Saturn Ion Complaints

4,344 consumer complaints on file.

#10255256January 15, 2009
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
MY SATURN 2004 ION HAS BEEN BREAKING DOWN SINCE I PURCHASED IT USED IN 2005. THEY HAVE PUT IN 2-3 TRANSMISSIONS AND EVERYTIME IT IS COLD IT WON'T START. A COUPLE TIMES THE WOULD START BUT NOT SHIFT INTO GEAR! THE TECH'S COULD NOT FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS WRONG SO MY DAD (WHO DOES NOT WORK ON CARS ) FIGURED OUT IT WAS A LOOSE WIRE! THEY HAVE REPLACED THE STABILIZER BAR BUSHINGS AT LEAST 3 TIMES! THE CARS HEAT AND RADIO WOULD JUST SHUT OFF AND TURN BACK ON THEY ALSO FIXED THAT A COUPLE TIMES. MY CAR WILL BE PAID OFF SHORTLY BUT I WILL NOT BE ABLE TO KNOW WHAT IT IS LIKE TO NOT HAVE A CAR PAYMENT BECAUSE AT ANY MOMENTS NOTICE MY 2004 SATURN ION MIGHT FALL APART!!!!! *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10255265January 15, 2009
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
2006 SATURN ION 2 WILL NOT START IN COLD WEATHER. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10255092January 14, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
CAR HAS NOT STARTED 8 TIMES. SATURN ION 2004. 40,000 MILES. BOUGHT IT USED 5 MONTHS AGO. RUNS FINE IN WARM WEATHER. BOUGHT NEW BATTERY, STILL WOULDN'T START. BOUGHT NEW ALTERNATOR. STILL WOULDN'T START. JUMP START IT, IT WILL START SOMETIMES. CALLED SATURN RECALL; 2ND TIME, THEY SAID IT WAS A FAULTY WIRE BUT NO ONE HAS RECALLED THE WIRE. THE PROBLEM: WHITE WIRE IN IGNITION SWITCH. WHEN IT GETS TOO COLD OUTSIDE, NOT ENOUGH VOLTS GO THROUGH WHITE WIRE AND CAR THINKS SOMEONE IS BREAKING IN AND WILL NOT START. FOUND THIS OUT ON CARSPACE.COM. OTHER PEOPLE WITH MY SAME CAR HAVE SAME PROBLEM. YOU HAVE TO CLIP THE WHITE WIRE THEN YOUR CAR WILL RUN WITH NO PROBLEM. NEWER MODEL SATURNS ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM. NEXT I WAS GOING TO GET A NEW STARTER, BUT OTHER HAVE GOTTEN THAT AND STARTER GOES OUT WITHIN A YEAR. IT STRESSFUL TO GET INTO A FAIRLY NEW CAR AND IT NOT START. ALL LIGHTS COME ON BUT ENGINE WILL NOT. NOW I KNOW TO WAIT 15 MINUTES AND THEN TRY STARTING CAR AGAIN. WHY HASN'T THIS BEEN RECALLED? SO HERE I AM AGAIN LEAVING WORK TONIGHT IN THE COLD AND SEEING IF IT WILL START AND IF IT DOESN'T SITTING AROUND FOR 15 MINUTES AND THEN TRYING IT AGAIN. IT IS SOOOO AGGRAVATING!! SO AGAIN WHY HASN'T THIS BEEN RECALLED? *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10255006January 14, 2009
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
OIL STARTED LEAKING ON SATURDAY, TOOK TO SHOP ON SUNDAY, THEY THOUGHT CRACKED HEAD GASKET. WENT TO SATURN DEALER ON MONDAY, THEY COULD NOT ID LEAK, DIRECTED ME TO BRING BACK IN A COUPLE DAYS. TODAY THEY IDENTIFIED CRACKED CYLINDER HEAD. CAR HAS ONLY 67,000 MILES AND HAS NEVER OVERHEATED TO THE BEST OF MY KNOWLEDGE. BLOCK IS CAST IRON, CYL HEAD IS ALUMINUM. QUOTED COST TO REPAIR: $2600, NOT UNDER WARRANTY AND NOT COVERED BY DEALER. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10255017January 14, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
