2003 SATURN ION Complaints

WHEN BELOW 32 CAR WILL NOT START. THEN SECURITY IS ENABLED AND HAVE TO WAIT 10 MINUTES TO TRY AGAIN. *TR

I WANT TO FILE A COMPLAINT ABOUT MY SATURN ION 2003 IN HOPES THAT WE CAN RECALL THE CAR. MY CAR IS OUTSIDE UNCOVERED ALL NIGHT. RIGHT NOW IT IS 27.1 DEGREES OUTSIDE. MY SATURN ION 2003 HAS A HARD TIME STARTING WHEN IT IS BELOW 32 DEGREES. I READ ON THIS WEBSITE HTTP://WWW.CARSURVEY.ORG/VIEWCOMMENTS_REVIEW_97727.HTML THAT I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT IS HAVING THIS ISSUE. IT SEEMS TO BE AN ISSUE WITH THE IGNITION SWITCH. THIS HAS HAPPENED TO ME 2 TIMES THIS WEEK, 3 TIMES THIS YEAR, A TOTAL OF 6 TO 8 TIMES IN THE 5 YEARS THAT I'VE HAD IT. IT SOUNDS LIKE THE IGNITION REVS, BUT THEN IT DIES AND MY CAR HAS A MESSAGE "SERVICE SOON". IF I GIVE IT A FEW MINUTES TO SIT, THEN I TRY IT AGAIN, SOMETIMES IT DOES THE EXACT SAME THING, SOMETIMES IT GETS A LITTLE BETTER, BUT THE ENGINE WON'T TURN OVER COMPLETELY. THEN, WHEN THE IGNITION SWITCH IS A LITTLE WARMER, IT WILL ACTUALLY START. I USUALLY STAY IN MY CAR FOR AN AVERAGE OF 15 MINUTES. LONGEST I'VE WAITED FOR MY CAR TO START WAS AN HOUR. I HAVE TALKED TO SATURN ONCE ABOUT THIS, BUT THEY STATED THAT THEY WILL HAVE TO REPRODUCE THE ISSUE BEFORE THEY CAN FIND OUT WHAT IS WRONG. IF I CAN GET MY CAR TO SATURN, OBVIOUSLY THEY WILL NOT BE ABLE TO REPRODUCE THE ISSUE. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT SATURN REALLY NEEDS TO ACKNOWLEDGE SINCE IT IS MORE OF A SAFETY ISSUE. WE DON'T WANT TO BE STRANDED IN THE COLD WITH NO PHONE SERVICE WAITING FOR THE GREASE OR IGNITION SWITCH TO WARM UP. IT'S RIDICULOUS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION. *TR

2003 SATURN ION IGNITION SWITCH PROBLEM. CAR WON'T START, THEN INTERLOCK PREVENTS CAR FROM BEING STARTED FOR 8-10 MINUTES. THIS HAS OCCURRED APPROXIMATELY A DOZEN TIMES AT VARIOUS TEMPERATURES.*TR

MY 2003 SATURN ION 2 WILL NOT START IN THE WINTER WHEN THE TEMPERATURE IS BELOW 32 DEGREES. THIS CAN HAPPEN AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK ALL WINTER LONG. IT CAN TAKE ANYWHERE FROM 10 MINUTES TO ONE HOUR FOR MY CAR TO START AGAIN. I TOOK IT TO A MECHANIC WHO COULD NOT FIND WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS AND CHARGED ME $80 FOR NOTHING. THIS HAS BEEN HAPPENING FOR THREE WINTERS AND HAS GOTTEN WORSE EACH WINTER. IT HAS CAUSED ME TO MISS WORK AND BE LATE FOR WORK SEVERAL TIMES. *TR

FAULTY IGNITION SWITCH. CAR WILL NOT START FOR 10-15 MINUTES WHEN ITS COLD OUTSIDE. BATTERY REPLACED AND IT DID NOT HELP. *TR

2003 SATURN ION FAILS TO START. THIS IS LEAVING MY WIFE AND KIDS STRANDED IN THE COLD A COUPLE OF TIMES A DAY NOW. DETAILS CAN BE FOUND AT THIS WEBSITE AS WELL AS MANY OTHERS. THIS IS THE PERFECT DESCRIPTION. HTTP://WWW.CARSURVEY.ORG/VIEWCOMMENTS_REVIEW_97727.HTML. *TR

