Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. The contact stated that the power steering failed and the vehicle began pulling hard to the right with the illumination of the power steering warning light. The vehicle was not inspected or repaired. The failure and the current mileage was 101,314.
2004 Saturn Ion steering complaints
Page 7 of 13: complaints 161 to 190 of 345, newest first, as owners wrote them.
The power steering is failing nearly every time the car is used. It fails within minutes after the car is started. Making turns requires a lot of effort in turning the steering wheel. The car can still be driven without the power steering, but one would hardly call it safe.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. While driving approximately 40 MPH, the power steering warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic but the mechanic was unable to diagnose the failure. The failure recurred intermittently when driving at various speeds but would happen more often when driving at highway speeds. The vehicle was not repaired. There was a concurrent investigation under the federal safety agency action number: ea11014 (steering:electric power assist system) that could have been related to the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 160,343.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion 3. The contact was driving 30 MPH when the power steering failure warning light illuminated. The failure light went off when the vehicle was restarted. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer, but the manufacturer was contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 95,354.
When pulling out of a parking space, the power steering failed. Before leaving the parking space I inspected the belt- it was intact- and the ground underneath the vehicle- there was no fluid loss. Steering the car out of the parking space required great effort. Proceeding on the road, the power assist seemed to return. I pulled into a parking lot where the power assist seemed to be working fine with a sharp left turn, but not at all on a sharp right turn. Further along the road, when making a right turn, the power assist seemed to operate normally. Also normal power assist was experience on a left turn. I operated the vehicle for several more short trips, stopping and restarting the vehicle- the problem did not repeat itself, but I have read online and in news reports that this has been a problem for other saturn owners.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. The contact stated while reversing from a driveway, the power steering system malfunctioned causing the steering wheel to become stiff. The contact shut the vehicle off and restarted it and the power steering system was reset to normal. The contact called the dealer and the dealer advised the contact to bring the vehicle in for inspection. The contact did not take the vehicle to the dealer for diagnosis or repairs. The failure mileage was 101,817.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. The contact stated while driving various speeds, a warning bell would sound and the steering wheel seized. He turned the vehicle off, restarted it and the steering wheel began to function normally. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 58,383.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. The contact stated that while driving 40 MPH, the steering wheel seized. The vehicle was carefully maneuvered to the shoulder and shut off. Upon restart, the vehicle operated as normal. The failure had since recurred on an intermittent basis. The vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired and the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The contact also stated that the vehicle would intermittently experience a failure in which it would not start. Whenever the failure occurred, the contact would have to wait approximately ten minutes before the vehicle would successfully start. The failure mileage was 145,000.
While driving my saturn ion 2004 the power steering light in the dashboard came on while I was engaging in a curve on highway 15, I was barely able to control the vehicle no to crash on the concrete middle divider and had to immobilize the vehicle, stop the engine and restart it in order to get the power steering to work again. This has happen to me few time per year over the last 3 years but now I am afraid for my life and it is happening more and more frequently.
Power steering went out. Steering got hard to turn.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the power steering would fail after the warning light illuminated. The steering wheel would then become very difficult to manuever. The vehicle had not been inspected by a dealer, nor had it been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 103,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. The contact stated while driving, the power steering light illuminated and it became difficult to turn the steering wheel. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic who diagnosed that the steering module was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was declared salvage. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 108,000.
2004 saturn ion with 118k miles. The power steering will go out at least a couple of times a week at random times. This began to occur when the vehicle had about 90k miles but gm refused to repair. When it originally happen it would occur about once a month but now has progressed to a constant occurrence. The on board screen next to gauges will show "pwr steer" and beep loudly. This means the power steering has gone out. Can occur at any speed or road type. Car will become difficult to maneuver. The only way to get the power steering back is to restart the car by turning it off and back on. It is unsafe to drive the vehicle without the power steering.
Electronic assist power steering fails without any warning. Steering becomes very difficult if not impossible for some people which could lead to loss of control.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. The contact stated while driving approximately 60 MPH the vehicle suddenly stalled. She noticed that the power steering warning illuminated after the failure occurred. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and drive it to the dealer. The dealer advised her that the power steering assist system needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure and current miles were approximately 113,900.
2004 saturn ion 2 power steering failure.
Driving down the road and power steering quit working. Was very hard to control. I had my two kids in the back and did everything to keep from going into the other lane.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. While driving approximately 15 MPH the vehicle pulled to the left vigorously and the power steering light illuminated on the instrument panel. The contact pulled the steering wheel to the right and it began to function normally. The failure occurred intermittently. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing because it was not covered by a warranty. The manufacturer was contacted and stated they could not assist with repairs. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 147,000.
I lost my power steering and the pwr str warning light came on while driving on the interstate. When I safely exited, I read the owner's manual and it said this requires immediate service. I went directly to a firestone dealer but they were near closing and could not put it on diagnostics and asked me to return in the morning. However, when they started the car, the warning light was off and the power steering ability returned. I researched this online and it seems this is the same problem that prompted gm to recall other gm vehicles in march 2010, but not the saturns. While the problem may be temporarily resolved by replacing 2 fuses, the ultimate solution is to replace the steering column motor which is a rather expensive item. I believe the saturns should have been included in that recall gm issued.
