Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | |||
| 08/01/2008 | 88000 | 1 | |
| Battery died in 2008. it was replaced and the odometer reset back to zero. the security alarm/ power doors do not function properly ( unable to lock with remote control). security light stays on while driving. cd player stopped working and fuel gauge does not show the accurate amount of gas. i have to wait until the light comes on. now in july 2012, the ac was fixed due to a hole in the line and the car immediately shut off in traffic. the ac no longer works and is giving a code p0102 (maf- mass air flow -referring to low voltage). the service engine light is on along with the airbag, gas gauge and temperature needles not moving at all. in addition, the traction control is not working. *tr | |||
| 08/01/2008 | 88000 | ||
| Battery died in 2008. it was replaced and the odometer reset back to zero. the security alarm/ power doors do not function properly ( unable to lock with remote control). security light stays on while driving. cd player stopped working and fuel gauge does not show the accurate amount of gas. i have to wait until the light comes on. now in july 2012, the ac was fixed due to a hole in the line and the car immediately shut off in traffic. the ac no longer works and is giving a code p0102 (maf- mass air flow -referring to low voltage). the service engine light is on along with the airbag, gas gauge and temperature needles not moving at all. in addition, the traction control is not working. | |||
| 06/25/2010 | 125000 | ||
| I own a 2002 saturn l 300 6 cylinder 3.0 engine car. in june 2010 i had a throttle body issue withmy car (reduced power, check engine, service engine lights). i took it to a repair shop and it was diagnosed with a throttle body issue. i purchased the throttle body from gm directly and had it installed at an outside mechanic. not knowing the electrical issues and computer programming issues around this car, i let the outside mechanic do the installation not know all the computer programming issues around this part. about a month or so later i continued to have issues with the same error messages, but this time i brought it to gm, where they disgnosed a wiring issue. since then i have had it back to gm 5 more times replacing the entire wiring to the throttle body, the electronic control module, and on may 2, 2011 another trip to have the computer re-programmed to sync the new ecm to the throttle body. this past week i began getting an error message (service engine light) for the throttle position sensor. i called gm directly and opened a complaint case number and brought the car back tot he gm dealer now for the 6th time. the prior visits to gm they have told me they won't honor any guarantees because the original throttle body replacement was done at an outside mechanic shop. i can see that holding weight the first or second visit back to gm, but now this is the 6th visot back and they still have yet to competely fix the electrical issues on my car. i have spent over 3,000.00 trying to get this right to no avail. and i am somewhat stuck since i cannot afford to buy a new car. | |||
| 09/10/2010 | 20000 | ||
| I have discovered the cause of the extremely high failure rate in the bcm's in the saturn l-series sedans. in an investigation to find the root cause of the failure of the bcm, we pulled the bcm out of the vehicle and performed electrical tests on the unit to determine the nature of the problems we were experiencing. the root cause turns out to be microscopic fractures in the solder joints on the header connector between the bcm and the main wiring harness. these fractures are believed to be caused by improper mounting of the header connector to the main board of the bcm. as the manufacture of the header connector has provided strain relief mounting points on the connector to keep it well mounted to the board so vibration will not affect the joints to all of the pins. saturn has failed to use these mount points and has opted to not use any mechanical device or bolts to secure the header connector to the mainboard at all. this ultimately leads to the vibration caused micro fractures in the pin solder joints causing intermittent electrical opens to the mainboard on the header pins.the ultimate safety complaint comes into play when the bcm stops displaying information on the dash (i.e. all of the dash gauges go dead), the driver has no idea of what speed they are doing, nor if any of the safety systems in the vehicle are working at all. the electrical engineer that signed off on the plans for this design should have an ethics violation complaint filed as well, for knowingly allowing this type of product to go into full production putting the general public safety into question. | |||
| 06/10/2007 | 120000 | ||
| The oil and antifreeze have a common wall in the radiator. the antifreze is corrosive and ate thru allowing the oil and antifreeze to mix in the engine causing the engine to be completely rebuilt with most parts replaced. the temp guage has been replaced 4 times as the engine runs cool and will fail inspection and destroy the o2 sensors. the power steering pump has gone out 2 times as well as the ac compressor. the rear lights on the driver side are always getting hot and burning out. the taillight fittings for the stop light have gotten so hot that they needed to be replaced 3 times. dash lights are constantly flickering when you apply the brake or (when it is running) turn on the ac unit or the heating system. the saftey latch on the front doors have been replaced 2 times as they were cracking. i paid for all of the repairs and was told that there was a recall based on the antifreeze that gm used as it was corrosive and affected many models of gm cars. i filled in all of the forms for the class action suit and at the end i was told that the saturns were not covered - that the government had allowed this class to be removed from the gm claim. this was not fair as it was the same problem caused by the corrosive antifreeze used by gm and the poor design of using a common thin wall to seperate the oil and the antifreeze. | |||
