Tl*the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. While the contact was driving approximately 55 MPH, a chime sounded inside of the vehicle followed by the power steering warning light illumination. Suddenly, there was a loss of power steering. The vehicle was driven to the side of the road with difficulty turning the steering wheel. The engine was turned off. The vehicle restarted and resumed with the functioning of the power steering for a short period of time before failure. The failure occurred intermittently at various speeds traveled. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired at the time of the complaint. The failure mileage was 80,000. Updated 10/27/10 *bf the consumer stated gm issued a recall to fix the problem. Updated 11/01/10
2006 Saturn Ion steering complaints
Page 14 of 19: complaints 371 to 400 of 544, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. While driving at approximately 30-40 MPH, the power steering light illuminated. The contact pulled over, parked and turned off the vehicle. After restarting, the vehicle behaved normally. The vehicle was then taken to an authorized dealership where the contact was informed that the steering column needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint and the failure became an everyday occurrence. The failure mileage was approximately 58,000. The current mileage was 66,414.
Was driving along one day heard a chime in my car,looked at the dash...it said "pwr strng" and at that very moment I had lost my power steering. From then on until the present it goes out and comes back on after I have shut the car off but only for a short time,then it goes right back out again.
The power steering in my 2006 saturn ion would fail intermittently beginning in august of 2009. There would be a clicking noise in my steering column, the power steering alert indicator would flash and then the power steering would fail. The problem persisted with the failures occurring more frequently and longer in length of failure time. They occurred at random speeds and during different times of a drive, (I.e. In the middle of a turn, on a straight path, when I start the car, longer into the drive, etc..) as of april of 2010, the power steering is more or less gone. I don't have power steering more than I do have power steering. I took it into the dealer to find out what the problem was and they said it was a faulty control module. It is an $800 repair. I am wondering why the exact same part was recalled in the chevy cobalt and not the saturn ion. This car, and others like it with this part in installed, are not safe to drive with the power steering constantly failing.
While making a turn, the power steering on my 2006 saturn ion suddenly went out. As a result, I had to steer the car without power steering to a parking lot and turned off the ignition to check under the hood. Turning the car off temporarily resolved the issue.
While driving down the street going approximately 50 MPH, a message came on in the dashboard saying pwr steer, and then it felt like my steering wheel locked up and I couldn't turn it left or right. I had to stop at a gas station and ask for help. When I turned my car back on, the power steering was working again. This has happened 3 times since then.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. While driving at approximately 25 MPH, the power steering warning light illuminated on the dashboard and the steering wheel immediately became stiff. The contact shut off the vehicle and when restarting, the steering functioned as normal. The failure occurred 8 additional times and the vehicle was taken to the dealer. The dealer advised replacing the entire steering column. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 83,561.
While driving on the highway there was a clicking noise, a chime and the pwr str light illuminated on the dash. I had to bring the car off the highway, without power steering. When I turned the car off and on again, it was fine. About a week later, same event. Now can happen within 30 seconds of starting a drive or go a day without happening. It has been an issue on and off for over two weeks now.
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. While driving at 40 MPH on may 10, 2010, the power steering module suddenly failed. The contact was able to stop the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealership where the contact was informed that the module was burned. The failure mileage was approximately 53,000. The current mileage was approximately 54,000. Updated 10/27/10.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. While driving at 20 MPH, the contact noticed that the power steering suddenly stopped functioning warning. The vehicle had not been inspected at the time of the complaint. The current and failure mileages were approximately 57,000.
While driving a 2006 saturn ion, the power steering suddenly fails after the sound of a small click. The dashboard chimes with the message warning pwr str. It becomes extremely difficult to maneuver the vehicle, but not impossible to drive it. More force from the driver is required to make turns. Turning and parking the vehicle are extremely difficult without the power steering. After shutting off the car and turning it back on the power steering is restored. At first the problem only occurred a few times in a week. After three weeks, the power steering fails constantly after 30 or 40 seconds of starting the vehicle. A fuse was replaced, but no change has occurred. The power steering continues to fail.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. When the contact attempted to drive the vehicle, he was unable to turn the steering wheel. He stated that the power steering failed; however, there were no warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The dealer was notified and confirmed that the warranty had expired. The contact was concerned about the safety risk involved. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were approximately 67,000.
We have a 2006 saturn ion. While driving it looses power steering. Same problem gm is having with cobalt. Why are they not recalling the saturn ion's. Numerous concerns and very dangerous?
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. While driving at approximately 40 MPH, the power steering warning lights illuminated on the dashboard. There was an immediate loss of power steering control and the contact was able to move the vehicle off the roadway without incident. When restarted, the power steering had returned and the vehicle resumed normal operation. The failure recurred within minutes. The vehicle was taken to a local repairs facility where unknown repairs were made to the vehicle. The failure continued to recur intermittently at any speed traveled. The failure and current mileages were 69,046.
My saturn ion 2006 power steering stops working. My problem began around the 40,000 mile mark. The cost is extremely high to repair over $1,200.