I own a saturn ion 2004 and I am experiencing loss of power steering while driving on the highway. Gm recall should include all saturn ions regardless of mileage, because of the magnitude of this issue. The saturn ions should not be allowed on the highways because of this safety risk.
My 2004 saturn ion is having issues with the power steering going out while I drive the vehicle. After turning the car off and back on, it resets it, as it is electric power steering, but the problem persists and keeps getting worse. It will turn off about 10 times in a mile on average. I have done research on the issue and it has caused 14 deaths in other instances. After calling the dealer, they say it is not a recall, and will not help me out. A few gm cars like the cobalt have the same issues all covered under warranty and have the exact same power steering motor and steering column. I am in the process to find the partsand replaced them, but the dealer is not willing to help in this matter. Here is a link on a discussion forum for this topic. Http://vlane.com/discuss-topic/1695/saturn-ion-power-steering-issues.
While driving the car under normal conditions I suddenly lost power steering nearly causing an accident.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. The contact was driving approximately 20 MPH when the power steering warning light illuminated and the steering wheel became extremely stiff and difficult to maneuver. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic yet the mechanic was unable to diagnose the failure. The failure recurred and the vehicle was taken back to the mechanic where the contact was advised that the steering and motor module would need replacing. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 41,000.
My wife was driving down the road and her power steering went out on her 2004 saturn ion. This made it very difficult to steer. My wife was driving at approx. 65 MPH on the highway. It was very dangerous. I have researched this and found a lot of people with the same issue. Gm needs to do a recall. Apparently my wife's car has the same steering as the chevy cobalt which was recalled for the very same thing. What about all the consumers that don't know they are driving this car and that their steering can go out on them at any moment? This is a serious issue!
This complain has to do with a saturn 2004 ion, my steering wheel was not working at all, it was hard to make left and right turns, as driving with a steering wheel that is hard to move is really dangerous. Thank god I was not driving to a far place, but I have been online checking the recalls on the saturn ion 2004, and I cannot believe that a company will not recall these cars, I know that is a loss on money but honestly is going to be your fault if someone gets hurts while driving with defects on the saturns, they will be sued . So don't think about the money , think about the lives of people that are letting you know that this car is defective, so if something does happened to me, I will sued this company .
I have a 2004 saturn ion. The power steering goes out while driving. This is seriously dangerous. Gm claims that the car can still be driven with extra effort. That's bull!!!! I am a 200 pound 6ft tall man. And I cannot steer the car into into a drive way to exit the roadway when this happens. If my wife was driving the vehicle this could cause a serious accident. I purchased this car used with 96000 miles on it. How does the sorry excuse for a recall from gm help me?!!!!! 10 year or 100k mile. My car now has 150k miles on it. Please make gm do a full recall on these very dangerous vehicles.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. The contact was driving approximately 35 MPH when the steering wheel suddenly became difficult to maneuver when turning in either direction without warning. The vehicle was not inspected by a dealer nor was it repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 85,000. The VIN was unavailable.
I was running errands, stopped to get gas (car was working fine), when I pulled out of the gas station I heard the warning chimes and the dash flashed "pwr str". Immediately it was difficult to make any turns, but still possible. I pulled into a parking lot, turned off the car and waited a minute, turned it back on. For about 10 seconds the steering felt fine and I had no warning chimes or lights, then as I pulled out into the street, the chimes and the pwr str warning came back and I was on my own again. I drove the vehicle home and later in the evening tried to see if it was just a fluke, but once the vehicle was started I immediately had the warning. This just happened for the first time yesterday so I have not had it repaired yet.
When parallel parking or parking in a conventional space, steering becomes difficult. At first it was every couple of months, now it is becoming multiple times within a month. It last happened about a week ago. While this is an intermittent problem, it is a problem none the less. Typically occurs after cranking the steering wheel to pull into a parking spot or out of a parking spot. Its as if there is no power steering when maneuvering the steering wheel. This is not a problem resulting from resistance from a curb, nor is it from lack of the vehicle moving. This has happened while in reverse and backing. This has happened while in drive and moving forward. Typically coincides with a full crank of the steering wheel to the left. This is an issue which I am unable to duplicate on a deliberate attempt of duplication. This leads me to believe it to be an intermittent issue. I was teaching a friend how to drive in my car, and he was saying that the wheel was very difficult to turn. At first I thought he was just going through the trials and tribulations of a person learning to drive. Seeing him labor more over the wheel in order to get it to turn. I had him stop the car and I switched with him. I started the car and attempted to parallel park. I encountered the same issue as him while attempting to park. This was the first time it happened.
I have a sudden loss of power steering and my steering wheel gets hard after driving for so long and in the message center pwr str comes on. In the morning due to the cold weather my car will not start and will say service vehicle. I don't know if it's due to the fact that my car has sudden loss of power steering.
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