NEUTRAL GEAR RANGE.

Consequence

VEHICLES WOULD NOT MEET THE REQUIREMENTS OF FMVSS 101AND 105.

Remedy

REPLACE THE PROM IN THE BODY COMPUTER MODULE TO PREVENT THIS CONDITION FROM OCCURRING.

POWER TRAIN 90V164000 1990-09-06 63,964 affected
Defect

TRANSAXLE SHIFT CONTROL CABLE MAY DISENGAGE FROM THE FROM THE FLOOR SHIFT CONTROL WITH LOSS OF GEAR INDICATOR REFERENCE AND SHIFT SELECTOR OPERATION.

Consequence

DRIVER WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO DETERMINE ACTUAL GEARPOSITION THE TRANSAXLE IS IN, WHICH COULD RESULT IN UNEXPECTED VEHICLE MOVEMENTAND AN ACCIDENT WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING.

Remedy

INSTALL A TRANSAXLE SHIFT CONTROL CABLE RETAINING CLIP TO PREVENT CABLE DISENGAGEMENT.

SEAT BELTS 90V028000 1990-02-12 10,166 affected
Defect

MISALIGNED REAR SEAT SAFETY BELT SHOULDER RETRACTOR ASSEMBLIES COULD CAUSE PENDULUM INTERFERENCE, CAUSING THE BELT TO REMAIN IN LOCKED POSITION OR TO TRAVEL FREELY WITHOUT LOCKING.

Consequence

IN THE EVENT OF A PANIC STOP OR ACCIDENT, IF THE BELT RETRACTOR INERTIA LOCK DOES NOT ENGAGE, THE REAR SEAT OCCUPANT WOULD HAVE AN INCREASED LIKELIHOOD OF INJURY.

Remedy

REALIGN REAR SHOULDER BELT RETRACTOR ASSEMBLY.

Complaints by component

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
3
1crashes
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
3
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
1
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:HORN
1
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
1
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
1
EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS
1
EXTERIOR LIGHTING:TURN SIGNAL
1
POWER TRAIN
1
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
1
Total complaints16

What owners report

Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.

“Vehicle hesitate d before accelerating. Dealership will be notified. *ak”

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING · reported 2004-08-13

“Abs braking problem, when applying brakes there is noise and less braking power. *ak”

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS · reported 2001-07-30

“Anti-lock brakes continually failing, several replacements however continues to fail, almost resulting in vehicle accidents due to loss of control. Mjs”

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP · reported 1998-08-01

“Consumer has a complaint concerning dealer/manufacturer's. Refusal to replace defective driver's air bag. *ak”

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL · reported 1998-07-21

“The headlights went out while driving and the cruise control was on when the headlights went out. *ak”

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS · reported 1997-09-22

“Vehicle lost all lighting while driving causing complete loss of sight.”

EXTERIOR LIGHTING · reported 1997-09-22

“Right engine cradle rusted.”

STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS · reported 1997-08-15

“Consumer states that the speedometer display on his vehicle comes and goes . When the speedometer goes there is no way of telling the speed of vehicle. Manufacturer will be contacted. *ak”

POWER TRAIN · reported 1997-07-14

Defect investigations

Investigation EA94010 Opened 1994-02-28 · closed 1995-06-16

SEAT BELT RETRACTOR FAILS

There is no summary currently available

Sources & methodology

Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1990 Buick Riviera as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.