MY 2004 SATURN ION INTERMITTENTLY WON'T START. THIS BEGAN ABOUT A WEEK AGO. I TOOK IT TO A LOCAL CAR REPAIR SHOP, AND THEY ADVISED ME THAT THERE ARE 2 SERVICE BULLETINS FOR MY CAR THAT PERTAIN TO THIS PROBLEM: ONE IS FOR REPROGRAMMING THE BODY CONTROL MODULE (BCM) AND THE OTHER IS FOR AN IGNITION SYSTEM REPAIR. THEY TOLD ME TO BRING THE CAR TO A SATURN DEALER TO BE REPAIRED. I PLAN TO DO SO TONIGHT. I LEARNED THAT THIS IS A VERY FREQUENT PROBLEM THAT SATURN IS WELL AWARE OF, BUT THAT SATURN WON'T MAKE THIS A RECALL BECAUSE THEN SATURN WOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR THE DIAGNOSIS AND REPAIR. PLEASE HAVE GM/SATURN CHANGE THE 2 SERVICE BULLETINS (LISTED ABOVE) TO RECALLS! *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10255055January 14, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION
WE HAVE A 2003 SATURN ION THAT WONT START IN COLD WEATHER DUE TO IGNITION SWITCH PROBLEMS. SATURN DEALER WANTS $100 JUST TO DIAGNOSE IT ON A COMPUTER BUT MANY FORUMS HAVE INFORMATION STATING THAT THE DEALER ALREADY KNOWS THAT THE IGNITION SWITCH IS FAULTY. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10255048January 14, 2009
STEERING
THE POWER STEERING ON MY 2004 SATURN ION HAS BEEN GOING OUT AT LEAST THREE TIMES A DAY FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS. IN ORDER TO RESET IT I NEED TO TURN MY CAR OFF AND RESTART IT. I HAVE TAKEN IT TO A MECHANIC AND HE FIXED THE PROBLEM TEMPORARILY BUT SAID TO FIX IT PERMANENTLY I NEED TO GO TO THE DEALERSHIP. I RESEARCH OVER 20 CASES OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THE SAME CAR ON THIS SITE AND CARSTATS.COM. THERE NEEDS TO BE A RECALL ON THIS ISSUE. IT IS A SAFETY ISSUE BECAUSE WHEN YOU CAN'T TURN THE WHILE QUICKLY YOU CAN'T AVOID ACCIDENTS. IT CAUSES STRAIN IN THE MUSCLES OF MY SHOULDER AND BACK. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10254877January 13, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 SATURN ION. IN COLD WEATHER CONDITIONS, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT START. USUALLY AFTER REPEATED ATTEMPTS OF TURNING THE KEY IN THE IGNITION, THE VEHICLE WILL START. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR INSPECTION TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 36,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 48,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10254725January 12, 2009
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
I HAVE A 2006 SATURN ION WITH 35,000 MILES, BOUGHT NEW IN OCTOBER 2005 AND ONLY SERVICED AT SATURN. IT SLIPS WHEN PUT INTO REVERSE. THE DEALER COULD REPLICATE THE PROBLEM MANUALLY BUT COULD NOT GET A TROUBLE CODE. ALTHOUGH A SERVICE BULLETIN WAS ISSUED, THE DEALER WILL DO NOTHING UNTIL AND UNLESS IT WILL GENERATE A CODE, AND SAYS THEY WILL NOT REPAIR IT UNDER WARRANTY. I CALLED SATURN CUSTOMER SERVICE AND THEY TOLD ME THE SAME THING. THEY ALSO WILL NOT SELL ME A GM EXTENDED WARRANTY BECAUSE IT IS OUT OF WARRANTY ON LENGTH OF TIME. I AM TOLD TO CONTINUE TO DRIVE IT UNTIL IT GETS BAD ENOUGH THAT IT WILL PRODUCE A TROUBLE CODE. BY THAT TIME IT WILL UNDOUBTEDLY NO LONGER BE CLOSE TO THE WARRANTY MILEAGE AND IT WILL PROBABLY COST AS MUCH AS THE CAR IS WORTH TO REPAIR IT. SINCE IT HAS LESS THAN 36,000 MILES, I WANT IT REPAIRED NOW AT NO COST. