Saturn L-series Sedan 2003
Model L-series Sedan made in 2003 by Saturn got 24 consumer complains there are 2 investigations as well as 5 service bulletins. Consumer complaints with reference, among others things, to air bags, communications and digital instrument panel. Technical service bulletines regarding engine and engine cooling, equipment and power train. The car had one investigation (engine and engine cooling).
Model 2003
Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | |||||
| 3135 | 01/01/2004 | 10010045 | Pop noise from engine area during heavy throttle input. *tc | 11/03/2004 | |
| EQUIPMENT - ELECTRICAL - AIR CONDITIONER | |||||
| 040139001 | 02/01/2004 | 10006272 | Automatic climate control overcompensation. *mr | 04/27/2004 | |
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||||
| 070730025 | 10/01/2007 | 10023942 | Information on 4t40-e (mn4) and 4t45-e (mn5) front wheel drive automatic transmission valve body reconditioning, dtc p0741, p0742, p0751, p0752, p0756, p0757, p1811, harsh shifts, slips, no drive, no reverse. *nj | 02/20/2008 | |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER | |||||
| 02I09 | 06/01/2002 | 633369 | Subject regarding california vehicle code requirements regarding tire chain disclosure. vehicles that should not be operated with chains. *jg | 09/23/2002 | |
| WHEELS - RIM | |||||
| 050310003 | 05/01/2009 | SB-050310003D | 10024405 | Low tire pressure, leaking cast aluminum wheels (repair with adhesive sealant). 2008 and prior gm passenger car and light duty trucks (including saturn) and hummer h2, h3 and saab 9-7x with cast aluminum wheels. *nj updated 10/23 | 04/11/2008 |
Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | ||||||
| DP05008 | GENERAL MOTORS CORP. | 12/20/2005 | 02/06/2006 | TIMING CHAIN FAILURE | ||
| Analysis undertaken in response to the petition identified 26 complaints alleging timing chain failures in my 2000-2003 saturn l-series vehicle equipped with the 2.2l l4 engine.most complaints of timing chain failure reportedly resulted in a sudden loss of engine power and stalling.odi also noted that certain my 2002-2003 saturn vue and my 2003 saturn ion model vehicles with the 2.2l engine vehiclescovered by a technical service bulletin (03-06-01-017) that addressed timing chain design and service procedure changes, exhibited no complaints of timing chain failure.odi will grant the petition and open a preliminary evaluation to assess the frequency, trend, scope and safety consequences associated with the alleged defect in the subject vehicles.refer to pe06-006. | ||||||
| PE06006 | GENERAL MOTORS CORP. | 01/24/2006 | 06/06/2006 | TIMING CHAIN FAILURE | ||
| On december 12, 2005, odi received a defect petition (dp05-008) requesting the investigation of timing chain failures that could cause stalling in saturn vehicles equipped with the 2.2l (l61) engine. odi opened pe06-006 on january 24, 2006, with 24 vehicle owner complaints that alleged a broken timing chain caused the vehicle to stop operating.on april 12, 2006, odi received information from general motors (gm) concerning timing chain failures in approximately 412,000 model year (my) 2000 through 2003 saturn l-series and ion vehicles with 2.2l engines. gm's response included 1,020 owner complaints and field reports concerning timing chain failure, including 228 that alleged the failure caused the vehicle to stall while driving.gm also provided warranty claim data that showed 1,902 subject vehicles receiving timing chain repairs, including 261 which indicated that a stall while driving resulted from the failure.the gm complaints, field reports and warranty claims that did not contain sufficient information to determine that a stall while driving occurred were provided in the category other.gm stated that the majority of these incidents probably occurred while the vehicles were parked since the timing chain is more likely to break during high chain load situations, such as engine startup.gm's data showed elevated failure rates in approximately 20,500 my 2001 l-series vehicles produced during a four month period from november 2000 through february 2001.over one-third of gm's total complaints and field reports (34.3%) and warranty claims (38.2%) involved l-series vehicles built during the 4-month period, which are only about 5% of subject vehicle production.the timing chain failure rate in the vehicles built during this range is over 10 times greater than the remaining subject vehicle population. for the my 2001 l-series vehicles built during the 4-month period, the 36-month failure rate for repairs involving stall while driving is slightly under one percent.however, if the incidents coded as other are added, the 36-month failure rate rises to nearly five percent for those vehicles.odi