Drivers seat broke down on right side, causing it to slump towards the console. Upon taking it to the dealer to seek repair, was told that the welding of the seat unit had broken. The entire seat and the housing base require replacement over $1000 to fix. While it doesn't require fixing to operate car, the danger is in a crash, having the seat catapult out entirely being as it is not affixed to the vehicle any more. You can wiggle it up and down freely, this could also allow the seat to throw someone into the air bags as they deploy, causing injuries because it is not fastened down. After researching online, this vehicle make and model is prone to this problem for the few short years it was made. We feel that gm needs to update this seat problem, and while not sure, they use chev malibu replacement parts for it, so that model may also be experiencing the problem for more data. A seat should be intact, attached safely to the vehicle we would think. Never heard of seats being free of the body of the car while driving.
2008 Saturn Aura body complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 18 of 18, newest first, as owners wrote them.
I came out to get in my car this morning and thought it was strange my husband had not closed the driver side door. I got in and closed the door and it popped open, it would not latch. I tried numerous times and check to see if anything was preventing it from latching and could not find anything. I pulled it shut and manual locked the door and it stayed latched. I drove to work, got out and shut the door with no issue. I got in the car again, no issue. Got out, would not close, so I pushed it shut and locked with remote, is stayed latched, then I tried to get back in, using the remote, the lock inside the door popped up like it had unlocked, but the door would not open. After 4 attempts I got it to open. Got in and drove, got out, door would not close. Have an appointment to have it looked at tomorrow. I don't feel safe driving if the door could pop open at any time!
Rear door locks not responding to remote, intermittently at first, over a couple months not responding at all. This would be fine if there were a key hole to unlock back doors but there are not. The only way to get the doors to lock or unlock is manually and this is a problem as locks are not reachable from front seat. If you are outside the only way is to start the car, unroll the back windows and manually unlock. Now driver side door is starting to do the same, it is intermittently not responding to the remote. I am sure it is a matter of time for this to fail too. Also, electrical system is strange. Some front speakers go on and off, as do lights. Occasionally upon starting vehicle no lights go on, with in a few minutes they will pop on.
Rear door lock unlock mechanism malfunction. Locks but won't unlock. Also, when backing up and turning wheel to extreme right, front end moans. One mechanic thought it might be engine mounts. Brought in service under warranty, and they "lubricated the steering box." problem recurred after warranty expired.
The first incident occurred while under warranty nov 9th 2009 when the door lock became unresponsive. They replaced free of charge. Today the remaining 3 do not work. When I start the car and drive off, it is my belief based on normal operation of these locks, that my doors are locked and passengers are safe. The reality is just the opposite. Not only does it become a safety issue as described, but it also becomes an issue when you park your car, lock your doors with the remote, and walk away with confidence that your car is locked when in fact it is not due to the faulty cheap product used in this car, and others manufactured by gm. When I went online to research, I was surprised by the number of people on various blog sites complaining of the same issue. I contacted gm and the best they offered was to replace all 4 locks for half price. That is $500 instead of $1000. While I appreciate their offer,I know for a fact a replacement actuator costs between $5 and $10, and it's not entirely about the money. It's a matter of right and wrong, safe and not safe. This issue in my mind is more about the safety of people thinking they are safely locked in their car by a system that is designed to do exactly that. This is not optional equipment either. These locks are standard equipment that I expect to work and keep me and my family safe much in the same way I expect my brakes to stop the car. I would like to see this became a recall on this and other vehicles like it. Thank you for your time.
1st incident (2/4)- vehicle was placed in park. Driver's side door would not open. Door unlocked as it should but door remained shut. Had to exit vehicle out of passenger door. Tried opening door from outside, remained shut. Left vehicle for 20 minutes, returned and tried opening again would not open with remote. A few hours later, door opened like nothing happened. 2nd incident (2/17)- same as before. Turned on and off car again still could not open door. Exited out of passenger door. Came back to car after 2 hours and door would not open. Arrived home 20 mins later, it opened. Tried closing door and it would not close. After 4 tries, it finally shut and was able to lock car. Since then I hear air coming in the car while driving but have checked the windows and they were all up. Also noticed static in radio while driving. It would stop and start again really quickly. A lot of static when playing mp3. 3rd incident (2/19)- same occurrence as before. Driver side door would not open; started working again after a few hours. Door would not lock until after a few tries. Continued static in radio even after door issue. 4th & 5th incident (3/4 & 3/5) - same occurrence. Driver side door would not work all day. 6th incident (3/5) - door would not open this morning. 30 mins later it opened. 5 hours later after taking it to firestone to check out problem, door would not open. (locked technician inside the car). Technician referred me to gm dealership for further diagnostics. He suggested it might be an electrical issue. This is really frustrating. Dropping vehicle off tonight to be seen on 3/6.
I dropped my son off at school today. When I arrived, I did not put the car in park. He exited the car, closed the door, and I drove away. About 100 yards later, I made a left turn, and the passenger door flew open. Had some one been in that seat, they could have fallen out easily. I tried to close the door, but it would not latch. I put the car in park and tried again. It still did not latch. I locked and unlocked the door using the power lock switch, and that only worked after two or three times. Later on my way home, I stopped at the store. Turned the car off, got out and shut the door. Again, it did not latch, and went through the same procedure. Then a repeat situation when returning home. I called saturn customer service who set up an appt with my gm dealer and was told it would be between $50 and $100 to just have them look at it. Really? To me, this is a serious safety issue and in my opinion should be investigated free of charge.
Clunking noise and feel from the steering wheel column area when turning my steering wheel at low speeds or a stop. I do not have the car with me but there are 3 models, my model is the six cylinder 3.5 engine.
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