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10254648January 11, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
2004 SATURN ION - WON'T START WHEN COLD. THIS LOOKS TO BE A VERY COMMON ISSUE, PLEASE SEE HTTP://WWW.CARSURVEY.ORG/VIEWCOMMENTS_REVIEW_73169.HTML OR SEARCH IT IS ALL OVER THE INTERNET. IT'S A SHAME THAT THIS IS SUCH A PREVALENT PROBLEM AND YET SATURN DOES NOT ACKNOWLEDGE IT AS A DEFECT THAT WOULD WARRANT A RECALL. CERTAINLY THIS COULD BE CONSIDERED A SAFETY PROBLEM IF SOMEONE'S CAR WOULD FAIL TO START. I WAS STUCK IN MY CAR FOR OVER AN HOUR IN NEGATIVE TEMPS AND BECAME ILL AFTERWARDS. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10254483January 10, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
I DRIVE A 2003 SATURN ION 3 - AND EVERY WINTER I GO THROUGH THE SAME ISSUE. THE CAR WILL RANDOMLY NOT START. AFTER ABOUT 10-20 MINUTES OF ATTEMPTING TO START THE VEHICLE WILL FINALLY TURN OVER AND START JUST FINE. I BEGAN TO RESEARCH THIS ISSUE LAST WINTER AND FOUND THIS: HTTP://WWW.CARSURVEY.ORG/VIEWMORECOMMENTS_REVIEW_97727_6.HTML THIS WEBSITE HAS PAGES AND PAGES OF PEOPLE OWNING THE SAME CAR AND HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM. THE PROBLEM HAPPENS ONLY WHEN IT'S COLD OUT AND IT STARTED OFF HAPPENING ONCE IN A GREAT WHILE...UP UNTIL THIS WINTER. I LIVE IN WISCONSIN AND IT'S COLD FOR A GOOD 4 OR 5 MONTHS. THIS WEEK MY CAR HAS NOT STARTED 5 TIMES RESULTING IN ME BEING LATE FOR WORK AND LATE FOR SCHEDULED EVENTS....5 TIMES. I WORK FOR A HIGHLY RESPECTED COMPANY AND AM AN OFFICE MANAGER. I AM EXPECTED TO BE ON TIME TO OPEN THE OFFICE AND GET THINGS GOING IN THE MORNING. I'M HOPING THAT WITH THE MILLIONS OF SATURN CUSTOMERS WHO ARE NOT SATISFIED THAT A RECALL WILL BE ISSUED AND I CAN HAVE THIS PROBLEM FIXED. I CAN NOT JUSTIFY PAYING FOR A PROBLEM THAT A MULTI MILLION DOLLAR CAR COMPANY IS AWARE OF AND IS CHOOSING TO DO NOTHING ABOUT. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10254339January 9, 2009
STEERING, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 SATURN ION. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO REMOVE THE KEY FROM THE IGNITION WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS IN ANY GEAR, INCLUDING DRIVE OR REVERSE. SHE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AT LEAST TWICE AND EACH TIME THEY STATED THAT THERE WAS A DIFFERENT FAILURE. THE DEALER WANTS TO REPLACE THE STEERING COLUMN ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE ENGINE TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE KEY WOULD NOT TURN ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE ACC POSITION UNLESS THE VEHICLE HAD BEEN IDLING FOR AT LEAST 