and gm are continuing to assess the number of complaints and warranty claims coded by gm as other that involve incidents of stall while driving.gm's statistical modeling of the failure data initially concluded that the failure rates were declining with age and mileage for any set of warranty data analyzed (e.g., stall while driving, other or combined).however, subsequent analysis showed that the failure rates are increasing. based on the high complaint and warranty rates for timing chain failure in the 4-month production period for the my 2001 l-series vehicles, this investigation has been upgraded to an engineering analysis to further assess the frequency of stall incidents due to timing chain failures in those vehicles (ea06-009). | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| AIR BAGS - SIDE/WINDOW | |||
| 06/12/2003 | 2500 | 1 | 03/29/2003 |
| My 2003 saturn l200 was struck in the driver side door by another vehicle and neither the side curtain nor front airbags deployed at all. the impact was sufficient to cause the car to be declared a total loss by the insurance company. i sustained a concussion and was rendered unconscious upon impact. *jb | |||
| COMMUNICATIONS - HORN ASSEMBLY | |||
| 05/25/2004 | 17000 | 3 | 02/05/2004 |
| This is the third incident, second in same day, where the electrical system failed. audible clicking sound under dash and lights repeatedly turning on & off, locks on and off and horn sounding. on 1 prior occasions, audible clicking heard and locks repeatedly turning on and off. clearly not an isolated incident, as i can see from other complaints that other owners of this model are experiencing the same problem. consequences of the problem --- neighbors called police to complain about noise. unable to keep alarm on due to continuing problem, leading to insecure car. also, safety issue with lights and locks repeatedly turning on and off with the electrical failure. dealer will service in two days (first available appt!!) and will update then. | |||
| 50 | 1 | ||
| The driver has to apply excessive effort to activate the horn and once it was pressed there was a 4 to 5 second delay. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who indicated that the vehicle was operating as designed. *nm | |||
| 04/01/2003 | 500 | 6 | 03/30/2003 |
| Constant electrical failure with 2003 saturn l series sedan..lights don t work properly(daytime running regular lights)..constant shorting ..horn blasts..cruise contrll goes on.. map light.. alarm activates while driving..sending unit failure..heater core failure..*ak | |||
| DIGITAL INSTRUMENT PANEL | |||
| 03/01/2008 | 100 | ||
| We own a 2003 l300 from saturn. the problem with my vehicle as well as many other saturns is a computer called a bcm. a body control module. this device controls everything from the odometer to the door locks. all dashboard functions shut down intermittently. while driving my vehicle, the speedometer shuts off, the gas gauge reads 0 and the service engine lit illuminates. i did a quick search on the net after i was given an estimate, and there were a great number of people who are experiencing the exact same problem. there are people who have low mileage that have the same experience. i have less than 40 miles on our car and we're being force to replace this computer part or risk being stranded or locked out of the vehicle. since there are so many customers experiencing this problem, shouldn't saturn recall the part, or replace it at no charge to the customers. it's not fair to sell defective parts in new vehicles. *tr | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | |||
| 05/25/2004 | 17000 | 3 | 02/05/2004 |
| This is the third incident, second in same day, where the electrical system failed. audible clicking sound under dash and lights repeatedly turning on & off, locks on and off and horn sounding. on 1 prior occasions, audible clicking heard and locks repeatedly turning on and off. clearly not an isolated incident, as i can see from other complaints that other owners of this model are experiencing the same problem. consequences of the problem --- neighbors called police to complain about noise. unable to keep alarm on due to continuing problem, leading to insecure car. also, safety issue with lights and locks repeatedly turning on and off with the electrical failure. dealer will service in two days (first available appt!!) and will update then. | |||
| 04/01/2003 | 500 | 6 | 03/30/2003 |
| Constant electrical failure with 2003 saturn l series sedan..lights don t work properly(daytime running regular lights)..constant shorting ..horn blasts..cruise contrll goes on.. map light.. alarm activates while driving..sending unit failure..heater core failure..*ak | |||
| 10/09/2003 | 2300 | 20 | 03/04/2003 |
