Transmission Failure problems of the 2003 Saturn VUE - part 1

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Vue. While driving approximately 5 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle restarted, but failed to accelerate. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The technician diagnosed that the transmission failed and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 150,000.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Vue. The contact stated that the key failed to start the vehicle and could be remove from the ignition switch while the vehicle was in motion. The failure progressed. In addition, the contact mentioned that while driving 40 mph, the vehicle failed to accelerate without warning. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The technician diagnosed that the transmission failed and would need to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Vue. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 mph, the transmission failed. The failure recurred multiple times. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer of was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 98,652.

2003 Saturn Vue. Consumer writes in regards to transmission failure and consumer seeks reimbursement for repairs. The repair shop stated the transmission had disintegrated and it could not be re-built. Ten days after the transmission was replaced, the check engine light illuminated followed by the loss of power light, at which time the vehicle dangerously slowed down to 10 mph. The vehicle was towed back to the repair shop, where they replaced the electronic accelerator pedal unit at their expense, which was a known Saturn factory service bulletin issue. The vehicle was fine for a couple of days, then the problem returned. It was towed back to the repair shop again. The repair shop performed an extensive diagnostics, but they could not find a definitive source. The problem happened again, after retrieving the vehicle. The repair shop had the vehicle towed to another facility. However, they were unable to resolve the issue.

Motor transmission fails to move forward or backwards even though engine starts fine.

I purchased this car brand new in 2003 and am the only driver. Other than the now defunct transmission, the car is in excellent shape, both inside and out. While driving appx. 70mph on the freeway, my Vue lost power down to 30mph and rpms increased to over 5000. The "check engine" and "reduced power" warning lights illuminated. I managed to drive the car to the recommended gm service center and was told that the vti transmission had failed. Service advisor contacted gm and was told they wouldn't provide any assistance. Car is still at gm service center as there is no way to repair the transmission and assure me that the $5000 it will cost me will last since they can not get a new transmission, only rebuild another one that has failed. This car is only 8 years old with 114k miles and based on my history with Saturn vehicles, my expectation was that it should have lasted at least another 3 years and 50k miles. Also, based on the information I have read online from other Vue owners with this same problem, it appears that gm is not consistent with the level of response or assistance to us. How can it be that someone with 120k miles gets their repair/replacement at no charge and others with less mileage can not? there is no consistency, it is a crap shoot as to the response you will receive. I still have the letters I received from Saturn notifying me that this is a known issue and the transmission was destined to fail. Gm should be held responsible for providing relief to all of us, equally, since they knew that eventually we would all be affected. I am included in the class-action lawsuit with lakin chapman.

Tl-the contact owns a 2003 Saturn Vue. The contact stated the vit transmission failed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated this was not a permanent fix after replacing the transmission. The vehicle will only last for another 20,000 miles. The manufacturer was contacted who informed her they will give her $5,000 towards a new vehicle. The contact stated she cannot afford it. The failure mileage was 102,000. . . Mw.

I brought a new 2003 Saturn Vue and my transmission failed and gm will not replace it. I know that there was a class action suit but have little information on where to go.

I bought a Saturn Vue 2003 with a vti transmission on April 1st 2009, with a 41000 miles. On November 09, 2010 the transmission failed. I had to tow the car to different places and no one is willing to do the work. The car has only about 69000 miles and it should be still under the new gm warranty to replace the transmission. I am a single mother who cannot afford to pay for a new car. Please help. Thank you. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6).

2003 Saturn Vue cvt transmission failure, car had 54,000 miles, first transmission replaced at about 30,000.

-total failure of the vti transmission (Saturn Vue 2003, 4 cyl). . . . . The cost of the repair is $5900 and. . . My 2003 Saturn Vue vti transmission failed at 100,000k miles. . . .

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Vue. The contact stated after receiving notification of an unknown recall regarding the transmission, the vehicle was taken to the dealer and the dealer advised there were no failures found within the transmission. Six months later, while driving at speeds of 50 mph, the vehicle began to jerk violently and stalled without warning. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was determined that the transmission had failed. The contact believed the initial dealer should have been able to determine the failure because the component was under recall. The failure mileage was 97,000.

