[jamesnancy]

I recently purchased an '08 Outlook. My wife and I had been looking for one since they were introduced, and the used prices had finally come down to where we would justify the cost. We LOVE the car a ton. I did my research, and we purchased a warranty with our Outlook, since it seems there some issues. We have had both the 'service stabilitrak' and 'service traction control' lights come on, but there doesn't seem to be any performance issues. The one question I do have is would a Buick/GMC dealer be able to do the work that might be necessary? The closest former Saturn dealer to us is about 40 miles away. There is a Buick/GMC dealer about two miles away, and I have had them do work for me before and have been pleased with their service. Any thoughts?

 

[Charlie B]

ANy GM Dealership should be able to service your Saturn. I checked with my local Chevy dealership and they said they would be glad to if anything came up.

 

[khansen30]

Yes any GM dealer can/should work on your Outlook. As the mechanics and platform are shared with the GMC Acadia, Buick Enclave, and the Chevy Traverse. If your warranty is a GM warrantytheymwould have to since the power train should still be entact.

 

[GM Customer Service]

@jamesnancy, by all means see if your local General Motors dealerships will do the servicing on your Outlook. I recommend asking the two following questions when you call;

1) Are the technicians properly trained to perform the work on your vehicle?
2) Does the shop have the proper tools to do the work that you need to have done?

Please, don't hesitate to contact me in the future.

Michelle, GM Customer Service

 

[vwtodd]

I recently purchased an '08 Outlook. My wife and I had been looking for one since they were introduced, and the used prices had finally come down to where we would justify the cost. We LOVE the car a ton. I did my research, and we purchased a warranty with our Outlook, since it seems there some issues. We have had both the 'service stabilitrak' and 'service traction control' lights come on, but there doesn't seem to be any performance issues. The one question I do have is would a Buick/GMC dealer be able to do the work that might be necessary? The closest former Saturn dealer to us is about 40 miles away. There is a Buick/GMC dealer about two miles away, and I have had them do work for me before and have been pleased with their service. Any thoughts?

We bought an '09 used a little over a year ago and (in addition to the steering system and water pump being replaced) had a problem with the service stabilitrak/traction control/ABS lights that started about 3 months ago. Ours would come on randomly, and always go off after the ignition was off for a bit. Sometimes, they would come on after a few miles, sometimes after a hundred or more. The intermittent nature of ours led me to believe that it was more a bad electrical connection than a broken part. Onstar diagnosed as code C0161 "ABS/TCS Brake Switch Circuit Malfunction". An electrical problem.

After some online research, I found that a common problem with these cars is gradual corrosion on some of the electrical connectors that plug into the Body Control Module, located under the dashboard. The GM recommended repair is to put dielectric grease on the connectors to stop the corrosion. The module has 7 harness connectors, each with a couple of dozen small pins. I unplugged these (they are color coded), removed the BCM, and applied dielectric grease to all the pins, and to the female side on the harness. This was over 2 weeks ago and the lights have remained off ever since. I am considering the problem solved unless the same code is thrown again.

So, that worked for me, but make sure you know the code before attempting any repairs. Those lights can mean a million different things.

 

[jamesnancy]

Thanks all! Going to call my local Buick/GMC dealer to get it checked out. I'll update once we know something.

 

[GM Customer Service]

Thanks all! Going to call my local Buick/GMC dealer to get it checked out. I'll update once we know something.

I hope everything goes smoothly. If you need further assistance don't hesitate to contact me. I look forward to reading any information that you would like to share.

I hope you have a great weekend.

Michelle, GM Customer Service

 

[jamesnancy]

Just wanted to let everyone know that we finally got this issue resolved. We were taking about a two hour drive when the lights came on again, only this time, they were accompanied by the transmission shifting horribly(either slamming into gear, or over-revving before going into gear). We decided at this point there was definitely a problem. We took our Outlook to a service shop about a half an our away, based on a recommendation by the dealership we purchased from. They were FANTASTIC! It took them about a week to figure the problem out, as they couldn't immediately get the Outlook to reproduce the symptoms, but once they did, the repair was rather fast. Ended up being the MAP sensor, and we haven't had a problem since. Glad to be back cruising in our Outty!

 

[GM Customer Service]

Just wanted to let everyone know that we finally got this issue resolved. We were taking about a two hour drive when the lights came on again, only this time, they were accompanied by the transmission shifting horribly(either slamming into gear, or over-revving before going into gear). We decided at this point there was definitely a problem. We took our Outlook to a service shop about a half an our away, based on a recommendation by the dealership we purchased from. They were FANTASTIC! It took them about a week to figure the problem out, as they couldn't immediately get the Outlook to reproduce the symptoms, but once they did, the repair was rather fast. Ended up being the MAP sensor, and we haven't had a problem since. Glad to be back cruising in our Outty!

Thank you for sharing this information. I am glad things are finally resolved and you are enjoying the Outlook again. I hope you have a great holiday weekend planned.

Michelle, GM Customer Service