| *saturn buyers beware* i purchased a brand new l200 in march 03. to date i have had the following problems: -car does not start all the time -temperature controls does not work -remote entry system does not work properly i have taken my car into saturn 4 times, but to no avail. they claimed that they can't find any problems with the car. saturn customer service is terrible as well. *la | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - FUSES AND CIRCUIT BREAKERS | |||
| 05/25/2004 | 17000 | 3 | 02/05/2004 |
| This is the third incident, second in same day, where the electrical system failed. audible clicking sound under dash and lights repeatedly turning on & off, locks on and off and horn sounding. on 1 prior occasions, audible clicking heard and locks repeatedly turning on and off. clearly not an isolated incident, as i can see from other complaints that other owners of this model are experiencing the same problem. consequences of the problem --- neighbors called police to complain about noise. unable to keep alarm on due to continuing problem, leading to insecure car. also, safety issue with lights and locks repeatedly turning on and off with the electrical failure. dealer will service in two days (first available appt!!) and will update then. | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING | |||
| 05/25/2004 | 17000 | 3 | 02/05/2004 |
| This is the third incident, second in same day, where the electrical system failed. audible clicking sound under dash and lights repeatedly turning on & off, locks on and off and horn sounding. on 1 prior occasions, audible clicking heard and locks repeatedly turning on and off. clearly not an isolated incident, as i can see from other complaints that other owners of this model are experiencing the same problem. consequences of the problem --- neighbors called police to complain about noise. unable to keep alarm on due to continuing problem, leading to insecure car. also, safety issue with lights and locks repeatedly turning on and off with the electrical failure. dealer will service in two days (first available appt!!) and will update then. | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | |||
| 08/08/2008 | 67000 | 1 | |
| I was driving my saturn l200 on a country road at about 35 mph. the engine suddenly stopped running, and would not restart. the car became difficult to steer and stop without the power steering and brakes. i came close to running into a ditch as a result of the difficulty in controlling the car. *tr | |||
| EQUIPMENT | |||
| 03/01/2003 | 75 | 100 | 02/05/2003 |
| 2003 l-200 purchased feb 03. soon found numerous issues with car, to this day have not been fixed. tried saturn 800 # to no avail. rep was rude. flat out told me nothing to be done by saturn if local dealer can't fix. told by local svc mgr supv i was making probs up & no one else had these problems. he told svc reps halt correcting or reviewing warranty work on our car. escalated & wrkd w/ dir of oprtns. he wasn't able to fix probs due to resistance frm saturn. was told no more work on probs becz saturn intervened in doing more warranty work. in all instances were given final resolution per saturn all problems are working as designed, have no intention to fix them. said not going to invest money to fix in '03 but use complaints look at possible changes future cars. we have had and continue to have problems with 1) safety issue: exterior lights flashing on/off 2) safety issue: exterior auto on/off for day running and headlights doesn't register properly which one to use & when 3) interior lights dim higher & lower intermittently 4) automatic climate control does not work properly. does not properly regulate the heat & a/c. temp must be set a min. 84 degrees for heat then will only stay for awhile when suddenly it goes away &the a/c comes on. only 1/2 way fix for issue is to use this unit in a manual mode set to a min. 84 degrees & burn up the inside then turn off, turn back on to warm, keep repeating. in manual mode you also experience cold air when it runs out of hot air. 5) six disc cd/cassette philips system: volume goes from very soft to very loud in 1 click with no inbetween. the dealership replaced system with like one to find it does same thing. told an outside vendor piece of equipment & can't do anything about it. figure out way to balance it, push all sound to back of car, listen to it low or not at all. as you might well imagine i would not recommend to anyone to purchase a saturn vehicle. *ak | |||
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING | |||
| 05/25/2004 | 17000 | 3 | 02/05/2004 |
