SAAB 9-3 Complaints

1,407 consumer complaints on file.

#11746834June 26, 2026
AIR BAGS, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, SEAT BELTS
I have been trying to get this recall done for many years and with no luck. Most recently June 26th 2026 I was informed my recall was not fixable again and I hope for the last time. Enough is enough! Van Bortel Chevrolet in Macedon Ny tried again today which is there 2nd attempt. I had to buy a software card to give them the tool they didn’t have to fit in there tech 2 scanner and even with the card they were unable to fix. It’s a major safety issue I have been more than patient with and can’t even begin to tell you over the years how much time and money spent trying to fix. I think at this point they need to replace car with similar or purchase from me.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11703471December 6, 2025
AIR BAGS
Hello, I know the Takata airbag has to be replaced on my car. However now I do live abroad, in Gothenburg Sweden in Europe. How do I get the replacement done? Should I go to GM here in Europe? Thanks
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11678840August 6, 2025
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
The contact owns a 2006 SAAB 9-3. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked and shut off, the contact attempted to start the vehicle, and the vehicle failed to start. The contact also noticed a fuel odor coming from the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 160,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11627255November 25, 2024
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2001 Saab 9-3. The contact stated that the vehicle was overheating while driving. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. A mobile independent mechanic diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 05V399000 (Electrical System) and 06V126000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11611827August 30, 2024
AIR BAGS
The contact owns a 2008 Saab 9-3. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 14V318000 (Seat Belts) and 16V063000 (Air Bags); however, the parts to do the recall repairs were not yet available. The local dealer was contacted; however, the dealer declined to service the vehicle. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11605808August 1, 2024
AIR BAGS, UNKNOWN OR OTHER, SEATS
The driver's side, side air bag deployed spontaneously. There was no apparent reason or cause, ie no side impact of any kind, no door slamming or other provocation. The car was parked in a garage for six hours before I sat in the car, closed the door, then BLAM! Temperature was moderate, where as the car is often parked on a city street in direct sun. Air bag deployment was a loud bang followed by smoke from an explosive, and a sting on my neck and shoulder where the bag hit me. Bits of foam from the seat interior, where the air bag was located, blew around the car interior. I suffered temporary hearing loss in my left ear due to the loud bang. I was also quite startled. No other people were at risk. No other air bags have deployed since I've owned the car, approx. 20 yrs., purchased used. I will consult an authorized repair shop, insurance agent, and a dealer service center for more info. A Saab dealer service center told me a new replacement air bag would be available from Sweden at a cost of $700. That would be in addition to the cost of repairing the seat, door frame panel, and other items. There were no prior dash board or related fault code messages. The car has never been in an accident or impacted in any way to the best of my knowledge (I saw a Carfax report at purchase).
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11602156July 15, 2024
SEAT BELTS
Retractor won't pull driver side seat belt back in
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11566115January 17, 2024
FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER
The contact owns a 2010 Saab 9-3. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 11V015000 (Fuel System, Other) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that the fuel gauge failed to accurately provide fuel level in the vehicle. The contact stated that while the tank was a half tank full, the fuel gauge would drop to 0 gallons. The failure occurred intermittently. The check engine warning light was illuminated with a message indicating a fuel pump failure. The dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed. The dealer confirmed that the remedy was not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 104,000. Parts distribution disconnect.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11554987November 14, 2023
ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The radiator exploded, spewing fluids everywhere, overheating my vehicle without warning when I was driving 45 mph, almost causing a multi-car crash.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11536267August 3, 2023
SEAT BELTS
The contact owns a 2005 Saab 9-3. The contact stated that the front passenger's side seat belt failed to latch. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V318000 (Seat Belts). The vehicle was not repaired. There was no further information provided. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11508009February 18, 2023
POWER TRAIN
