general problems of the 2003 Saturn ION - part 1

After I did the recall several years ago, the problem came back. The key will not come out of the ignition. It's happened many times.

I have the power steering column issue that still needs to be fixed as advised by GMC of port richey, FL where I was promised my replacement vehicle even 10 or 20 yrs later if I bought another one. If on my walking tape recorders and contact lens, I pull off my brake peddle flat lining at least twice without crashing however he would grant me whatever 2 vehicles on the lots I chose as long as I had insurance. However, I do not have the money for the tow and corporates to include the police will not listen too. Please, contact me immediately for a more rapid communication please at 862-266-3530 or 727-377-4999.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering assist. The contact restarted the vehicle to correct the failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, and the dealer confirmed that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 173,000.

Rack and pinion is going bad, my mechanic said it's a common issue in these vehicles. When going around a corner it will want to float the opposite way, the steering will eventually get tight my mechanic said until I loose all steering. I am a single mother and have already replaced the whole front end on this vehicle pretty much. I know I've read so many others experiencing the same issues with their Saturn Ion, so I wanted to make it aware that this should be a recall and fixed before someone who knows nothing about vehicles ends up in a severe accident due to this big issue. Also the key don't want to come out most of the time. An there is an issue with the car not wanting to come out of park sometimes. Not to mention it eats ball joints like crazy every other month I'm replacing the ball joints in this car. If I could afford another vehicle trust me I would but I can't even save for a new car due to all the repairs I've made. It's just frustrating that so many people are having this issue and no mechanic wants to do the rack and pinion job with out charging a fortune.

My power steering kept cutting out. (been doing this for about 2 years now) while I was driving today the worst situation happened. I went to turn at an intersection and mid turn the power steering message appeared and my steering wheel tightened and straightened back out a little bit. I was trying to get into the turn lane but to avoid an accident I sped up to merge with the farthest lane and unfortunately I popped a tire and bent the rim. This needs to be addressed before someone gets killed. To be honest im scared to drive my own car after today.

Tl the contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. While driving at low speeds and parking the vehicle, the steering wheel seized. The contact also mentioned that the key would not eject out of the ignition. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or independent mechanic for diagnostic testing or repairs. The manufacturer was made aware of the failures and informed the contact that the vehicle was repaired per an unknown recall and the recalled part would not be repaired again. The failure mileage was 138,000.

The power steering suddenly stopped working.

Tl the contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. While driving approximately 30 mph, the power steering operated intermittently. The vehicle was taken to paddock Chevrolet (located at 3232 delaware Ave, kenmore, NY 14217, (716) 941-4093) where it was diagnosed that the steering shaft needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 149,000.

Power steering goes out randomly while in motion. Sometimes it lasts 5 minutes sometimes up to 25-30 minutes. Goes out everyday on my way to work (26 mile commute). Extremely dangerous when trying to park or turn from a light and I don't realize that the assist is out. Obviously on highway not as much of an issue but when driving at slower speeds it is difficult.

Tl the contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. While driving 65 mph, the steering seized and the steering wheel could not be turned at all. The contact pulled the vehicle over and waited for awhile. Afterward, the steering returned to normal. There were no warning indicators illuminated. An independent mechanic was contacted, but could not repair the vehicle because they did not have the equipment to repair electric vehicles. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer and dealer were not notified. The failure mileage was 152,000.

Power steering goes in and out when driving.

Car just recently popped up power steering only happens when its sits over night and when I start it up in the morning it's very stiff to turn but if I drive it like that for a little and shit the car off the steering is fine. The dash lights flicker off and on and when doing so causes heat or a/c to cut out after driving it for alittle bit. The key locks in the ignition switch when I go to shut off the car and I have to press the plunger for it to release. Keeps saying coolant when going down the road even though the coolant is where it needs to be.

Several times when I have gone to turn off my car the ignition switch will not release the key. When this happens I have to place my foot back on the brake and run through the gears with my gear stick. The ignition switch that is currently in my car is one that was used to replace the factory one when the ignition switch recall was issued. Also, recently my car has been showing problems with the power steering. It has gone out multiple times on my son while he was driving resulting in him having to fight the car to get it to turn. I have never had a problem before and I hear that there are recalls for both. These problems have happened multiple times and I do not have exact dates.

The power steering went out on my car twice so far, both times I was driving the car at the time it went out. This happened one week apart and both times the power steering cam back after the ignition was turned off and then restarted. The first time it went out I was driving on an interstate highway and the second in the city.

Driving on staight on the highway hit a bump in the road my car started spinning out of control steering wheel locked up which made my driver side crash into a cement wall, my airbags did not deploy even thought the car hit the wall so hard that it cracked my radiator, my car then shut off then turned back on.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. While driving approximately 20 mph, there was a compete loss of power steering without warning. The steering wheel became extremely difficult to maneuver and required excessive force. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 107,939.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. While driving at various speeds, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact had to apply force to the steering wheel in order to steer the vehicle. The failure recurred on numerous occasions. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and repaired per a recall. After the repairs, while driving at various speeds, the accelerator pedal was depressed, but the vehicle failed to accelerate. The air bag and check engine warning lights illuminated. The manufacturer was not notified of the failures. The recall specifics were unknown. The failure mileage was 141,000.