I own a 2006 saturn ion. The power steering fails intermittently. Speed does not matter. The power steering light comes on and the steering goes out. If the car is turned of it comes back on. This happens on the highway at 55 MPH or more so I feel it is dangerous. Gm has recalled some cars with the same steering units but not ions. The dealer has advised it will be $500 or more to fix. Many problems are documented online about this problem in the ion. Please investigate and get a recall started for this. Why should we have to pay for a known gm part problem.
The incident date listed was when the first occurrence happened. I was driving home when my power steering suddenly quit working. I pulled into an auto parts store and bought some power steering fluid. The power steering turns out is all electric and needs no fluid. I then turned the car back on to continue driving home and I made it there with no problems. I was driving back from church two days later and the power steering went out again. I pulled over, turned off the car and started it back up. Power steering was working fine. It went out on me again 5 minutes later and I pulled over and turned off the car and stated it back up. Power steering worked fine again for about 10 more minutes before it went out again. Needless to say the power steering quit on me three times in one trip home from church. I took it to my local gm dealer and paid $70 bucks to have a diagnostic run. Turns out their is an intermittent short in the power steering assist motor- code "co429". The power steering motor must be replaced to fix the problem which is quite costly, $429.39 on top of the $70 dollars I have already paid.
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. While driving at any speed, the power steering system failed. The contact spoke with the dealer and was advised to pay for a diagnostic test. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The current mileage was 41,888. The failure mileage was 41,868.
Power steering has went out on my 2006 ion 2. Light comes on and a sound alarm goes off. This happens while driving down the road. It is a safety hazard.
Power steering intermittently fails. Turning the vehicle off, then on will reset the power steering unit and the car will function normally for a period of time. The failure occurs every 10-30 minutes of drive time without regard to driving conditions or weather. Upon failure the vehicle immediately becomes difficult to steer and maneuver.
Electronic power steering failure on a 2006 saturn ion. The system fails within 5 seconds of starting the vehicle and never works and a message on the dash confirms the failure. Gm recalled the chevy cobalt for the same issue but not the ion, which doesn't make any sense.
Saturn ion 2006 pwr steer message and then my steering wheel locks up. I have to turn my car off and than back on for it to work again.
Every time I start my 2006 saturn ion, the power steering fails. I can restart the car either in motion or while stopped and the function returns, but then fails again after 30 seconds to a few minutes. The result is a vehicle which is very difficult to control especially at slow speeds. This could be very hazardous while making turns at intersections or in tight spaces.
My 2006 saturn ion power steering cuts out while driving. This occurs multiple times a day. Today it happened 9 times. This is a great inconvenience being that I know gm has put out recalls for both the chevy cobalt and some pontiac g series vehicles with the same power steering motor. There are many sitings of this condition all over the internet. This condition has existed for several months and is getting worse over time.
Power steering motor defect causes car to how tight steering at times. Everytime I try to get it serviced I get the run around at dealer.
I currently own a 2006 saturn ion, with 52,000 miles on it. I bought this vehicle brand new in 2005. In warm weather conditions, my car's electric power steering unexpectedly cuts out in the middle of driving. The alarm sounds in the dash and the code "pwr str" appears in the message warning indicator. The only way to get the power steering to return is to pull over to the side of the road, turn the car off, and restart it. This happened once on thursday and is becoming more and more frequent each day. It happened twice friday, then about 20 times in the course of a 15 mile drive on saturday. This is a very dangerous thing to cut out on you because it just happens randomly and unexpectedly. One of the times it happened I was making a turn onto a ramp as I was coming off of the highway. Lucky for me the turn was gradual enough that I was able to steer, but had this happened on a slightly sharper turn, I may have crashed into the guard rail. Additionally, it cannot be safe for me to continue to pull over on the interstate (going 55 MPH) 10 times in a 20 minute time frame just to turn my car off and on to reset the power steering. It's quite dangerous to change lanes just to get in and out of traffic when you have power steering. It's even more dangerous to do so without power steering. Hopefully you can help make gm/ saturn do something about this because I have read many complaints online about this same problem. Please help!
Power steering light comes on our 2006 saturn ion and it becomes very difficult to steer. It will do it while you are driving. If you are lucky enough to have somewhere to pull over you can shut the car off and turn it back on and the light goes off and it steers fine. We are worried that this is eventually going to cause an accident.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. While driving at speeds of 55 MPH, the power steering warning light illuminated. Immediately, the steering became increasingly difficult to control. The contact was cable to move the vehicle to the shoulder and shut off the engine. When restarting, the failure occurred once more. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure and current mileage was 91000. Updated 7/16/10 updated 07/21/10
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. While driving 15 MPH, the power steering suddenly shut off. Upon restarting the vehicle, the power steering functioned properly. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who stated that the power steering motor had failed. The vehicle was being repaired when the complaint was filed. The VIN was not available. The current and failure mileages were approximately 51,000.
Tl*the contact owns a 2006 saturn ion. The contact stated that while driving 65 MPH, the power steering light illuminated on the instrument panel, the power steering malfunctioned, and it became difficult to control the steering wheel. He drove onto the emergency lane and turned the vehicle off. When he restarted the vehicle, the power steering began to function normally. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the contact was advised to replace the steering column at his own expense. The failure became progressively worse and the dealer advised the contact to replace the power steering motor. The parts were not available to repair the vehicle. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000. The current mileage was approximately 75,000.
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