| 01/13/2010 | 98000 | 1 | |
| My 2002 saturn l300 rear taillights are melting and failing often. a recall repair was performed 4 years ago and it is ineffective. saturn is unwilling to re-evaluate the matter. *tr | |||
| 03/20/2009 | 90000 | 1 | |
| 2002 saturn l 300 6 cyl. saw smoke coming from my steering column, have reported this to saturn , after having my oil changed. they told me it was dust burning in the steering column, and that it happens occasionally. it has happened twice since then, my child witnessed the smoke coming out of the turn signal lever area on the steering column. my car is now at a saturn dealership, with a bad bcm ( body control module) this is the computer that controls all electrical devices inside the car. the light switch , turn signal, wipers,instrument panel, keyless entry, power doors and windows,radio, car ignition, anti-theft, etc. when i spoke to the service tech today. he stated the two are not related, and that there will be an extra charge to have a tech. look into the steering column. i told him i would pay the difference because smoke should not come out of the steering column. correct me if i'm wrong, but most of the things the bcm controls run through the steering column. they do not want to look at my complaint, they only want to put in a 600 dollar part. if the wires are burnt the bcm still won't work. and the car still won't work or else it may burn out a new bcm. why is saturn so hesitant to listen to a customers complaint ? *tr | |||
| 06/23/2009 | 90000 | 1 | |
| 2002 saturn l300 . have followed all maint. guidelines. though it is on it's third battery, third set of tires, power steering pump replaced, timing belt replaced, ecm replaced, two catalytic converters replaced, the list goes on and on. less than 90,000 miles. drove the car. got out, pushed the keyless alarm ( original factory) got dinner, pushed the keyless entry, got into the car , turned the key..and the car was dead. car does not start. locked in park, had to have it towed. tow truck driver had to use the dolly lifts to move the car, so he could position it to be able to tow it. had it towed to a service garage, they followed gm's instructions ..no luck. the car had to be towed again , to a saturn dealership ( the only ones who have the codes) to reset the vehicle. they told me they could not reset it. told me it needs a new bcm. stated ecm and bcm are unable to communicate. so that until the module is replaced the car is inoperable. stated they knew the bcm's go bad, stated they have had alot of these go bad ( alot)???. the service tech stated they are like a computer hard drive on steroids . stated they burn out with no way to check them or fix them. he said they should be able tofix the car. but they do not keep any bcm in stock. it will be a week before they can get the part. after replacing the bcm i was told the cars information will not be accurate. they told me the odometer goes back to zero. how can that be the dealer just turn back the odometer isn't that illegal? i was told that sometimes there maybe some other issues also after installing a new bcm?? if they know that the bcm is a problem, and that when it goes bad, the car is completely useless! why isn't something being done ! you are at the mercy of saturn / gm because no one else is allowed to fix the car. i will now be waiting a week for my vehicle to be repaired. only to hope it runs correctly after it's repaired. *tr | |||
| 02/01/2009 | 84000 | 1 | |
| I'll keep this quick. no crash, no deaths, just faulty equipment. i'm going to reference nhtsa campaign id number: 03v231000 , saturn recall 03-c-06. i have an 2002 l300 v6 engine that is not the engine in this recall, but, i kid you not, word for word summary you wrote for the above fits my car completely. i have reported to saturn and they're seeing what they can do, but since my engine is not included in this report, it's not covered in the recall. i'm now facing upwards 3k bill to fix all the damage that i believe to have been caused by this similar problem. *tr | |||
| 03/30/2008 | 46500 | 1 | |
| My battery went bad after i took it into the shop to get a recall completed on the vehicle. the problem was present after a new battery was installed. the body control module i am told is bad. there are complaints all over the internet about the car having the same problems with other people. my car has only 48,000 miles on it. saturn will give me 10% off on a $1,000.00 repair bill. they said because i did not have all my service work done at a saturn dealership, they would not do anything better. it is a shame. many people are having the same complaint about the same vehicle. *tr | |||
| 03/01/2008 | 84984 | 1 | |
| The dashboard warning lights are on all the time and none of the gauges are working. can hear clicking noises in console and static from speakers. *tr | |||
