2003 Saab 9-5: engine stalls while driving

Filed Jul 17, 2014 · Electrical · NY

Tl* the contacts owns a 2003 saab 9-5. The contact stated that while driving various speeds, the check engine warning light illuminated and the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was taken to a independent mechanic where the technician diagnosed that the direct ignition cassette needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown and the current mileage was 125,000.

Filed Jan 30, 2014 · Electrical · 100,000 miles · VA

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 saab 9-5. The contact stated that while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that the steering wheel and the brakes seized as the engine stalled. The contact was able to stop the vehicle with the emergency brake. The vehicle was towed to a local mechanic, who performed a diagnostic test and discovered that the ignition discharge module was defective. The contact referenced the federal safety agency campaign I.d. Number: 06v410000 (electrical system) and called the manufacturer, who advised that the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was 100,000.

Filed Feb 9, 2013 · Acceleration, Electrical · 112,000 miles · CT

I was driving approximately 30-35 MPH down a four lane road when the car stalled leaving me with no power at the accelerator. It became very difficult to steer the car and the brake pedal became very hard to depress. Luckily I was able to coast off the road where the car came to a complete stop blocking the entrance/exit of a gas station. I was less then 200 feet from where I was turning onto the entrance ramp of a highway. The gas station attendant was very upset telling me I can not leave my car there. The car would not start after several attempts. The car was towed to the mechanic. The car has been at the service station for over 2 weeks now. The technician is unable to find the reason the car stalled. However he explained that the fuel pump and the fuel pump relay are operational. He also explained that there is no electricity getting to the fuel pump. He has already replaced the crankshaft position sensor and is in the process of checking all sensors and relays. During my own research, I have found that these cars have faulty electrical systems with many recalls on the direct ignition cassette (dic). At this point, we do not know what caused the problem. I am a single mother with 2 young children and rely on this automobile on a daily basis. In fact, I had just dropped my daughter (9 years old) off at dancing school. I was just on the highway 20 minutes prior to dropping my daughter off at dancing school. I am extremely concerned that this will happen again. I can not afford to have this problem happen without cause and warning. Would you please forward me any information via e-mail or regular mail that would help assure me this problem will never happen again. If you know this car is problematic then please inform me to sell the car so I can get a more reliable car that will prevent the risk of injury or death to me and my family.

Filed Mar 25, 2009 · Electrical · 127,125 miles · NY

My 2003 saab 9-5 arc v6 3.0turbo has begun having issues with the ignition. It frequently will not start. It turns over but the engine will not completely fire. In addition, once it does start it will often stall out. This generally happens when switching from park to drive or reverse or when at a stoplight/stop sign. Once the car stalls it does not just restart. The spark plugs are all new and no lines are broken/damaged. I have examined recalls on this car and recall05087/15021b describes my problem and my model of car is listed yet I am told that this recall does not apply to my VIN number. This has happened for a few months. I am listing the incident date as today's date.

Filed Jan 31, 2009 · Electrical, Fuel system · 66,500 miles · WA

Car runs perfectly and at highway speeds will randomly stall. If you can manage to not get into an accident the car will start right back up after you turn off the key and restart. Sometimes every couple of miles, and can go several miles without the stall. Seems to only happen at constant speeds. This is a very dangerous problem. Diagnostic codes are p1230 and p1261, but I think these are results of the sudden stall, and not the problem. *tr updated 03/10/09.

Filed Mar 10, 2007 · Electrical, Engine · 32,200 miles · NJ

Driving on the interstate - exited onto an interchange ramp at 50 MPH - and the engine stalled without warning. Vehicle at rear nearly rear-ended mine - but missed by a hairs whisker. Another piece of luck was that I was at the crest of the ramp so managed to "coast" towards the shoulder. Waited for a bit - the car wouldn't restart. Had to spend perilous time on the left shoulder before getting my car towed. At the time of writing - the car is sitting in the dealers lot. Nothing special happened prior to this incident. Previously a similar incident had occurred just outside my residence - and the dealer checked it out and said it might just be "bad gas". Saab's customer assistance program was useless. Based on the other incidents reported - refer to odi #s: 10162804, 10137685, 10097342 - there is something definitely wrong with this vehicle. Please take action before someone loses their life.

Filed Sep 26, 2005 · Engine · NY

Car stalled while cruising at 75 miles per hour on a busy interstate. Car could not be restarted, even after pulling to the side of the road. No prior indication of imminent failure was given'the engine simply cut out and check engine light came on. Dealer diagnosed as the failure of as a bad throttle body. This is a known weakness in the car for which saab has been trying to find a solution for years. The servicing dealer was surprised that the part was not in stock since it fails often. Many people have throttle body problems which trigger limp home mode and require a cleaning and/or replacement of the throttle body. Reportedly newer software triggers a check engine light before complete failure. This early warning was not given this case. It is completely unacceptable that this should still be an issue on a 2003 model year vehicle when the problem first showed itself in 1998. Does someone have to die in a rear end collision before saab or the federal safety agency will act on this?

Filed Dec 9, 2004 · Acceleration, Body · 3,000 miles · CT

The vehicle stalled on 4 separate occasions from various speeds of 25 MPH or more while driving. The vehicle has been to the dealer on 3 separate occasions. The dealer has cleaned and tightened the battery cables, the first time, they replaced the crank sensor, t-7 and the ignition switch, the second time and the third time, they were unable to duplicate the problem. *jb the ECM was replaced but the vehicle stalled again, the cup holder crack and had broken, the battery cables were loose and dirty, the transmission did not shift properly and caused a jerking motion, the electrical gauges dropped and the vehicle lost acceleration.