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 | |
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. | ||||||
| DP08002 | GENERAL MOTORS CORP. | 06/18/2008 | 10/16/2008 | TIMING CHAIN FAILURE-STALL | ||
| On june 6, 2006, odi opened an investigation of timing chain failure resulting in engine stall while driving with no restart in approximately 20,514 model year (my) 2001 saturn l-series vehicles equipped with 2.2l engines (l61) built from november 2000 through february 2001 (ea06-009).the vehicles built during those months exhibited higher failure rates than similarly equipped vehicles built before and after.gm introduced a new timing chain design in production in may 2002.odi closed its investigation after gm initiated a safety recall on november 7, 2007 (recall 07v-519). on may 22, 2008, the north carolina consumers council (nccc) submitted a defect petition to odi requesting the expansion of recall 07v-519 to include all my 1999 through 2003 saturn l-series vehicles with 2.2l engines using the same timing chain design as the recalled population.the petition states that the nccc continues to receive complaints from consumers that have had a timing chain fail in vehicles built outside the production range covered by the recall.the petition also notes that odi has continued to receive complaints.since the closing of ea06-009 odi has received 80 new complaints from consumers who had a timing chain fail in a my 2000 through 2002 saturn l-series with the 2.2l engine that were not covered by recall 07v-519 and were built prior to the timing belt change in may 2002.the complaints describe the same failure mode as the recalled population where the timing chain can break suddenly and without warning, resulting in engine damage and loss of motive power.the defect petition has been granted. a preliminary evaluation (pe08-061) has been opened. | ||||||
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | |||
| 11/30/2009 | 45000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2000 saturn ion. while the vehicle was parked the ignition would not turn on. the failure occurs any day that it is under forty degrees outside. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technician diagnosed the failure to be the ignition switch which needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 45,000. ds | |||
| 04/10/2008 | 71000 | 1 | |
| I was picking my kids up from the babysitters when i heard a ticking noise. let me remind you that i hadn't any engine problems before this day. anyway, i heard the ticking noise as i was pulling up to the sitters house and cut my car off. restarted the car and the noise was louder. took my car to the shop and they told me that my timing chain was broken and that my engine had to be replaced. i don't understand why this was not covered under saturn because my car only has 70k miles. it's a 2000 saturn ls2 and it was running fine up until this date. there was no sign of this problem before it happened and i just don't understand why i should have to pay $3600 out my pocket but saturn will take no responsibility for this major problem. can you help me out? what if this would have happened while i was on the highway with my kids and an accident happened? *tr | |||
| 09/28/2008 | 149000 | 1 | |
| My son was driving my 2000 saturn ls2 at 30 mph, when the car suddenly died and would not start. upon further investigation, the was no compression when turning over the vehicle. my mechanic has told me that the tensioner arm holding the timing belt shattered. the timing belt on this vehicle had been replaced by the dealership 18 months prior. luckily, my son was on a lightly traveled residential street at the time of the malfunction and was not injured nor were his passengers. *tr | |||
| 08/10/2008 | 115000 | 1 | |
| I was driving on a highway when my car made a stuttering noise. i pulled over - luckily near a service station and they discovered the timing chain had snapped. *tr | |||
| 04/25/2008 | 70000 | 1 | |
| While driving her 2000 saturn ls2 3.0 my daughters car suddenly died on her. she was able to pull into a hotel parking lot off the interstate. after towing it to two independent car repair shops, they both refused to work on it. after towing it to saturn, they confirmed that it was the issue with the timing belt. they claim that this car is not part of the recall but that does not mitigate the fact that they have a huge failure rate with their timing belts. why is this one not covered under the same recall as the nhtsa action number: ea06009? there is a greater problem then they are letting on to if you read the internet pages about the 2000 ls2. they need to be held accountable. *tr | |||
| 11/12/2007 | 1 | 02/13/2000 | |
| According to the saturn service advisor, saturn recommends replacing the timing chain at 100,000 miles. after performing $1500 worth of repairs (a/c, axle, oil pan dent, transmission fluid leak, and air filters), the mechanic started to take it for a test drive, and the timing chain broke - at just under 89,000 miles. since they didn't think the engine was damaged, i authorized them to replace the timing chain for $800. a few days later, i learned that the engine was damaged and had to be replaced - $1500. i chose not to do this and donated the car to the salvation army. *tr | |||
| 06/07/2007 | 74000 | 1 | 03/30/2004 |
| I own a 2000 saturn ls2. i bought it in 2005 at 26,00 miles. it currently has 74,000 miles on it. there was no rattle or warning, but my timing belt broke 6/7/07 and now my car engine is damaged beyond repair. | |||
| 01/28/2006 | 5 | ||
| Transmission slipping and occasional stalling of car, particularly when stopping. car finally would not start again. dealership did not find fault with car. personal mechanic investigated and determined the crank sensor had gone bad, so the car could not monitor the mph and find the gears appropriately.*jb | |||
| 06/27/2005 | 56412 | 12/22/2004 | |
