2004 Saturn Vue: ball joint or control arm failure

Filed Feb 27, 2019 · Suspension · 26,600 miles · NJ

Going 40 MPH made a left turn, medium loud noise and front right control arm tore in 2 (been replaced and have part) and back left tire now tilted in at top about 1 inch( still trying to get fixed ).

Filed Jul 11, 2018 · Airbags, Body · 160,000 miles · RI · crash

I was driving from providence ri to athens oh. I was in west virginia around morgantown, driving from 68 west to 79 south ramp, and I was driving in the range of speed limits. Suddenly in the ramp, I felt car is turning unwantedly to the left, and I tried to bring it back to the road but I could not, and the car hit orthogonally the jersey barriers on the left hand side of the ramp. My airbags opened, one of my tires exploded, and front of my car completely wrecked. Fortunately, no one hit me from side and behind. I could really die, I see death in front of my eyes when I was turning with the car. I had replaced my control arm, shocks rotors, brake pads, all in the past two months of the accident. But this car was terribly bad in the turns and ramps before the accident. The suspension system did not work well in these cars in compare to their heights, and always you have the chance of collapsing. Fortunately, I did not collapse. It had happened a lot for me that I felt these car in not stable in ramps and turns, but I never thought a dangerous accident would happen to me. I also did not have collision insurance, and I had to sell my car for a 100 $ to a junk yards. I am almost sure there is some problem with their suspension systems, and I am requesting to investigate this issue in these cars.

Filed Sep 14, 2015 · Suspension · 151,634 miles · NY

I was making a left turn when I heard a pop sound so I pulled over on another block so I wouldn't be in traffic. Once I pulled over I can see my tire leaning inwards. Once the car was jacked up with the car jack we could see that the bracket broke off of the lower control arm.

Filed Aug 25, 2014 · Steering, Suspension · 138,000 miles · MI

While driving on the freeway with children in the car, the rear differential broke, making steering extremely difficult. It felt as if we were going to flip, I slowly moved over and luckily we were able to stop before a horrific accident occurred. Once we stopped we got out to find the passenger rear tire tilted inward and undrivable. After taking it to the shop we found that the rear differential and frame broke as well as the control arms. This seems to be a known problem on these vehicles and is completely unsafe for anyone to be driving a recall needs to be done on this again to ensure the safety of our families.

Filed Jul 12, 2011 · Suspension · 120,000 miles · WI

While driving the vehicle, the driver heard a loud "pop" from rear of car. After pulling over the driver saw that the top of the right rear wheel was tipped in. The car was towed to an authorized saturn repair facility. It was determined that the right rear lateral link assembly broke. The mounting bolt broke causing the mounting flange to brake off of the frame. This action also caused the frame to bend. It was necessary to replace the frame, links, control arms and shock absorber. Total cost to me was $1,602.00 saturn said they were not responsible and would not pay for any expenses. The driver was traveling at 30 MPH, did not hit a pot hole or other object. There was no accident involved, and no one was injured. These are not parts that require periodic maintenance or upkeep. The parts on this car failed. If this failure would have occurred on an interstate road going at a much faster rate of speed, I can't imagine the consequences. Thank you.

Filed Aug 6, 2010 · Body, Suspension · 92,132 miles · PA

While driving the vehicle, the driver heard a loud "pop" from rear of car. After pulling over the driver saw that the top of the right rear wheel was tipped in. The car was towed to a repair station. It was determined that the right rear lateral link assembly broke. The mounting bolt broke causing the mounting flange to brake off of the frame. This action also caused the frame to bend. It was necessary to replace the frame, links, control arms and shock absorber. Total cost to me was $1,900.42. Saturn said they were not responsible and would not pay for any expenses. A recall ( campaign #04067001 ) to replace the rear lateral links was performed on this vehicle on 5/21/2005. Apparently, this recall work was not effective. The driver was not speeding, did not hit a pot hole or other object. There was no accident involved, and no one was injured. These are not parts that require periodic maintenance or upkeep. The parts on this car failed. The mechanic at the chevrolet dealer that performed the work said that all the bolts in that area were rusted and needed replaced. If this failure would have occurred on an interstate road going at a much faster rate of speed, I can't imagine the consequences. Thank you for your help.

Filed Jun 18, 2008 · Electrical, Suspension · 124,072 miles · MI · crash

Problem 1: my 2004 saturn awd v6 saturn vue has developed a "shudder" in the drive train that's prevalent in the 20 -25 and 30-35mph range under moderate acceleration or coasting. Hooked up to a code reader, no codes appear; however, the torque converter is slipping as it displays a read out of over 8,000 RPM's when this occurs and the tachometer bounces back and forth with the shudder. Frequency of occurrence is higher in hotter weather and when car has been driven for several minutes. Slight whine also noticed by the transmission mechanic. Problem 2: this problem was noticed on 03-28-08. Vehicle was also purchased with defective horn. Two + weeks after the car was purchased I was hit in the rear quarter panel by a careless teenager that did not look before he backed out of his parking space. I realized shortly after that my horn was not properly working. There was no way I could have sounded the horn to alert him that he was about to back into me if had wanted to. Had it repaired recently in which the horn was found to be completely non-operational. Once repaired, it was apparent that all was working well with the horn as it honks when the doors are locked. We did not realize that the car would do that at the time that we purchased it. That should have been a big clue to the dealership that it was not functioning properly. I've been told that selling a car without a properly functioning horn is a safety violation. I'm appalled that this was not caught by the dealership! More over, they stuck me with an expensive bill to replace something that should have been operational at the time of sale! Problem 3: repaired on 05-22-08. Also, both lower control arm bushings had to be replaced as they were found to have separated. Major front end noises heard prior to this getting fixed and slop in the front end when driving. Felt like car might loose control when cornering!