| This is the third incident, second in same day, where the electrical system failed. audible clicking sound under dash and lights repeatedly turning on & off, locks on and off and horn sounding. on 1 prior occasions, audible clicking heard and locks repeatedly turning on and off. clearly not an isolated incident, as i can see from other complaints that other owners of this model are experiencing the same problem. consequences of the problem --- neighbors called police to complain about noise. unable to keep alarm on due to continuing problem, leading to insecure car. also, safety issue with lights and locks repeatedly turning on and off with the electrical failure. dealer will service in two days (first available appt!!) and will update then. | |||
| 03/01/2003 | 75 | 100 | 02/05/2003 |
| 2003 l-200 purchased feb 03. soon found numerous issues with car, to this day have not been fixed. tried saturn 800 # to no avail. rep was rude. flat out told me nothing to be done by saturn if local dealer can't fix. told by local svc mgr supv i was making probs up & no one else had these problems. he told svc reps halt correcting or reviewing warranty work on our car. escalated & wrkd w/ dir of oprtns. he wasn't able to fix probs due to resistance frm saturn. was told no more work on probs becz saturn intervened in doing more warranty work. in all instances were given final resolution per saturn all problems are working as designed, have no intention to fix them. said not going to invest money to fix in '03 but use complaints look at possible changes future cars. we have had and continue to have problems with 1) safety issue: exterior lights flashing on/off 2) safety issue: exterior auto on/off for day running and headlights doesn't register properly which one to use & when 3) interior lights dim higher & lower intermittently 4) automatic climate control does not work properly. does not properly regulate the heat & a/c. temp must be set a min. 84 degrees for heat then will only stay for awhile when suddenly it goes away &the a/c comes on. only 1/2 way fix for issue is to use this unit in a manual mode set to a min. 84 degrees & burn up the inside then turn off, turn back on to warm, keep repeating. in manual mode you also experience cold air when it runs out of hot air. 5) six disc cd/cassette philips system: volume goes from very soft to very loud in 1 click with no inbetween. the dealership replaced system with like one to find it does same thing. told an outside vendor piece of equipment & can't do anything about it. figure out way to balance it, push all sound to back of car, listen to it low or not at all. as you might well imagine i would not recommend to anyone to purchase a saturn vehicle. *ak | |||
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING - HEADLIGHTS | |||
| 04/01/2003 | 500 | 6 | 03/30/2003 |
| Constant electrical failure with 2003 saturn l series sedan..lights don t work properly(daytime running regular lights)..constant shorting ..horn blasts..cruise contrll goes on.. map light.. alarm activates while driving..sending unit failure..heater core failure..*ak | |||
| 05/06/2003 | 500 | 15 | 04/28/2003 |
| Headlights flash on and off repeatedly. a faint clicking sound was heard from under the das,h and the headlights momentarily flashed off. happened about once a week. when it occurred, lights would flicker for a second or two about once a minute as many as a dozen to 20 times after starting the car from a cold start. dealer denied ther was any problem, and knew of no solution. *ak | |||
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING - TURN SIGNAL | |||
| 07/20/2004 | 20000 | 1 | |
| While pulling out of the driveway, the consumer started smelling what seemed like electronics burning. after driving a few blocks the consumer smelled smoke coming from the steering column. the consumer pulled over and called the fire department.the vehicle was towed to the dealer for an examination. the dealer found that the signal indicator arm was throwing sparks. b*jb | |||
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE | |||
| 01/17/2004 | 10 | 06/07/2003 | |
| My car has a 1/4 tank of gas & it will not start. i had to put my car in neutral & coast it slightly down a hill with the front end facing down the hill. i took the car in for service & they told me there was nothing wrong with the car.... on top of that, they asked me what brand of gas i was using... i told them sunoco. silly me was supposed to be using amoco!?!?!? but this problem persists! *jb | |||
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE - DELIVERY | |||
| 04/15/2003 | 300 | 1 | 03/31/2003 |
| The saturn l200 i own will not start on an incline when there is 1/4 tank of gas in it. in order to start the vehicle i must put the car in neutral and roll down the incline to a level street. this is dangerous. i have called both the dealership and saturn the manufacturer. they have stated it is an engineering problem. it must be fixed. there is a genuine danger here. *la | |||
