2006 SATURN RELAY Complaints

SERVICE ABS AND SERVICE TRACTION CONTROL LIGHTS CAME ON AND HAVE REMAINED ON FOR SEVERAL DAYS. FURTHER MESSAGES CONTINUE FLASHING ON THE DRIVER INFORMATION CENTER. THIS HAS BEEN A RECURRING PROBLEM OVER THE PAST YEAR AFTER ABS WHEEL SENSORS AND THE ASSOCIATED WIRING WERE REPLACED. WITH THE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ON THE INTERNET - I WAS THINKING THAT SURELY A TSB OR RECALL ON THESE ISSUES HAS BEEN OVERLOOKED OR SIMPLY IGNORED BY THE MECHANICS AND SERVICE WRITERS AT THE GM DEALERSHIPS NATIONWIDE. I KNOW THAT A TECH LL SCANNER IS REQUIRED TO CHECK FOR ANY TROUBLE CODES FOR THESE VERY COMPLEX SYSTEMS, BUT WHAT IS THE KNOWN DEFINITIVE FIX FOR THESE POTENTIALLY SERIOUS PROBLEMS ? THE LIGHTS AND MESSAGES BEGAN APPEARING AFTER MODERATE BRAKING AND WHILE VEHICLE IS/WAS IN MOTION OR STATIONARY WHILE TURNING OR ON A STRAIGHT AHEAD STRETCH OF ROADWAY. VARIED ROAD CONDITIONS AND WET OR DRY WEATHER CONDITIONS WERE SEEMINGLY NOT CONTRIBUTING FACTORS.

AFTER STARTING VEHICLE, WITH FOOT ON BRAKE, GEAR SELECTION LEVER WOULD NOT MOVE FROM PARK AND PARKING BRAKE WOULD NOT DISENGAGE AS RESULT. SHUT DOWN ENGINE, RESTARTED WITH SAME RESULT. AFTER SEVERAL MORE ATTEMPTS TO MOVE THE SHIFT LEVER, IT FINALLY RELEASED FROM PARK BUT HAD DIFFICULTY MOVING DIRECTLY INTO REVERSE GEAR - IT HAD TO BE "ROWED" THRU ALL GEARS TO SETTLE TO REVERSE, AND THE TRANSMISSION DID NOT SEEM TO ENGAGE IN REVERSE INITIALLY. WHEN IT DID ENGAGE REVERSE GEAR, THE TRANSMISSION "JUMPED," LURCHING THE CAR (THE PARKING BRAKE HAD DISENGAGED WHEN GEAR SELECTION LEVER FINALLY MOVED FROM PARK). THIS IS AN INTERMITTENT PROBLEM, AND SEEMS TO SOMETIMES COINCIDE WITH OTHER DRIVETRAIN ISSUE PREVIOUSLY DESCRIBED. *TR

ATTEMPTED LOW/MODERATE ACCELERATION FROM STOP; TRANSMISSION SEEMED TO SLIP WITH ENGINE RPM INCREASING BUT NO TRANSFER OF POWER BEYOND ABOUT INITIAL HALF-FOOT OF FORWARD MOTION, THEN HARD SHIFTED INTO GEAR (LURCHED THE VEHICLE) AND ACCELERATED RAPIDLY. THIS EVENT WAS INITIALLY INTERMITTENT AND NOT ABLE TO BE REPRODUCED BY MECHANIC. IT HAS NOW BECOME FREQUENT AND AFFECTS SHIFTING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS AS WELL AS FROM STOP, MAKING CONTROL OF ACCELERATION UNPREDICTABLE IS HARD SHIFTING THROUGH MOST GEARS WHEN THIS IS OCCURRING, ALTHOUGH AT OTHER TIMES IT SHIFTS VERY SMOOTHLY THROUGHOUT, MAKING IT MORE DIFFICULT TO REPRODUCE FOR MECHANIC. *TR

NOTED THAT DRIVING LIGHTS FLASHED WITH WIPERS ON DELAY SETTING. AT NEXT USE, LOW OIL PRESSURE LIGHT & WARNING SOUNDED BUT LIGHTS DID NOT FLASH WITH DELAY WIPERS. TURNING OFF ENGINE AND PULLING HOOD LATCH & CLOSING HOOD ENDED LOW PRESSURE WARNING (OIL PRESSURE/ LEVEL WERE CORRECT-FALSE ALARM). 2 DAYS LATER, LIGHTS AGAIN FLASHED WITH WIPERS ON DELAY BUT NO OIL PRESSURE WARNING. CONTINUED THIS BACK-AND-FORTH (EITHER OIL WARNING OR LIGHT FLASH WITH WIPER USE, BUT NOT CONCOMITANT) FOR 2 MONTHS, THEN LOW PRESSURE WARNINGS BECAME CONSTANT, AND THE LIGHTS NO LONGER FLASHED WITH THE WIPERS AT ALL.THE LOW OIL PRESSURE WARNING CAN OFTEN BE STOPPED BY EITHER TURNING OFF ENGINE AND CAREFULLY RESTARTING OR PULLING HOOD LATCH AND SLAMMING HOOD. SHIFTING GEARS MAY ALSO TRIGGER THE LOW PRESSURE WARNING IF IT ISN'T ALREADY ON. *TR

