12th Dec 2008, 12:17

My wife has a 2001 L Series and it started having BCM problems a few months ago. First it wouldn't come out of park, so she did it manually by taking off the shift boot and holding down the release. Then it wouldn't start, just turn over and over and over. The keyless entry wouldn't work, and no lights would turn on. Then one day it just magically started working again with no problems.

She's probably driven it a couple thousand miles since then with only the occasional park release issue. Then coming home from a long trip last weekend, we stopped for dinner and came out to find the car wouldn't start again. It turned over and over but wouldn't get any spark. The security, airbag, service and check engine lights were all on. Finally I decided to try and re-boot the system by unhooking the battery and hooking it back up. It worked and started right up.

The airbag light came on and stays on (which has me nervous that it will either not work in a crash, or possibly worse, will just explode out of no-where). The next day, we realized that the odometer had been reset to 0! I tried to convince her to sell it when it first started acting up, but since it was a gift from her parents she felt bad and decided not to. Now we're stuck with a faulty odometer, several hundred dollars of repairs, and who knows how much depreciation. I'd advice you get rid of this thing as soon as you start getting problems.

Also, on a side note, has anyone else noticed how awful the car performs in snow and low traction conditions. There was about 1/4" inch of snow and slush on the ground over the weekend and I couldn't safely get about 35mph without the back-end sliding everywhere. The low traction light lives in the on position during the winter too.

26th Jan 2009, 10:10

Had same trouble as many - odometer reporting 694,794.

Doors not opening when I removed key from ignition.

Read comments on this site, followed your advice and had BCM replaced. Everything is fine. Cost me $500. Saturn dealer was great.

I have a 2000 LS2 with 55,000 miles. I love my car. Generally runs really well.

23rd Jun 2009, 13:24

I own a 2000 Saturn SL1. I bought the car used from a dealer around 8 months ago. I ended up having to replace the transmission and there are 4 or 5 oil leaks spread out that just showed up. The muffler which looked fine when I bought the car recently broke loose of a strap and thumps around when driving on smooth ground. I've spent around 4 grand on it so far with those and other repairs. I would sell the car before it reaches 50k miles

29th Aug 2009, 10:52

So last year I bought a Saturn LS2 3.0 with 79,000 miles on it. And I thought the car was great when I first got it. But I guess I'm starting to have issues and having the great Saturn experience...

I've had to do some typical maintenance on it, but I have also had to replace things that should have not broken, such as the turn signal arm at 82,000, which controls the lights too. But needless to say, my BCM just went last night at 90,300, knowing this by seeing what other people have experienced, with the odometer recording 694,xxx and for those people that have not been there, save up around 650 dollars for the fix. I just contacted the local dealer, and was scheduled for the fix, the BCM cost in the range of 320 dollar, and the programing cost 170 dollars, while the installment is the remaining factor. 150 or so... but I just wanted other people to know how much this would cost. I have also learned I'm never buying a Saturn again... I'm going to German cars.

30th Aug 2009, 16:07

"I'm going to German cars."

If you're looking for reliability, then don't go to German cars. Don't get me wrong, I love German cars, they make good cars, that drive beautifully and are when they are running their engines are smooth and powerful, however, German cars are not reliable. They are some of the least reliable. If you're looking for reliability, then Honda or Toyota is the way to go.

23rd Sep 2009, 14:48

Saturn 2000 LS, Purchased June '09. Great running car. Previous owner only had two issues - AC and O2 sensors. Very solid car and very spacious. No complaints.

21st Oct 2009, 02:53

I have a 2000 LS2, and my transmisson shifts very hard periodically, and when this happens, the speedometer stops working too!!... It seems the colder it is, the better it works..

20th Mar 2011, 13:30

I have a 2000 LS2 V-6 3.0L, it has the 6xx,xxx miles locked and the 0.0 trip. I am suspecting it is the BCM. Are there any recalls on this problem so that I am not paying this outrageous cost of having it fixed?

J Briggerman

Taylorville, Illinois.

19th May 2011, 23:58

I am just curious as to what your decision on selling the car was? And what area/region or state you're in? I've been performing a lot of research on this model demographically.

Any help is appreciated!

14th Jun 2011, 11:20

What in the name of God would persuade a person to buy a car from a company that is out of business? There is a reason they are out of business!

15th Jun 2011, 09:44

Since they are out of business you can't buy from them, they don't exist. However, their former products exist and are available on the used car market. And because of attitudes like yours, the value of these cars has taken a plunge. Now why would anyone buy a decent used car for cheap? Please help, I can't figure it out!

25th Jun 2011, 09:12

I have the same horrible car! There are MANY electrical problems with this car, also rear window problems. There was a recall, and they need to fix a switch that makes your brake lights come on. Once you fix the switch you are good, except for all the other problems like the service light, and the hot blinkers!

Oh, and eventually if you try to jump it or replace the battery, the speedodometer will stop.

20th Aug 2011, 21:06

Thank you for the post. After reading ALL negative about the L series Saturn, your post was a glimmer of hope. We are having BCM problems with my wife's 2000 LS2, 71k miles. My first estimate is for $1400 bucks. It kind of makes me sick to my stomach just thinking that I might spend this much, and then continue to have problems. Anyway... thanks for the post. My hope is rekindled.

1st May 2014, 22:04

I had the same problem with a 2001 Saturn L200 with the left turn signal activating the bright lights. I had a bad alternator, and this is how it told me. Weird.