2003 SATURN ION Complaints

CAR WON'T START ON MORNINGS WHEN TEMP IS BELOW 50 DEGREES. ONCE TEMP WARMS UP, CAR STARTS FINE. I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL THE AFTERNOON TO GO TO WORK! I ALSO DON'T WANT TO BE STRANDED WHILE WORKING (I DO HOME NURSING). *TR

ON COLD MORNINGS (35 AND BELOW) MY 03 SATURN ION WILL NOT START. I TURN THE KEY AND THE LIGHTS COME ON BUT THE ENGINE WON'T TURN OVER. THE SECURITY LIGHT FLASHES AND IT TELLS ME TO "SERVICE VEHICLE". IF I WAIT ABOUT 10-20 MINUTES THE CAR WILL START. (WHICH CAUSES ME TO BE LATE FOR WORK) I'VE REPLACE THE BATTERY BUT CANNOT AFFORD 200+ TO CHANGE OUT THE STARTER AND/OR OTHER PARTS. I'VE READ NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ONLINE OF OTHER ION OWNERS HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM (HTTP://WWW.CARSURVEY.ORG/VIEWCOMMENTS_REVIEW_97727.HTML). *TR

CAR WILL NOT START IN COLD WEATHER. (BELOW 32F) THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM THE LAST 2 YEARS ON A 2003 SATURN ION 3. AFTER READING ALL THE COMMENTS HERE... HTTP://WWW.CARSURVEY.ORG/VIEWCOMMENTS_REVIEW_97727.HTML IT WOULD SEEM THERE IS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE GREASE FREEZING AROUND THE IGNITION SWITCH. *TR

I HAVE A 2003 SATURN ION THAT WON'T START IN COLD WEATHER HERE IN EASTERN OREGON, HAD THE BATTERY CHECKED, AND EVERYTHING ELSE LOOKED AT, BUT EVERYONE SAYS THAT MY CAR IS OKAY. SO I DO SOME RESEARCH AND FIND OUT THAT ALOT OF PEOPLE HAVE THIS PROBLEM AND YET THERE IS NO RECALL ON THIS PROBLEM CONSIDERING SATURN KNOWS ABOUT THE PROBLEM? ALSO, THERE IS NOT EASY SUGGESTIONS BY SATURN? *TR

WHEN IT IS BELOW FREEZING OUTSIDE, MY 2003 SATURN ION HAS ISSUES STARTING UP. I HAVE READ MANY POSTS (HTTP://WWW.CARSURVEY.ORG/VIEWMORECOMMENTS_REVIEW_97727_1.HTML IS ON SUCH SPOT) WHERE OWNERS ARE HAVING THE SAME ISSUES WITH VARIOUS RESULTS FROM THEIR DEALERS. IT IS APPARENTLY A KNOW ISSUE THAT HAS NOT BEEN COMMUNICATED TO THE CUSTOMERS, POTENTIALLY LEAVING THEM OUT IN THE COLD! *TR

WHEN IT IS COLD OUT, AND I GO TO START MY CAR IN THE MORNING, IT STARTS TO TURN OVER BUT THEN STALLS AND DIES. THE LIGHTS AND RADIO STILL WORK, AND THE INSTRUMENT PANEL BLINKS "SERVICE VEHICLE". I HAVE TO WAIT AT LEAST 10 MINUTES TO EVEN ATTEMPT TO START MY VEHICLE AGAIN BECAUSE IT IS SOMETHING WITH THE SECURITY FEATURE OF THE IGNITION. *TR