at about 98,000 miles the starts to fail transmission fails Also when the car gets too cold in the winter it refuses to start and it is not a battery issue. the cylinders get to cold to start. When the warm weather comes back around it starts again.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11507579February 16, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The soft top is faulty and the rear lights are as well.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11467557June 4, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Constant random recurrence of error codes P2122 and P2138 (either together or on their own) which results in the car switching to low power mode, with very low acceleration which makes it very dangerous to merge into traffic, pull out of stops, red lights, etc. Technically supposed to require changing the throttle pedal sensor, but changing it does not solve the issue, which is electrical. This is a known issue for GM cars.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11458819March 29, 2022
SEAT BELTS
******* DELETE VOQ ******* THIS COMPLAINT IS BEING MARKED FOR DELETION BECAUSE THE CONSUMER PLACED THE REQUEST*DJR ******* DELETE VOQ *******
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11436277October 11, 2021
AIR BAGS
unexpected and unrequested deployment of driver side seat air bag. i was driving the vehicle at a speed of 0-5mph attempting to back the vehicle into a parking spot when the driver seat air bag deployed. a report was made with the local police department. no indicator or failure lights were present, the vehicle is able to be inspected at this time for further information. It is unknown about any other inspections by anyone other than the local police department.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11435100October 1, 2021
AIR BAGS
Warning message that airbag is not working. Loud hissing sound immediately in front of dashboard, as if air is escaping. We cannot drive the car for fear of the airbag inflating. We are going to have to towed to a repair shop to be fixed and will keep all paperwork.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11426755July 28, 2021
SEAT BELTS
Driver seat belt fails to retract. When retraction failure occurs, it is obvious to the seat occupant immediately. If a crash were to occur with a seat belt in this condition, the result could increase the risk of injury to the driver. The seat belt retraction failure has been reproduced and confirmed. No warning lamps but, the seat belt showed earlier symptoms of not working properly, by not engaging when hard braking occurred. I will have the tensioner replaced.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11419150June 1, 2021
SEAT BELTS
driver side seat belt not retracting, there is a recall but does not include this vin number.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11417447May 17, 2021
AIR BAGS
I left my home with my daughter in the afternoon to go to the bank and hardware store. I drove to the bank to make a deposit. We had to wait for quite awhile in the drive-through line at the bank, so I turned off my engine a couple of times rather than having the car idle. After making the deposit at the bank, I pulled out of the bank lot and began driving to the hardware store. I had driven for about two minutes and was driving along at approximately 25-30 miles an hour, and suddenly there was a terrible explosion at my left ear and massive pain in my left arm. I thought the car had been shot at and my arm hit. I was terrified we were still being shot at and looked at my daughter whose hands were over her ears. I could tell by that time that I was not bleeding and so was worried that the bullet had hit her. I could hear only faintly out of my left ear. There was smoke and the smell of an explosion. I could see by this time that an airbag had come out of my driver's seat and thought that it had been hit too. My daughter told me she was o.k. and to pull the car over so that we could see what had happened. I was shaking with fear and pain in my arm but finally calmed down enough to park the car and get out to see what had happened. It became clear that the car had not been shot at and that the driver's side seat airbag had simply spontaneously exploded without any warning whatsoever. The driver's seat side seam was completely ripped, multiple pieces of seat foam were lying about, and the air bag in the seat was out and ripped. The seat was still smoking. Luckily I had had my window completely down, or the explosion would have been louder in the car, and my arm and left side could have been more badly injured. I called my longtime Saab repairman who told me that what happened to me was extremely rare. He said I would need a new seat and that the computer system would need to be reset for the airbag system to work again. Insurance will examine soon. I may try GM too.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11398304February 28, 2021
AIR BAGS
TODAY, SHORTLY AFTER STARTING THE CAR, AN AIRBAG DEPLOYED. THE CAR WAS PARKED IN MY DRIVEWAY AND NOT IN MOTION, AND THERE WAS NO IMPACT. THE AIRBAG DEPLOYED FROM THE OUTBOARD SIDE OF THE PASSENGER SEAT. I WAS SEATED IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT. THE PASSENGER SEAT WAS UNOCCUPIED AND ITS SEAT BELT WAS UNFASTENED, HOWEVER A LAPTOP AND SOME OTHER LIGHTWEIGHT OBJECTS WERE IN THE PASSENGER SEAT.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0

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