3-5 MINUTES. THE CONTACT FOUND NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 97V055000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:SWITCH) FOR THE SAME MAKE, BUT A DIFFERENT MODEL AND THE PREVIOUS YEAR. THE CONTACT FEELS THAT THE RECALL SHOULD BE EXPANDED FOR HER YEAR, MAKE, AND MODEL VEHICLE. SHE FOUND HUNDREDS OF COMPLAINTS ONLINE REGARDING THIS FAILURE. THE FAILURE BEGAN WITHIN A WEEK OF PURCHASING THE VEHICLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 40,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 41,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10254389January 9, 2009
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
I AM 75 YEARS OLD AND THIS IS THE ONLY CAR I HAVE AND I CANNOT RELY ON IT TO START WHEN I NEED IT. ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS, I HAVE BEEN HEADED TO A DOCTOR APPOINTMENT AND GO TO START THE CAR AND IT WILL BE AS MUCH AS 30 MINUTES OR MORE BEFORE IT STARTS. IT IS CRIMINAL FOR SATURN TO KNOW OF THIS PROBLEM AND NOT ISSUE A RECALL TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM. I DO NOT KNOW WHEN THEY REALIZED THE PROBLEM AND FIXED IT, BUT I'M ON A FIXED INCOME AND I PUT OUT A LOT OF MONEY FOR THIS PIECE OF JUNK! I THOUGHT SATURN WAS A GOOD COMPANY BUT I SEE NOW THAT DON'T REALLY CARE ABOUT THEIR CONSUMERS. I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED IN THEM. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10254404January 9, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
ONLY WHEN IT'S COLD OUTSIDE, MY CAR WON'T START. I'VE REPLACED THE STARTER AND FOUND OUT THAT IT WAS NOT THE PROBLEM. AFTER RESEARCHING MY ISSUE ON THE INTERNET, I FOUND THAT THOUSANDS OF OTHER PEOPLE HAVE THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM AS ME. SINCE THE PROBLEM IS THE IGNITION SWITCH, AND EVERYONE THAT REPLACES IT SAYS THE PROBLEM PERSISTS, I'M NOT GOING TO WASTE MONEY ON AN ISSUE THAT CAN'T BE RESOLVED UNLESS YOUR ORGANIZATION PUTS A RECALL ON THAT PART. I'M SURE YOU'VE RECEIVED NUMEROUS OF EMAILS REGARDING THIS PROBLEM, SO THE ONLY SOLUTION WOULD BE TO RECALL THAT ITEM. SINCE WE HAVE GIVEN YOU BUSINESS BY PURCHASING YOUR VEHICLES, THE ONLY THING TO DO IS TO HELP OUT YOUR LOYAL CUSTOMERS. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10253952January 6, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
I OWN A 2004 SATURN ION 2. ON COLD MORNINGS THE CAR WILL NOT START LEAVING ME STRANDED. THIS HAS OCCURRED NUMEROUS TIME. UPON TAKING THE CAR TO A MECHANIC, THE IGNITION SWITCH WAS REPLACED. I'VE READ HUNDREDS OF COMPLAINTS FROM OTHER SATURN OWNERS. THIS IS AN OBVIOUS SAFETY ISSUE SATURN NEEDS TO ADDRESS. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10253686January 3, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
