I took my 2003 Saturn ion to my local Chevrolet dealership in Lincoln Illinois and they refused to complete the recall issues (2) both are to do with the ignition and keys.thwy told me it was not fixable it needed a whole steering column that would cost me they said around $800.so it has now been 2 weeks my car has been there at Graue Chevrolet Dealership unfixed and they refused to fix please help me it's my only means of transportation and I have health issues that I have to go to Dr appointments quite frequently.
2003 Saturn Ion engine problems
79 complaints (10% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 72,000. 1 crash reported.
- owner complaints
- 79
- of this car's complaints
- 10%
- typical mileage
- 72,000
- crashes
- 1
- recalls
- 0
Which part fails
- Engine14
- Exhaust system3
- Cooling system3
- Engine: gasoline: belts and associated pulleys2
- Exhaust system: emission control: catalytic convertor1
- Exhaust system: emission control1
- Engine: gasoline1
- Cooling system: fan1
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
0k-25k
25k-50k
50k-75k
75k-100k
100k-125k
125k-150k
150k-175k
175k-200k
200k+
Saturn Ion engine problems in other years
Specific symptoms reported on the 2003 Saturn Ion engine
Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.
Won't start 168Stalling 70Loss of power 26Check engine light 18Engine failure 12
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Related investigations
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).
PE06006
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.
DP05008
What 2003 Saturn Ion owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
2003 saturn ion, consumer writes in regards to broken timing chain. The consumer stated while driving the timing chain broke, nearly causing a crash in the middle of an intersection.
Fuel line to throttle body leaked fuel due to stress cracks. Part that failed is " no longer available" according to gm parts sales. .mechanic welded cracked pipe and said eh has fixed quite a few of these. I have receipt from repair shop
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 saturn ion. While driving at various speeds, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact had to apply force to the steering wheel in order to steer the vehicle. The failure recurred on numerous occasions. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and repaired per a recall. After the repairs, while driving at various speeds, the accelerator pedal was depressed, but the vehicle failed to accelerate. The air bag and check engine warning lights illuminated. The manufacturer was not notified of the failures. The recall specifics were unknown. The failure mileage was 141,000. Updated 10/19/16*lj
On sat., july 2, 2016 I noticed a loud noise coming from the engine area. Being a holiday weekend, I had to wait to take it to the dealership on tues., july 5, 2016. I ended up taking it to a reputable mechanic that day after a runaround at the dealership and filing a complaint against them. The mechanic did not know how I made it to his shop. The timing chain was completely loose and tensioner had broke off inside as well as a couple of bolts. Looking at the oil nozzler it was blocked which could be causing lack of oil going to the tensioner/chain. I have read posts that this was an issue on certain saturn cars as well as timing chain. I purchased my car new in june 2003 and have maintained it very well, barely driving 5,000 mi./yr. Keeping the oil changed when required. I am not certain if the car was in motion at the time this occurred or if it happened at start up. I was able to drive it to the mechanic, however, he did not see how I could have made it there due to the condition of the parts. I was driving on the fwy. At 65 MPH and made it there safely.
This is the third time in one year that my timing chain has slipped on my 2003 saturn ion. I have read that the oil port is not large enough to handle oiling the chain. I have already paid out of pocket nearly 2000 dollars and it is still in the shop. It has messed up other parts of the engine every time it has done this. So I have to have other parts replaced also that are result of this. It runs fine then suddenly and without warning I can go to start the car and it starts having a spasm and then shutters and will not start. I am so afraid to keep having the timing chain fixed on this since I have read that it is really a fault in the engineering of the engine to start with. Please help. I need a number to call to see if there is a recall or will gm fix this problem that is surely their fault and not the fault of the owner of the car. It is a good running car and I did enjoy driving it but I can't keep getting the timing chain fixed if fixing the timing chain is not the problem really but is something else that is causing the timing chain to fail.
While driving at steady speed of 70 MPH car fails to accelerate and boggs down when giving gas car then decelerates and stalls. Will not start back up for a few minutes then drives and runs like nothing happened
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 saturn ion. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. The contact also stated that the windshield wipers failed to operate. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unavailable.
Timing chain broke, after having cleared a tune up only a couple weeks ago. No other problems with the car, and from doing some research I see that this was a problem with 2003 ions but gm had no recall information for me, on my profile page on their website. I am now without a car and no way to afford a new one, and the only thing I'm thankful for, is that I wasn't on the highway or anything when it happened, and it occurred when I tried to start my car.
Ask a mechanic spring 2014, we had the recall on the ignition fixed on my 2003 saturn. On september 9th my son drove the saturn to detroit mi. About half way there on I-94, at rush hour, the saturn lost power and began stopping. He was going about 70 miles/hour and didn't have extra keys on the key ring. Luckily, he is strong, smart and quick thinking. He was able to wrestle the steering column toward an exit, while depressing the clutch and restarting the car. Thankfully it started! If I had been driving the car, I don't think I could have done those things. We called the dealership that fixed the car and after numerous calls, they said they were not authorized to tow the car and fix it. Now several weeks later and in response to letters sent to gm executives, they tell us the same thing. I am telling them their fix is not a fix! I don't want others injured or dead. Why is this entitled 'ask a mechanic'? We were told many years ago by a mechanic at the saturn dealer not to hang extra keys on our ring. This dealer has been gone for many years. Maybe someone needs to ask a current mechanic if this is the right fix for gm vehicles.
Questions about the 2003 Saturn Ion engine
Does the 2003 Saturn Ion have engine problems?
Owners have filed 79 complaints about the engine of the 2003 Saturn Ion, 10% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 2003 Saturn Ion engine problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 72,000 miles.
Is there a recall for the 2003 Saturn Ion engine?
There is no recall for this problem on this model year.
Other 2003 Saturn Ion problems
Electrical 383Steering 139Transmission 55Airbags 49Acceleration 38Visibility 38Fuel system 34Lights 31Body 19Brakes 11Locks 10Suspension 9Seat belts 7Tires 5Driver assistance 4Seats 3Wheels 2
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