Transmission failed on the PA turnpike and lost power in an unsafe pull off of highway.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn view. While driving approximately 29 to 30 mph the vehicle lost all power without warning and she noticed that the rpms increased to 4000. She experienced the failure three times and the third time, the transmission failed. She contacted the manufacturer. The manufacturer stated that they were aware that the transmission was defective, and they will give her 50% toward the replacement or they could give her $ 5,000 towards the purchase of a new vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The transmission will be replaced. The failure and the current mileages were 87,900.

I purchased a 2003 Saturn Vue with a defective vti transmission, Dec. 09. The Saturn dealership in raleigh, nc, did not inform me of the defect, upon the sales transaction. A service bulletin came out 12/09, from gm to appease consumers, by offering an extended warranty to help with the cost to replace this defective part, however, gm needed to fix the problem and replace the defective vti transmission with a part that is not defective. Instead, they leave consumers with an unsafe vehicle that will continue to break down causing safety concerns and huge out of pocket expenses. The car has lost value because of the defective part and worst of all I am afraid to drive it for fear of breakdown, particularly at freeway driving, which has been noted by other consumers. Gm loses 100m lawsuit because of early transmission failures in more than 90,000 Saturns carrying the vti transmissions and still their has been no recall. This investigation and recall is long overdue and affecting used vehicles that are still being sold today, with the 2002-2005 Saturn Vue and ions between 2003-2004 and 2000-2003 Saturn l-series, containing the vti transmissions.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Vue purchased used in December 2009. She found that while driving on the highway the vti transmission could fail. The contact felt unsafe in driving her vehicle due to the fact that upon contacting general motors, they confirmed with her that there was a defect in the vti transmissions but there were no recalls for the failures to date, she had not experienced any failures with the vehicle. The current mileage was 53,000.

2003 Saturn Vue vti transmission failures. First failure in 12/2006 w/84k miles, Saturn paid for half and it still cost me $1700 to fix. Now we have 132331 miles and the transmission has failed again. Saturn wants $6000 to replace transmission. The car is worth $0 with or without replacement. Saturn has known about past failures and does nothing to help.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Vue. While driving 45 mph the vehicle begin to hesitate and decrease in speed when the contact engaged the accelerator pedal. She was able to safely drive onto the emergency lane; however, the rpms increased rapidly. The vehicle was towed to auto repair shop where the mechanic stated that the transmission failed. The vehicle was towed to another mechanic for a second opinion, who also confirmed that the transmission caused the failure to occur. The vehicle remained at the repair shop until a decision is made to repair the vehicle. The failure and current mileages were 72000.

I own a 2003 Saturn Vue 4 cylinder fwd. I bought it in October 2009 only to find after 2 months that the SUV was a total rip off. The transmission failed and I had to spend 5000 dollars and wait for months because the kind of transmission was not easily available. I really wonder how a car with such serious defects still available in the market? can't NHTSA do anything in this regard? gm used a faulty transmission and they winded up the company putting all customers at distress. No service,no parts and how come the cars are not at recall? I searched NHTSA website and didn't find a recall on this model for faulty transmission. In the last 10 years no other model would have received this enormous complaints. Roll over risk on this model is too high as the SUV really sways at even small turns at low speed. Aren't these reasons enough for a recall? you have to stop this model from being sold anymore as unaware customers like me get totally deceived and are left helpless only to spend thousands out of pocket in this tough economy. If the cars are to remain, gm should be able to provide adequate service and support.

Transmission failure in my 2003 Saturn Vue, mileage is under 100,000 miles.

Vehicle has not been driven since October of 2009 due to transmission failure. Saturn knew of this problem, but because of mileage are not willing to assist me in repairs. I did not get notification of this problem until after I took the vehicle in for diagnosis. The problem with this is I cannot find a transmission to replace it with! I am making payments on something just sitting at the garage and feel helpless at to what to do at this point! it has been very frustrating and agitating. I am not in a position where I have 2 or 3 vehicles just sitting around waiting for me to drive. I have been driving my sisters truck for 4 months . Thank god for her.

