Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | |||
| 08/15/2012 | 109000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2001 saturn l200. while parked, the contact noticed that the air conditioner would not activate. the vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnostics where the technician stated that the wiring harness was found to have been melted. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 109,000. kmj | |||
| 08/15/2012 | 109000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2001 saturn l200. while parked the contact noticed the air conditioner would not activate. the vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnostic. the technician stated the wiring harness had melted. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 109,000. da | |||
| 10/29/2004 | 51300 | ||
| Cracked battery case thus causing acid leakage which caused a battery terminal cable bolt to corrode. thus shorting out the odometer. do a web search and you will find other saturn owners who have had this same issue. seeing them made me enter this complaint. | |||
| 02/28/2010 | 1 | ||
| I have had nothing but problems since i purchased this used 2001 saturn in 2001. i have put 2 catalytic converters, steering rack, stabilizer bar, front struts, had a head gasket major problem. i have owned two other new saturn's with no problems...i am roughly disappointed in this car. also my dash lights dimmed when security light flashed on and when that happened also my temp gauge and gas gauge would go from right to left and then back quickly. i had to have a modular replaced. again, i am sooooo disappointed with this car. within the first year of owning this i had two inline fuel filters as the car just stopped while driving...speed went down and down and nothing. has anyone else had so many problems *tr | |||
| 11/21/2009 | 1 | ||
| I replaced the heater control switch, blower motor, and resistor due to the fact that the heater blower would not work. after doing all the above, the heater still did not work. it appears that the wiring harness behind the heater control was the problem. two of the prongs in the white plug were burnt and did not allow the dc electric current to go into the heater control unit. it is lucky that the fan went out before it had caught fire. there are two children who ride in the car, one 5 years old and one 9 years old. i was surprised that the 40 amp fuse did not blow even though the circuit kept coming on and off. we had already changed the engine 3-4 years ago because the timing chain broke and saturn would not fix. *tr | |||
| 04/30/2009 | 1 | ||
| I have had to replace the heater control switch two times over the past three years. there appears to be a problem with the wiring harness overheating at the white clip (where it plugs into the heater control unit. if left undetected, it melts the plastic of the switch making it impossible to switch from hi to low. research on this make and model does not indicate a recall, however, i found an indication that saturn is aware of this problem and has made repairs to correct the situation. i am concerned this may eventually lead to a fire hazard, if not that then a costly repair. i have replaced the blower motor, blower motor resistor and heater control unit. could cost nearly $1000.00 based on estimates through dealership. *tr | |||
| 01/28/2009 | 89337 | 1 | |
| Electrical issues - issues began with dimming dashboard and continued to worsen. using power window one morning everything began flickering on the dash board including all msg lights and back off again. the car seemed to run fine and the radio didn't die. initial thought was alternator was telling me that i was about to be stranded 175 miles from home. driving further any blinker i hit would create same reaction, the last time the car seemed like it was going to die while traveling at 65mph. parked car at my ending destination and took two times to start back up. bcm seems to be the culprit as i've seen about 1000 posts from l200 owners with same issue and costing 400-600. it seems as though saturn would not or should not be able to charge for this issue if this is one of the many on the list of problems. this is not ethical and in this time, very unfortunate they would treat customers like this and generate revenue from a faulty car to begin with. *tr | |||
| 08/26/2001 | 2 | ||
| 2001 saturn l 200 series customer states that the car would not start and then after getting a booster the car started smoking and sparks came out of the ignition area**cc the consumer has experienced several problems with the vehicle. the ignition switch had burned out due to the starter being stuck. the dealer had to replace the burned out starter, ignition switch, ignition housing and ignition cylinder. on another occasion, the battery would not hold a charge, and had to be replaced. the air bag light was on, the dealer found a code and the bcm had to be recalibrated. the serpentine belt was replaced. the air condition was inoperable, the dealer stated the ac control had shorted out. *jb | |||
| 09/05/2006 | 51040 | 1 | |
| Odometer suddenly began displaying only mileage 694978 with no miles registered under the trip odometer. research indicates that the body control module has failed. (this follows having to replace the entire engine due to the failed timing chain with only 48000 miles on the engine.) the car currently has approximately 51300 miles, since i cannot read the actual mileage at this point. *nm | |||
| 10/01/2004 | 1 | 11/23/2001 | |