FAULTY DESIGN IN THE IGNITION SWITCH. THE SWITCH LEAKS LUBRICANT ONTO THE WIRES OF THE IGNITION SYSTEM. IN COLD TEMPERATURES THIS LUBRICANT FREEZES AND PREVENTS THE ELECTRICAL SIGNAL NEEDED BY THE PASSLOCK ANTI-THEFT SYSTEM FROM BEING RECEIVED BY THE BCM (BODY CONTROL MODULE). WHEN THIS SIGNAL ISN'T RECEIVED THE ANTI-THEFT SYSTEM KICKS IN. IT THEN SHUTS OFF THE FUEL DELIVERY SYSTEM FOR A DEFAULT PERIOD OF 10 MINUTES OR SOMETIMES LONGER FOR UP TO AN HOUR. THIS HAS CAUSED NUMEROUS FAILURES WITH THE DRIVER BEING STRANDED IN COLD TEMPERATURES. THERE'S NUMEROUS DOCUMENTATION IN REGARDS TO THIS PROBLEM ONLINE FOR SEVERAL YEARS AND SATURN IS TAKING NO RESPONSIBILITY TO TRY AND REMEDY THIS PROBLEM, EXCEPT TO CHARGE UNREASONABLE PRICES TO FIX. IN ADDITION, ACCORDING TO MANY REVIEWS ONLINE THIS PROBLEM RESURFACES AT A LATER DATE... *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 SATURN ION. THE VEHICLE FAILS TO START IN COLD WEATHER OR WILL OCCASIONALLY TAKE MORE THAN FIVE MINUTES. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN DIAGNOSED BY THE DEALER. THE CONTACT REPLACED THE BATTERY AND MADE MINOR REPAIRS, BUT THE FAILURE STILL PERSISTS. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 60,000.

IF THE SATURN VEHICLE IS EXPOSED TO TEMPERATURES AT OR APPROACHING 32 DEGREES F FOR SEVERAL HOURS WHEN THE ENGINE IS NOT RUNNING (USUALLY 6-10 HOURS), THEN WHEN YOU ATTEMPT TO START THE VEHICLE, THE IGNITION SWITCH CLICKS AND THE CAR STALLS. THE SECURITY SYSTEM KICKS IN. THE SECURITY LIGHT BLINKS AND THE ODOMETER SCREEN READS: 'SERVICE ENGINE SOON.' FUEL WILL NOT BE SENT TO THE ENGINE. THE VEHICLE WILL NOW NOT START FOR ABOUT 8-10 MINUTES AS THE SECURITY SYSTEM RESETS. AFTER 8-10 MINUTES, THE SECURITY LIGHT WILL STOP BLINKING AND THEN GO OUT. 'THE SERVICE ENGINE SOON' SCROLL LIGHT WILL STOP AND ALSO GO OUT. NOW, YOU MAY ATTEMPT TO START THE VEHICLE AGAIN. .HOWEVER, IF THE IGNITION SWITCH GREASE HAS NOT ADEQUATELY WARMED, THEN THE PROCESS WILL BEGIN AGAIN. A SIGNAL THAT THE VEHICLE WILL LIKELY START AFTER THE PRESENT 'LOCK-OUT' WILL BE WHEN THE IGNITION SEEMS TO CRANK A BIT MORE THAN JUST A CLICK, BEFORE LOCKING OUT AGAIN. REMEDY:1. THE GREASE IN THE IGNITION SWITCH IS FREEZING AND/OR HARDENING SO THAT THE IGNITION SWITCH CAN NOT ENGAGE. THE DEALER MUST RECALL ALL OF THESE VEHICLES AND REPLACE THE IGNITION SWITCH AND GREASE. THEY APPARENTLY HAVE A REDESIGNED SWITCH, WHICH CERTAINLY CAN BE CONSTRUED AS AN ADMISSION TO THE FAULTY DESIGN. OF COURSE, THIS TYPE OF REMEDIAL MEASURE CANNOT BE USED IN COURT, BUT IS CERTAINLY HELPFUL TO THOSE OF US CONSUMERS WHO ARE THE VICTIMS OF THE FAULTY DESIGN. SATURN MUST OPENLY ACKNOWLEDGE THE MISTAKE AND FIX IT, BEFORE SOMEONE IS STRANDED IN THE COLD, IN AN AREA WITH NO CELL PHONE SERVICE. SERVICE BULLETIN:040845005 NHTSA ITEM NUMBER:10007431 MFG BULLETIN DATE: 20060301 COMPONENT: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:SWITCH BULLETIN SUMMARY: NO CRANK, NO START WHEN AMBIENT TEMPERATURES IS COLD - DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODES (DTCS) B2960 AND OR B3033 ARE SET. *TR

I JUST BOUGHT A 2003 SATURN ION 2 ABOUT 2 WEEKS AGO. MY WIFE WOKE UP THIS MORNING TO START HER CAR AND IT WOULD NOT START. I TRIED JUMPING THE CAR AND STILL NO LUCK. THE PASSLOCK LIGHT CAME ON AND SAID SERVICE VEHICLE. SO I TOLD MY WIFE TO GET IN THE CAR AND SHIFT IT TO NEUTRAL SO WE COULD PUSH IT INTO A DIFFERENT SPOT SO SHE COULD TAKE MY TRUCK TO WORK. SHE DECIDED TO TRY AND START IT ONE LAST TIME AND IT THEN STARTED. FRUSTRATED, I WENT ON TO THE INTERNET AND SEARCH FOR ION PROBLEMS AND HAVE FOUND ABOUT 200 COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE SAME PROBLEM. THIS IS A PROBLEM THAT SATURN NEEDS TO ADDRESS AND TAKE CARE!! *TR