I HAVE A SATURN ION1. I HAVE 73,000 MILES ON IT. I HAVE A DIFFICULT TIME STARTING IT ON DAYS WHERE THE TEMPERATURE IS BELOW 35 DEGREES. I HAVE TO TURN THE KEY AND KEEP IT TURNED UNTIL IT CAN RUN WITHOUT ME HOLDING THE KEY AND REV THE ENGINE TO ATLEAST 3-4 RPMS. I HAVE TO DO THIS FOR 15-20 MIN. UNTIL IT CAN IDOL ON ITS OWN, BEFORE I DECIDE TO DRIVE OR THE CAR WILL NOT REMAIN ON. WHILE DRIVING IT WILL SHUT OFF. NOW IF I MAKE A SHARP TURN IT TURNS OFF. THIS PROBLEM IS GETTING PROGRESSIVELY WORSE. WHILE UNDER WARRANTY I HAD THE IGNITION REPLACE ONCE. I ALSO HAD BEEN TOLD BY SATURN THAT MY KEYS WERE TOO HEAVY, SO I BEGAN DRIVING WITH ONLY THE KEY AND THE KEY RING. THE PROBLEM IS A HUGE SAFETY CONCERN TO ME. LUCKILY HAVE BEEN ABLE TO STEER THE CAR OUT OF THE WAY AND HAVE NOT HAD ANY ACCIDENTS YET. IT IS MY ONLY CAR AND I HAVE A LOT MORE TO PAY ON IT AND SUBSEQUENTLY CAN NOT AFFORD A NEW CAR. I AM STUCK. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10253574January 2, 2009
STEERING
I WAS DRIVING MY 2005 SATURN ION, IT WAS SNOWING HERE IN SEATTLE. THE POWER STEERING WITHOUT ANY WARNING GAVE OUT. I COULD NOT MANEUVER MY CAR AND THE CAR ENDED UP HITTING THE SIDEWALK WITH ALOT OF FORCE AND CAUSING FRONT DAMAGE. WHEN I CONTACTED SATURN THEY STATED THEY WERE AWARE OF THE PROBLEM BUT THEY WERE NOT ISSUING A RECALL. *TR
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10253636January 2, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
THIS HAS OCCURRED SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE, USUALLY WHEN ITS COLDER OUT. I GO TO START MY CAR AND NOTHING HAPPENS, THEN A SECURITY FEATURE LIGHTS UP. MY CAR THINKS I'M STEALING IT, APPARENTLY. SOMETIMES MY KEY WON'T COME OUT OF THE IGNITION WHEN THIS HAPPENS EITHER, AND I'VE HAD TO GET IT TOWED AND REPAIRED. USUALLY AFTER SITTING THERE AND TRYING TO START IT FOR A PERIOD OF TEN TO THIRTY MINUTES, THE CAR STARTS AS IF NOTHING HAPPENED, BUT IS A HUGE INCONVENIENCE SEEING AS I'VE BEEN OUT OF TOWN A COUPLE OF TIMES WHEN THIS HAS HAPPENED AND IT ALSO MAKES ME LATE FOR WORK. I'VE TALKED TO OTHER SATURN OWNERS AND THEY'VE SAID THEY'VE ALSO HAD THIS HAPPEN. I'D SAY THAT THIS HAPPENS ABOUT TWICE A MONTH. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10253525January 1, 2009
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
MY SATURN 2003 ION CONTINUES TO HAVE INTERMITTENT STARTING PROBLEMS(NOT RELATED TO THE BATTERY), AND PROBLEMS WITH THE KEY GETTING STUCK IN THE IGNITION CYLINDER, EVEN AFTER THE IGNITION CYLINDER WAS REPLACED. THEY CANNOT DETECT A PROBLEM YET IT STILL KEEPS HAPPENING! *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#10253230December 30, 2008
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION
2006 SATURN ION 3. KEY WOULD NOT COME OUT OF IGNITION. IT STARTED OUT JUST EVER SO OFTEN ABOUT 6-8 MONTHS AGO AND STEADILY BECAME MORE FREQUENT. TOOK THE CAR IN TO THE DEALER, AND THEY PUT IN A NEW CYLINDER AND HOUSING AND I ALSO GOT A NEW KEY. THE WARRANTY WAS OUT IN 8/08, SO I ENDED UP PAYING $572.40 FOR REPAIRS. I CAME HOME AND AM STILL HAVING SAME PROBLEM WITH THE KEY NOT WANTING TO COME OUT OF IGNITION AT TIMES. *TR
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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