| After repairs,steering wheel started smoking. *bf the vehicle was taken to the dealer for recall repairs to the ignition module. about a month and a half after the repairs the vehicle caught on fire in the area around the steering wheel. the consumer took the vehicle back to the dealer who did the recall repairs, but they indicated that the consumer would have to pay for any diagnosis and repair. *nm | |||
| 11/05/2003 | 52000 | 1 | |
| The electrical system malfunctioned. as a result the cataylic convertor melted causing the vehicle to catch fire. please provide additional information. *ph | |||
| 06/19/2003 | 0 | 06/16/2001 | |
| The headlights on my 2001 saturn l200 dim and flicker when the air conditioner and/or front window defogger are engaged. this is a distraction at night and during inclement weather that has caused me to briefly loose sight of the road while driving. *jb | |||
| 01/01/2001 | 60 | 11/06/2000 | |
| The headlights (and other electrical devices) dim (lose power) for a millisecond at random times. in my opinion, the voltage regulator is not reacting quickly enough to random power surges (like the cooling fan kicking on) and therefore everything dims for a moment. this is very annoying and unsafe. i notice it when it is dark outside, especially on country roads (no street lights). two different dealers have tried to convince me that this is normal - bull! i know a system design problem when i see one. i have had motorists accuse me of flashing my lights at them. what's up honestly saturn??!! why can't anyone admit that they don't know? *nlm | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - ALTERNATOR/GENERATOR/REGULATOR | |||
| 05/24/2008 | 86757 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2001 saturn l200. the contact stated that her air bag light illuminated and would not dim. in 2007, she had her air conditioning system serviced, but it continued to fail. she took the vehicle to the dealer several times before the failure was finally corrected. most recently, as the temperature became hotter in her state, the air conditioning failure recurred. the dealer stated that the alternator was the cause of the noise in the air conditioning. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer regarding a timing belt recall. after discussing the failures with the dealer, the contact was informed that they would only repair the air bag failure if she repaired the issue with the alternator. the recall number was unknown. the current mileage was 86,857 and failure mileage was 86,757. | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - BATTERY | |||
| 08/03/2006 | 87630 | 1 | 03/29/2003 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while driving 30 mph and turning a corner the vehicle stalled without warning. the vehicle was towed to the dealer who determined the timing chain fractured and caused damage to two cylinder heads. the dealer replaced the timing chain and cylinder heads. the battery was replaced. updated 09/13/06.*jb | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - FUSES AND CIRCUIT BREAKERS | |||
| 05/03/2006 | 72000 | 4 | 04/09/2005 |
| Break lights in the 2001 saturn l200 burn out fuses. there is a short that after correcting and buying new fused and new lamps keeps going out again and blowing fuses. *jb | |||
| 01/03/2005 | 3 | ||
| Petition for defect investigation into 2000-2002 saturn l-series left-hand tail lamp assemblies. *bf the tail light assembly had to be replaced 3 times. each time the circuit board at the light socket contact had started to melt/corrode, which created a gap in the contact. *jb | |||
| 05/01/2001 | |||
| While driving at various speeds, with the headlights on, the headlights and dash lights dim for no known reason, either with or without depressing the brake pedal getting the same result. was told by saturn dealer that this was common and nothing could be done to fix the problem. i would think that voltage regulation would be a simple thing to fix. | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION | |||
| 12/31/2008 | 130000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2001 saturn l200. while driving 30 mph, the vehicle accelerated out of control. the contact shifted into neutral and drove into a shopping center parking lot. the vehicle was towed to the dealer, but they could not duplicate the failure. the dealer replaced the ignition module, but they were unsure if it was the cause of the failure. the contact stated that if the engine warning indicator illuminates, the catalytic converter needed to be replaced. a report was filed with the manufacturer. the manufacturer stated that the vehicle was repaired according to nhtsa campaign id number 03v231000 (electrical system: ignition module) on september 30, 2003. the failure and current mileages were 130,000. | |||
| 05/13/2007 | 67000 | 1 | 09/21/2001 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2001 saturn l200. the contact's spouse left the vehicle in drive, removed the key from the ignition, and exited the vehicle. the vehicle suddenly rolled backwards down a hill. there were no injuries. the current mileage was 70,000 and failure mileage was 67,000. updated 10/03/08 *bf the consumer stated the key should not have been able to be removed with the vehicle in drive. updated 10/07/08. *jb | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION - MODULE | |||
| 01/12/2007 | 64950 | 2 | |
| 2001 saturn l200 customer is disappointed and concerned about recalled ignition control module that failed 35,000 miles after being replaced**cc the consumer believed that the recall part was no better than the original part. the left rear window regulator broke and the rear guide was mis-aligned. *jb | |||