| INTERIOR LIGHTING | |||
| 05/25/2004 | 17000 | 3 | 02/05/2004 |
| This is the third incident, second in same day, where the electrical system failed. audible clicking sound under dash and lights repeatedly turning on & off, locks on and off and horn sounding. on 1 prior occasions, audible clicking heard and locks repeatedly turning on and off. clearly not an isolated incident, as i can see from other complaints that other owners of this model are experiencing the same problem. consequences of the problem --- neighbors called police to complain about noise. unable to keep alarm on due to continuing problem, leading to insecure car. also, safety issue with lights and locks repeatedly turning on and off with the electrical failure. dealer will service in two days (first available appt!!) and will update then. | |||
| 03/01/2003 | 75 | 100 | 02/05/2003 |
| 2003 l-200 purchased feb 03. soon found numerous issues with car, to this day have not been fixed. tried saturn 800 # to no avail. rep was rude. flat out told me nothing to be done by saturn if local dealer can't fix. told by local svc mgr supv i was making probs up & no one else had these problems. he told svc reps halt correcting or reviewing warranty work on our car. escalated & wrkd w/ dir of oprtns. he wasn't able to fix probs due to resistance frm saturn. was told no more work on probs becz saturn intervened in doing more warranty work. in all instances were given final resolution per saturn all problems are working as designed, have no intention to fix them. said not going to invest money to fix in '03 but use complaints look at possible changes future cars. we have had and continue to have problems with 1) safety issue: exterior lights flashing on/off 2) safety issue: exterior auto on/off for day running and headlights doesn't register properly which one to use & when 3) interior lights dim higher & lower intermittently 4) automatic climate control does not work properly. does not properly regulate the heat & a/c. temp must be set a min. 84 degrees for heat then will only stay for awhile when suddenly it goes away &the a/c comes on. only 1/2 way fix for issue is to use this unit in a manual mode set to a min. 84 degrees & burn up the inside then turn off, turn back on to warm, keep repeating. in manual mode you also experience cold air when it runs out of hot air. 5) six disc cd/cassette philips system: volume goes from very soft to very loud in 1 click with no inbetween. the dealership replaced system with like one to find it does same thing. told an outside vendor piece of equipment & can't do anything about it. figure out way to balance it, push all sound to back of car, listen to it low or not at all. as you might well imagine i would not recommend to anyone to purchase a saturn vehicle. *ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||
| 11/18/2006 | 54000 | 3 | 07/01/2005 |
| 2003 saturn vue auto transmission went out three times within 8,000 miles, leaving out family stranded in 3 diff states, out our lives in risk, ruin our vacations, cost extra money on car rental ,insurance,gas, hotel! cost me several panic attacks and horrible anxiety, stress etc... *tr | |||
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL - CRUISE CONTROL | |||
| 04/01/2003 | 500 | 6 | 03/30/2003 |
| Constant electrical failure with 2003 saturn l series sedan..lights don t work properly(daytime running regular lights)..constant shorting ..horn blasts..cruise contrll goes on.. map light.. alarm activates while driving..sending unit failure..heater core failure..*ak | |||
| VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM - WINDSHIELD - HEATER CORE | |||
| 04/01/2003 | 500 | 6 | 03/30/2003 |
| Constant electrical failure with 2003 saturn l series sedan..lights don t work properly(daytime running regular lights)..constant shorting ..horn blasts..cruise contrll goes on.. map light.. alarm activates while driving..sending unit failure..heater core failure..*ak | |||
Car dealers selling
| State | City | Zip | Name | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CA | CERRITOS | 90703 | SATURN OF CERRITOS | 5628602424 |
| CA | SANTA ROSA | SATURN OF SANTA ROSA | 707-525-1800 | |
| IL | NAPERVILLE | 60540 | CHEVY HORIZON | 630-357-6100 |
| IN | INDIANAPOLIS | SATURN OF INDIANAPOLIS | ||
| MA | MEDFORD | 02155 | SATURN OF MEDFORD | 781-395-6800 |
| NE | OMAHA | 68154 | SATURN OF OMAHA | 4026970200 |
| NY | STATEN ISLAND | 10306 | SATURN F STATEN ISLAND | 7189798900 |
| OH | NILES | 44446 | SATURN OF RT 422 | |
| OK | OKLAHOMA CITY | 73149 | SATURN OF OKLAHOMA CITY | 405-616-4000 |
| PA | HANOVER TOWNSHIP | 18706 | SATURN OF WYOMING VALLEY | 570-823-6555 |