26th Dec 2004, 23:47
I bought a 2003 AWD V6 VUE in June of 2004. Within only 24000 miles I have replaced a Hazard switch, two rear ABS sensors, an entire instrument cluster, front strut mounts, tie-rod ends and on Christmas Eve morning the engine began spewing oil everywhere. The entire car filled with smoke and the vehicle had to be towed. Even without all the mechanical problems this vehicle has had I still am VERY disapointed in it. It is a complete and total rattle trap that groans, grunts and squeaks with every bump in the road. The gas tank is WAY too small considering that even though it is supposed to get 25 MPG I have never seen better than 21 MPG. By the way, who was the Einstein that thought the AC compressor should run when the heat is set to the floor position? Duh? No wonder the gas mileage stinks! To say the very least it has been a very disappointing purchase.
16th Jul 2005, 17:39
What happened to "A Different Kind of Car Company". These things are falling apart as they rack up miles, and all they can do is overcharge for more of the same bad parts that failed ($309 for a wheel bearing?), and $94/hr in Canada to do it.
I had to replace sway bar links (2nd time), rear wheel bearing/ABS sensor (even though problem was first reported under warranty, but not diagnosed) and drive-shaft hanger bearing for a total of over $1500. They also say different module is shot and will take another $1800!
GM Canada denied assistance because I was 300 kilometers over warranty.
Consumer guru Phil Edmondston calls Saturn "A Dead Man Walking" on his lemonaidcars.com website. No wonder!
20th Sep 2005, 16:03
I currently own a 2003 Saturn Vue. Everything was fine with it until it passed the warranty of 35000 miles. In April 2005, at 37000 miles, I couldn't shift. A cable snapped and they replaced it for $550.00. Then on September 15th, while driving, lost clutch and couldn't shift. Towed it and they told me it was the slave cylinder in the clutch hydraulics (about $1200.00). On the 19th they repaired what they told me was wrong with it.. took it for a test drive and then tell me it won't shift and it will now cost another $1600.00 to fix. We've gone back and forth with Saturn customer service and they offered us a $100.00 maintenance coupon for our oil changes.
It seems that all the problems that I've had are transmission and clutch related and Saturn doesn't see it as a defect in the model and year.
Has anyone else had the same problems and they get no satisfaction from customer service? This is the only Saturn we will ever purchase. You try to buy American and look what happens.
26th Sep 2005, 11:09
You do not understand why customers complain, even though they have loaners and repairs performed under warranty? Sounds typical of an employee of an auto dealership. It may not be to you, but to me it is a major inconvenience to have to drop my car off at a dealer for service. Between work and kids, I have precious free time that I do not want to spend screwing around at the car dealers. That is why I drive a modern new car to begin with. Then you have to worry about the repair being performed correctly the first time, and will the car suffer from the same problem over and over again. That is why people like me complain about having our newer cars in the shop for repairs.
26th Sep 2005, 18:07
I have a 2003 Saturn Vue FWD. It currently has 29,000 miles on it and has had the following problems since purchased. Windshield washer sprayer had to be replaced (fell off), ignition switch/column had to be replaced (could not turn key- it was like I had the wrong key in the ignition (vehicle had to be towed), rear wiper motor had to be replaced and just last week, there was a large puddle of oil under my vehicle. Turns out the oil and antifreeze somehow mixed together due to an oil cooler problem (o-rings??) -Vehicle had to be towed to the dealership.
The service at the dealership has been very good, but to have this many problems with a new vehicle is unacceptable - especially the oil and antifreeze problem. Oil and antifreeze went through the whole engine and radiator! Who knows what other problems I will have down the line! -- Last Saturn I will ever buy!
25th Oct 2005, 01:29
We bought our 2003 Saturn Vue V6 AWD in 9/03 and have had to have both rear wheel bearing assemblies replaced. The driver side in Nov 04, and the passenger side just this month. We have only 21,000 miles on it. Our dealership has provided excellent service, but it is frustrating to have to have it in for such repairs with such low mileage.
We also find some oil change places will not change our oil due to the type of oil filter we have.
We also find it a very noisy car. We will not buy another Saturn product.
29th Oct 2005, 21:22
A similar thing happened with my redline. I started to notice that when I was driving, the engine would suddenly seemed like it went into neutral, couldn't get it to speed up or anything... happened a few times... i either had to restart the car or shift to get it working again... very scary.
Anyway, took it to the local dealer and they said the computer was messed up-did the repair. Three days later, the same thing happened. OK, since it never happened in their presence, they were non-believing..it sat at the dealer for almost a week when they took it out for a test drive... they no sooner got it out of the driveway and the engine did it's thing. They ended up pushing it back into the lot.
After spending two more days consulting with SATURN, they decided to replace the transmission saying whatever was wrong is inside the transmission.
Have had it back for about two weeks and it is running fine.
Hope this helps you guys out.
21st Nov 2005, 13:52
I have a 2003 Saturn Vue and have had boatloads of problems. The sway bar end links have been replaced twice, and now the car is making the same noise as before (I assume they are binding yet again). Also have had major computer malfunction at just 2,000 miles over warranty- had to replace computer, get new ignition switch and keys because it all stopped working at once. The transmission whines like crazy, but not all the time. I had a 1992 Saturn SL1 that was fantastic and is still being driven by a friend with 250,000 plus miles and the original clutch. I was confident my 2003 Saturn purchase would be just as reliable. WRONG!! This will be my last Saturn and I let everyone know that.
27th May 2004, 09:30
I have a 2004 Saturn Vue AWD. With just 2,500 miles on it I have it in the shop today for a faulty rear differential module. I hope this won't be the start of a string of problems.