MY 18 YEAR OLD SON HAD AN ACCIDENT. HE ROLLED THE VAN MULTIPLE TIMES, HIT TREES ,DAMAGED ALL SIDES, AND ROOF OF THE VAN. THE ONLY DOOR THAT WOULD EASILY OPEN WAS THE DRIVERS DOOR. THE FRONT AXLE BROKE, WINDSHIELD BROKEN. THE INSURANCE APPRAISER SAID ALL PANELS WERE DAMAGED AND COULD NOT BELIEVE NONE OF THE AIR BAGS OPENED. THE SATURN RELAY 2006 WAS A TOTAL LOSS. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 SATURN RELAY. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WITHIN THREE MONTHS, THE INTERIOR OF THE VEHICLE DARKENED BY THREE SHADES. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THERE WAS A STRONG METALLIC SMELL INSIDE THE VEHICLE THAT HAD EVEN AFFECTED HER BREATHING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC AND THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS A FOREIGN HOSE ATTACHED TO THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER THAT COULD HAVE BEEN THE CAUSE OF THE TOXIC LEAK. THE CONTACT BECAME VERY ILL AND STRONG TRACES OF CADMIUM, LEAD AND MERCURY WERE FOUND IN HER BLOOD SYSTEM. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 86,000.

I STARTED GETTING "SERVICE TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM" WARNING MESSAGE AND LIGHT WITH "SERVICE ABS SYSTEM" WARNING MESSAGE AND LIGHT AND "SERVICE STABILITY SYSTEM". ALL ARE ALWAYS AT THE SAME TIME. SHUTTING OFF THE ENGINE AND RESTARTING (PER OWNERS MANUAL) TEMPORARILY CAUSES THE LIGHTS AND MESSAGES TO TURN OFF, BUT THEY ALWAYS RETURN LATER. THIS PROBLEM IS WELL DOCUMENTED IN SATURN FORUMS AND IS HAPPENING WITH MANY, MANY OWNERS. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2006 SATURN RELAY. THE CONTACT STATED THAT BOTH THE DRIVER AND PASSENGER SIDE AUTOMATIC SLIDING DOORS WOULD NOT SHUT. WHEN ACTIVATED, THE DOOR WOULD START TO CLOSE BUT WOULD NOT LATCH AND THEN WOULD REOPEN. THE CONTACT STATED IT TAKES A COUPLE OF HOURS AND ATTEMPTS BEFORE THE DOOR WOULD CLOSE. THE FAILURE RECURRED INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE THE TECHNICIANS WERE UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE FAILURE. THE TECHNICIANS PERFORMED ADJUSTMENTS TO THE DOOR BUT THE FAILURE PERSISTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT FURTHER REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 53,000.

MY 2006 SATURN ION ALL OF A SUDDEN LOST ITS POWER STEERING WHILE I WAS DRIVING! I ALMOST CRASHED! AND NOW IT GOING TO COST OVER 500 OR MORE TO FIX. I COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED, I WAS GOING UP A HILL ON A CURVE. JUST ALL OF A SUDDEN THE BELL RANG AND IT POPPED UP PWR STR. I GOT THE CAR STOPPED AND TURNED IT OFF WHEN I TURNED IT BACK ON IT WAS FINE FOR ABOUT 5 FEET AND AGAIN IT DID IT. I GOT HOME AND CHECKED THE FUSE AND MADE SURE IT WAS OK. TODAY I DROVE ALL OVER AND IT WAS OK AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN AGAIN IT CAME ON AND THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED UP! *TR

AWD DISABLED WHEN NEEDED IN SNOW. IT SEEMS TO BE CAUSED BY ICY SLUSH. I CONFIRMED WITH THE DEALER THAT THE HUB ASSEMBLY'S AWD SENSOR CAN GET COVERED UP WITH MUD OR SLUSH AND THE AWD SYSTEM WILL DISABLE. ANY AWD SYSTEM THAT GETS DISABLED BY SLUSH IS LUDICROUSLY DESIGNED, AND BORDERLINE NEGLIGENT WITH REGARDS TO SAFETY. *TR