| I was driving to work at approx. 35 mph. i own a saturn 2000 ls with a 3.0 v6 with 56,413 mi. my ses light & battery lght came on while i was driving - almost at the same time my car died.my car would not start.all my gages were normal prior to the car dying. i had to have the car towed.it was towed to pep boys they told me that the timing slipped and that the serpentine belt was melted. they told me take it to a saturn dealership in order to fix it.they also informed me that this was the 3rd saturn ls2 in the shop this week with the same problem.the car was towed to saturn of orchard park.saturn had the car from 06/28/05 until i picked it up on 7/06/05.the tech told me that he found that the water pump had leaked onto the timing belt - the timing belt slipped causing the car to jump timing - this caused the sepentine belt to snap and it melted into the pulleys. i told him that there was no indication to me that anything was wrong with the water pump. there was no leaking of fluid on the driveway of my home.the engine temp.gauge was normal.i just had the oil changed and the transmission checked. in the end the tech replaced the water pump (this is the second water pump for this vehicle - the first one was replaced when the car had 19,958 miles in 2001). all pulley grooves were ground out. the tensioner pulley and belts were replaced. engine still would not start. all the intake and some exhaust valves were damaged. both head cylinder banks were replaced the cam and timing were set. the car was road tested. $ 4,313.05 later - i have my car back. i could have been in a serious rear end collision. saturn is well aware of the problems with this engine. there is no guarantee that the same thing will not happen again. i have contacted saturn customer service - they offer no assistance. i believe that there is a serious design flaw with this engine. i would like to see this investigated. | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE | |||
| 02/20/2011 | 185000 | ||
| Timing chain broke on 2000 saturn ls2 3.0l v6 engine while driving down the road causing engine failure. the 2.2l engine has been recalled and there are many complaints about the 3.0l engine having the same failures. this engine should be included in the recall also. | |||
| 05/15/2009 | 60000 | 1 | |
| 2000 saturn l series driving to work and timing chain broke. car had approx 60,000 miles on it. saturn says 1 in a million no warranty. had to have engine replaced at a cost of 4500. now car has 132000 and same thing happened again saturn says sorry another engine would cost 5000 it seems by researching the internet l series saturns have a flaw or defect with their timing chains. *tr | |||
| 01/20/2006 | 28475 | 5 | 09/09/2005 |
| 2000 saturn ls200 v6 engine, 28,500 approx. mileage. i was coming off the freeway and the car died. no warning, no idiot lights, it just completely died. i had enough speed to get over to the side out of traffic, but it was incredibly hard to steer. it would not start. my husband came after about 20 min. it started. i thought it was bad gas, but it died again several times, no warning, just completely died. i took it to the dealer, they said it was the crankshaft sensor. $260 to fix. i went back and asked them why something like that would go out with so little mileage, they said because the car hadn't been driven very much. i contacted saturn corporate. no answers there either. however, the dealer thinks if anything else goes out, there will be some warning. *jb | |||
| 06/02/2005 | 1 | 04/01/2003 | |
| Dt: vehicle blew up, there no lights prior to the failure. dealership said that the tensioner stopped the serpentine belt. after the car stopped the battery light did came on. dealership said that the engine light would not come on because that was a mechanical problem not electrical. dalso, ealership said that the serpentine belt shredded. vehicle was serviced about one month prior to this and everything was fine.*ak | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE | |||
| 07/11/2002 | 3 | 06/01/2000 | |
| While driving at highway speeds, engine will start to shake uncontrolably making vehicle feel as if we're shaking apart. dt | |||
| 1 | 08/30/1999 | ||
| The service engine light illuminates due to a misfire condition and intermittent stalling without warning, the consumer is requesting full refund of the puchase price plus direct and indirect expences. nlm | |||
| 09/01/2000 | 4 | ||
| Vehicle stalls at any speed, taken to dealer 4 times, cannot duplicate problem. vehicle has stalled numerous times.*ak | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE - BELTS AND ASSOCIATED PULLEYS | |||
| 10/15/2003 | 1 | ||
| I have had ongoing problems with this vehicle since i purchased it in 2003. i purchase this car in august 2003. in october 2003, the car would not start. it was discovered that the wrong type bolt was in the battery causing the car not to start. i purchased the bolt at the dealership had it installed. in october 2004, the car started shifting hard. i took it to the dealership and was told that it needed some type of valve and that would solve the problem. again, the dealership installed this valve and everything was fine. november 2005, the blower for the heating and defogger only works when the car has sat out in the sun for a while. it does not work in the morning when the car is initially started in the mornings. three days before christmas 2005, with only approximately 68,000 miles on this car, the timing belt broke. it did not damage the motor and i had it repaired at a cost of around $900.00. this time i did not have the dealership do the repairs because it would have been very inconvenient and expensive for me to have the car towed the dealership from where it broke down. while looking through my owners manual, i noticed that it stated that my timing belt should last at least to 100,000 miles (my thirteen year old nissan's timing belt lasted until 120,000 miles). when i addressed this with your customer care line, i was told that the 100,000 miles was just a suggestion and that the belt could actually go at any time. i guess maybe the word suggestion/suggested should have been put in the owners manual because that is not how i understood it when i read it as printed. january 2006, the car starts hard shifting again and again i took it to the dealership and was told that this time the transmission can't seem to figure out the speed of the car and it would cost an additional $80.00 for them to track it down. *nm | |||