| 02/02/2004 | 23000 | 6 | 08/17/2002 |
| Stereo comes on and goes to aux mode every time car is turned on. the stereo was replaced once, now there is a bulletin that states one must remove power to the unit in order to reset it. this entails pulling the fuse each time it starts happening, every 3 to 4 months. *jb | |||
| 07/15/2006 | 43000 | 2 | 11/20/2002 |
| I am a 3time saturn owner--both my sl series were excellent! this l300 has been a disappontment. the odometer suddenly went form 43k to 694k (stuck) w/o warning or event. the dash trunk release stopped working. im told the bcm (body control module) has to be replaced, at a cost of $600. this may be the saturn that drives me back to toyota. *nm | |||
| 03/16/2006 | 75200 | 1 | 04/14/2002 |
| Dt*: the contact stated there was a nhtsa recall, # 05v245000 concerning the exterior lighting that was performed however; numerous electrical problems evolved since the repair. the dash panel lights intermittently illuminated while driving at various speeds. although the ignition was turned off the headlights illuminated which resulted in a battery failure. the vehicle was seen by a dealer and the headlight high/low beam dimmer switch was replaced, but the problem persisted. additionally, the vehicle stalled and was towed back to the dealer which determined there was a failure of the drive shaft and this was replaced. the ongoing electrical problems persisted and the vehicle was taken to the dealer to await further inspection. | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - BATTERY | |||
| 08/29/2006 | 55125 | 3 | 09/30/2002 |
| I purchased my 2002 saturn l300 back on 9/30/2002. car, at time of purchase, was brand new. since its purchase my vehicle has been in the shop more times than i can remember. recently i had a problem where vehicle wouldn't start so saturn had the vehicle towed to their columbus, ga location to evaluate the problem. was advised battery had died and i needed to replace it. the new battery represents the 3rd battery this vehicle has had since i purchased it (vehicle currently has just over 55,000 miles on it). i asked, while they had it in the shop, to look at the tires as they were wearing unevenly. my wife went to pick the car up yesterday 8/29/06 and was advised all 4 tires needed to be replaced. this will be the 4th set of tires this car has had since it was purchased back in late 2002. at time of purchase i added a 5 year 60,000 mile b-t-b warranty with no deductible. saturn, following complaints both to the service department and their corp headquarters has decided that the car in fact does not have a problem and that my pregnant wife (with 1 year old in back seat) must be driving it poorly. to date, the vehicle's tires have not been replaced and the problem causing the tires to wear down so quickly has not been identified. *nm | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION - MODULE | |||
| 02/01/2009 | 84000 | 1 | |
| I'll keep this quick. no crash, no deaths, just faulty equipment. i'm going to reference nhtsa campaign id number: 03v231000 , saturn recall 03-c-06. i have an 2002 l300 v6 engine that is not the engine in this recall, but, i kid you not, word for word summary you wrote for the above fits my car completely. i have reported to saturn and they're seeing what they can do, but since my engine is not included in this report, it's not covered in the recall. i'm now facing upwards 3k bill to fix all the damage that i believe to have been caused by this similar problem. *tr | |||
| 04/07/2006 | 52080 | 1 | 07/13/2002 |
| My 2002 saturn l300 died without warning or indication in the middle of a busy traffic intersection and would not restart. i had to have the car flatbed towed to my service center where they diagnosed the problem as a defective engine control module. the dealer, saturn of cool springs, acknowledged they have seen an increasing number of bad engine control modules on the l series. they did not offer to make any adjustment for the repair costs. after my independent service center installed the new engine control module, the car was still inoperable and had to be towed to saturn of cool spring so they could program the new engine control module and the body control module. i am concerned that without any prior indication of a problem the car could have died on railroad tracks or in some other more dangerous situation. *jb | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - SOFTWARE | |||
| 06/13/2002 | 500 | 50 | 06/13/2002 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2002 saturn l300. while driving the vehicle at various speeds, the exterior lights remain illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and they stated that the switches for all the lights on the vehicle needed to be replaced. the check engine light was illuminated because the engine module computer needed to be replaced along with other sensors. the contact also stated that the oil housing failed. while getting an oil change at jiffy lube, the contact was informed that the oil housing screw was loose and the filter could not be changed. the current mileage was 82,564 and failure mileage was 500. | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING | |||
| 1 | |||
| The brake lights failed to illuminate simultaneously. dealership had to replace the brake lights constantly. the problem was traced to the electrical system. *ak | |||