| 10/21/2004 | 1 | ||
| Noticed my alarm remote key was becoming ultra sensitive and just figured the small watch-like battery needed to be replaced. shortly afterward on the same day i realized my interior dome light was dimming and my engine made a loud wrenching noise upon the initial start. upon leaving my place of destination the same evening i was unable to start my car at all. i figured the battery had died so i had a friend give me a jump to no avail. my car would turn over and automatically shut off less than two seconds later. this further validated that i most likely didn't have a starter issue on my hands. the other peculiar thing is that i noticed my car would not shift out of park so i could put it in neutral for the inevitable tow that followed. this left me concerned, and much to my dismay the dealership indicated that my bcm (body control module) had failed completely and threw my electrical system off the map. i've only had this car for a few years and the computer chip is failing, what gives? i had just recently dropped a few hundred dollars on the preventively maintenance package for 35000 that saturn recommends. this most recent incident resulted in $650 more. i am disgusted with the lack of response that i'm getting from the manufacturer, as several attempts have been made over the course of this week to file my concerns with their home office.*ak | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION - SWITCH | |||
| 03/17/2006 | 71500 | 1 | 02/28/2004 |
| On march 17, 2006, my wife and i returned home from supper around 8:45 pm. at approximately 9:00 pm, i heard a crash outside. i soon discovered that our saturn had rolled out of the garage and into our neighbors yard across the road. upon inspection inside the car, i discovered the car was not in park, yet the ignition system had allowed me to remove the key. this is a major safety failure. no car should allow a key to be removed from the ignition without the car being in park. as yet, the failure hasn't been corrected since the car is still at the body shop.*jb | |||
| 03/27/2005 | 71140 | 1 | 02/05/2002 |
| Took 2001 saturn l-200 in for catalitic convertor repair and when i went to pick the vehicle up i could not leave in it as the ignition switch had locked up while at the dealership and i could not pick up until they installed a new ignition switch at the cost of $300.00. the people at the dealership were as perplexed as i over the problem. | |||
| 08/01/2004 | 70068 | 1 | 07/10/2002 |
| Tie rod end- drivers side. lso have problem with left brake light- replaced bulb and keeps going out ignition switch locked up now engine and coil pack blown-- engine oil pressure light never came on to alert of impending problem. *ak | |||
| 10/12/2004 | 5 | 11/23/2001 | |
| The consumer received a recall notice( 03c06) replacement ignition switch. while driving,the consumer noticed smoke was coming from the steering column. the vehicle caught fire. the driver extinguished the fire. the driver has contacted the dealer for a appointment and inspection. the driver informed the mechanic this problem has not been resolved after the recall was fixed. *jb *sc | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - STARTER ASSEMBLY | |||
| 07/10/2006 | 1 | 05/01/2004 | |
| 2001 saturn 200l key would not turn in engine, steering shook vigorously while driving. *ts while driving 65 mph, on the day the vehicle was purchased, the vehicle's steering wheel began to vibrate and pull to the right. there was also a noise coming from the rear of the vehicle on the passenger side. the consumer assumer the problem would resolve itself but it didn't. two weeks later the consumer called the dealer. the vehicle wa taken tot he dealer who determined that the problem was wheel balancing. the adjustment were made and the vehicle was returned tot he consumer. about a month later the vehicle would not start intermittently. the consumer called the dealer who explained that this was a safety feature. several months went by and the problem continued to occur. someone suggested tot he consumer that she needed a new starter. the vehicle was taken to the dealer but they were unable to duplicate the problem. the vehicle was returned to the consumer . once again the vehicle began to not start. the dealer finally replaced the starter. the vehicle tie rod eventually had to be replaced. that was the noise the consumer heard when she first purchased the vehicle. on day while driving the vehicle sudden lost all power. the vehicle was towed to a service dealer who determined that the vehicle's timing chain had broken. none of these failures were covered by the vehicle extended warranty. the consumer contacted yhe manufacturer but they provided no assistance. *nm | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING - INTERIOR/UNDER DASH | |||
| 02/10/2004 | 2 | 06/13/2001 | |
| The headlights and dash lights on my 2001 saturn l200 dim or flicker. this is a distraction during night time driving and while driving in inclement weather. n one partucular occasion i had to stop the vehicle when i normally wouldn't have expected to due to the further reduction in visibility as the headlights. dimmed. there is the possibility that other drivers may think that i am flashing the headlights at them. the headlights and dash lights dimmed since the vehicle was new. saturn states that this is a characteristic of the vehicle and there is no repair. *ak | |||