Power steering stopped working want to see if it is covered by a recall before I pay out-of-pocket.

I had to replace steering shaft twice so far in 9 years. I think gm should replace this free of charge. You make a turn & the wheel does not want to come back to go straight until I turn the wheel my self. This happens when in motion.

I had the car in on 2/18/15 for the power steering recall but a week later it did the same thing. I brought it in again on 3/2/15 thinking that maybe the part they replaced was defected. Told it was fine.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. While driving at a low speed, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact had to apply excessive force to the steering wheel in order to turn the vehicle. The check engine warning light illuminated. The contact also stated that the power steering warning was displayed on the message board. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 178,870.

Coming to a stop in heavy traffic alarms and lights went off, the car lost powering and wouldn't go into gear finally when the gear engaged it would only stay in first gear. Luckily we were able to pull off the busy highway and get safely to the side of the road with no accidents or injuries.

While driving my car the power steering suddenly went out with no warning, I was lucky not to have an accident. I've been in contact with gm who advised me there is no safety recall on the 2003 Ion but there are power steering safety recalls on 2004-2010.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. While driving approximately 3 mph, the steering wheel seized and required excessive force to turn. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 174,000.

I was exiting off the freeway and while merging off my power steering gave out almost resulting in a crash with a red SUV, luckily the vehicle did not crash yet I had to pay out of pocket as 2003 Saturn Ions are not added to the power steering recall as 2004 Saturn Ions are.

I was driving down the road and warning bell went off and display showed pwr strg. It became like driving a non-power age vehicle. I hear that this is the same part as the one being replaced in recalled vehicles.

Power steering went out this morning after car was running for 30 mins. In city driving. Last summer the power steering started going out when making turns, sometimes while driving straight. This began in the summer, after the temp. Outside started reaching 100+. Had to turn the car off and back on to get the steering working again. When the outside temp became cooler in the fall I didn't have problems with the power steering until today, now that it is getting hotter outside. I contacted GMC in April of this year, 2014; they maintain it is not their responsibility. I know my car has had power steering parts replaced previously under recalls and asked if they would check to see if their replacement parts went bad, again they declined. The steering seems to go mostly when making turns making it very difficult for me to even safely get to where I can stop, turn the car off, and then back on to get the power steering working again. I often have young grandkids in the car with me so it not just my safety I am concerned about. This is unsafe for me, my passengers and those driving around me. The car has less than 51,000 miles on it. Please can you help?.

On may 21st 2014 fidelity fleet and finance in portland or knowing sold me a 2003 Saturn Ion which is involved in the gm ignition recall. When asked if the vehicle was part of the recall the response was clearly represented as the car is not part of the recall and it was safe and mechanically sound. The dealership uses deceptive practices and sells unsafe vehicles including those linked to deaths and thousands of injuries. The dealership has also failed to register the vehicle in over 70 days since the purchase.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 mph, the power steering suddenly malfunctioned causing the steering wheel to become very difficult maneuvered. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the defect. The failure mileage was 45,000.

Power steering problems went down.

This is more of a question / comment than an incident. It appears that gm is recalling Saturn Ions, model years 2004-2007 for a problem with the electronic power steering assist motor. I am concerned that the 2003 Ion models do not seem to be included in the recall as, from what I can tell from replacement part sites, they are equiped with the identical part, #19207619 electronic power steering motor.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. The contact stated that the steering wheel would become difficult to control without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technician diagnosed that the electronic steering motor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 120,000 and the current mileage was 124,000.

I received a letter from gm about the ignition switch recall either last week or the week before. It stated to drive my vehicle with the ignition key only, not even with the key fob. I was also told that the part is no longer made for my vehicle. The letter also stated that there is no risk of ignition failure as long as the driver uses the key only. I have faithfully followed that since receiving my letter. I am telling you that information is false. As I was driving home tonight, I noticed the engine sounded different. The steering became difficult to control, the battery light illuminated on the dash, and my breaks only responded to very heavy pressure. Basically I had little control of my vehicle. I was less than a mile away from home. I turned into a parking lot with great difficulty, turned off my vehicle and then back on. It was as if nothing happened. I am panicked now. Thank goodness this happened after I exited the highway and it was after rush hour. I'm not sure I would have been able to turn into that parking lot without incident if there was heavier traffic. I immediately called gm when I returned home and told them the car wasn't safe to drive, even with the ignition key only. Customer service didn't seem to understand the danger. We'll see if they follow up. I hope you follow up as well.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. The contact stated that while driving 5 mph, the steering wheel seized and the contact she had to use extreme force to make a turn. The vehicle was taken to a certified mechanic where they stated that the power steering assist needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 114,000.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Ion. The contact stated that when turning the steering wheel in either direction, a banging noise was heard and the wheel would feel bumpy. The contact also indicated that when turning, the steering assist would malfunction, become loose and cause difficulty in the contact controlling the vehicle. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 85,000.