I HAVE BEEN HAVING A PROBLEM WITH MY CAR NOT STARTING. THE FIRST ISSUE BEGAN WHEN I STARTED MY CAR AND THE PASSLOCK SYMBOL WAS FLASHING ALL THE WAY HOME FROM THE STORE. WHEN I GOT HOME AND TURNED THE CAR OFF AND TRIED RESTARTING IT, IT WOULDN'T START. AFTER LOOKING AT MY OWNERS MANUAL AND READING ABOUT PASSLOCK I WENT OUTSIDE AND TRIED STARTING IT AND IT STARTED RIGHT UP. A LITTLE LESS THAN A WEEK LATER I WAS OUT RUNNING AN ERRAND AND MADE A QUICK STOP FOR MAYBE 5 MINUTES, WHEN I GOT BACK TO THE CAR IT WOULD NOT START. I TRIED A FEW MORE TIMES AND WAS STARTING TO PANIC WHEN IT STARTED AGAIN. I TOOK IT TO A MECHANIC AND HE COULDN'T GET THE CAR TO REPLICATE THE PROBLEM BUT RECOMMENDED FINDING MY OTHER KEY FOR THE CAR AND START USING THAT. THE CAR WAS FINE FOR ANOTHER WEEK AND WHILE I WAS PICKING UP MY KIDS FROM SCHOOL THE PASSLOCK LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN AND BLINKED ALL THE WAY HOME. ONCE AGAIN, I TRIED TO START AFTER WE GOT HOME AND NOTHING, I WENT OUT ABOUT 10 MINUTES LATER AND IT WAS FINE. YESTERDAY I NEEDED TO RUN AN ERRAND AND SURE ENOUGH I WENT OUTSIDE TO LEAVE AND THE STUPID CAR WOULDN'T START AGAIN. I WENT INSIDE AND WAITED 10 MINUTES, CAME BACK OUTSIDE AND IT STARTED RIGHT UP. I AM A MOTHER WITH 3 KIDS AND I HAVE A HUSBAND WHO DOES NOT DRIVE. I HAVE ONLY ONE CAR AND I CANNOT HAVE IT BE UNRELIABLE. I GET NERVOUS EVERY TIME I HAVE TO GO SOMEWHERE. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE AND IT SEEMS LIKE THERE ARE MANY SATURN OWNERS WHO ARE JUST AS FRUSTRATED AS ME AND SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE ABOUT IT, AT NO COST TO THE OWNERS. THIS IS NOT WEAR AND TEAR!!! *TR

I BOUGHT A 2003 SATURN ION ABOUT 6 MONTHS AGO, AND AS SOON AS IT BECAME COLD HERE IN COLORADO MY CAR STARTED HAVING A PROBLEM STARTING. I WAS STRANDED IN THE MIDDLE OF NO WHERE WITH NO CELL PHONE COVERAGE IN THE FREEZING COLD. I HAVE NOW COME TO FIND OUT THAT THIS IS A PROBLEM WITH ALL 2003 SATURNS AND THAT THEY REFUSE TO RECALL THEM AND FIX THE PROBLEM BECAUSE IT IS NOT A SAFETY ISSUE. THE IGNITION SWITCH AND THE GREASE NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE! I WAS STRANDED IN THE MIDDLE OF NO WHERE IN THE FREEZING COLD WITH MY YOUNG DAUGHTER. I WANT THIS PROBLEM TO BE ADDRESSED AND FIXED BY SATURN. THERE IS NO REASON FOR THEM TO NOT RECALL THIS PROBLEM. *TR

DURING COLD WEATHER, MY 2003 SATURN ION WILL NOT START. REPLACED THE BATTERY 12/07, AND A DIAGNOSTIC CHECK OF THE STARTER AND ALTERNATOR WAS FINE. IT APPEARS TO BE AN IGNITION SWITCH ITEM FROM READING SIMILAR COMPLAINTS ONLINE. *TR

HORN IS VERY DIFFICULT TO ACTUATE, REQUIRING HARD PRESSING ONE OF TWO SPECIFIC SMALL HORN LOGOS ON THE STEERING WHEEL AIR BAG COVER. THESE ARE HARD TO FIND IN AN EMERGENCY, AND IMPOSSIBLE TO QUICKLY FIND WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT. THIS HAS RESULTED IN A FEW NEAR MISSES, BECAUSE THE HORN COULD NOT BE ACTIVATED QUICKLY ENOUGH TO ALERT ANOTHER DRIVER THAT THEY WERE LEAVING THEIR LANE. I HAD TO SWERVE EVASIVELY TO PREVENT THE ACCIDENT. SATURN DEALER IN PAST HAS SAID THAT HORN WORKS NORMALLY. THIS IS THE ONLY VEHICLE THAT MY WIFE OR I HAVE DRIVEN IN THIRTY YEARS THAT HAS THIS PROBLEM. IT APPEARS TO BE A POOR DESIGN, AND SOMETHING SHOULD BE DONE TO RECTIFY IT. THE HORN IS USELESS IN A SUDDENLY DEVELOPING EMERGENCY SITUATION. DATE IS NOT SPECIFIC; AS FORM WOULD NOT ALLOW SUBMISSION WITHOUT A DATE. I HAVE NOT HAD AN ACCIDENT YET, BUT THIS SHOULD BE RECTIFIED BEFORE SOMEONE HAS A SERIOUS ACCIDENT. *TR