2003 Saturn Vue - automatic transmission failure. Was told by Saturn dealership that these were recalled and will only replace the transmission if first owner. I purchased the car from this dealership in 2005 with 30,000 miles and was never informed of the recall. Now the transmission has failed and they want me to pay $5,350 to have it replaced. What is my recourse?.

I am the second owner of a 2003 Saturn Vue. I purchased this car in June of 2008 because I knew Saturn had a good reputation and made very reliable and safe cars. On may 10, 2009 my husband, myself, and our 2 year old daughter were leaving a gas station parking lot. My husband put the car in drive and pulled out into the road to begin our trip home. As he pulled out into the road and pressed the gas the car's rpms revved up but the car did not move. We checked to see if one of us had accidentally hit it into neutral, but it was in fact in drive. We had enough force to coast back into another entrance of the gas station parking lot and get out of the road before being hit. The vehicle would not move at all (not in drive or reverse). We had it towed to a transmission shop. They sent it to a local Saturn dealer. The Saturn dealer contacted us and said indeed the transmission had failed. Saturn gave us a quote for repairs which we cannot afford to pay. We were told we would also get a discount as this vti transmission was now the cause of a class action lawsuit. Even if we could afford it, the faulty vti transmission can only be replaced with another faulty vti transmission which could go out at any time with absolutely no warning. Fortunately when our transmission did go out we were safe. However we have a 2 year old daughter and are expecting our second child in a few weeks and it is absolutely unsafe for us to put ourselves, and especially not our children, in such a situation. It is a tragedy waiting to happen. We have contacted local Saturn reps, district reps, and Saturn assistance. All are unwilling to help in any way. The local Saturn representative told us he would not buy the car himself and that the dealership would not even want to purchase it from us if we fixed it. They know it is unsafe and still they will not help. We are left with a parked car in our yard that we still owe $5000 on. We do not feel it is safe enough put our children in or anyone else.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Vue. While driving approximately 45 mph, the transmission failed without warning. The engine still managed to function properly. Roadside assistance was called and the vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer for diagnostic testing. The failure was contributed to the transmission and the technician recommended that it be replaced. The vehicle is currently inoperable and has not been repaired. The VIN was unknown. The failure and current mileages were 102,000.

Letter emailed to Saturn corporation, 09/13/2008 dear Saturn customer service, 2003 Saturn Vue Friday, September 13, 2008, I was on my way to work and the service engine soon light and decreased power light came on. After contacting the local Saturn, it was suggested to have my Vue towed. So, I had my car towed to the nearest Saturn dealership, cavendar, in san antonio, texas. Today, Saturday, September 13, 2008, a dealership representative called me that they have to wait until Monday, September 15, 2008 to contact someone at Saturn in regard to a possible transmission failure. After reading so many complaints about the transmission used in the 2003 Saturn Vue, does the Saturn corporation / general motors have a recall to repair these transmissions. My car is at about 65,000 miles. I bought an extended warranty at the time of this new car purchase in 2003. The warranty only lasted for a total of 5 years or 75,000 miles. The five years ended in approximately March of 2008. After reading so many complaints about the transmission used in the 2003 Saturn Vue, does the Saturn corporation / general motors have a recall to repair these transmissions? I hope that Saturn really does care about their customers. Sincerely, steven weidner, Saturn Vue owner, san antonio, texas September 13, 2008.

2003 Saturn Vue. Consumer states problem with transmission the consumer stated on February 12, 2008 with 73,270 miles on the vehicle, the transmission failed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer and upon inspection, it was declared that the transmission was irreparably damaged. The dealer stated it failed due to a defective part that was covered by a recall. The dealer replaced the transmission within two days. However, on October 1, 2009, the transmission began having a problem shifting into drive from park. It would take a few seconds to engage. By then end of the day, it was taking approximately 20 seconds to engage. The next few days were progressively worse to the point it would not engage for 10 minutes. On October 13, 2009, the consumer was informed the vehicle needed a new transmission and once again, the failure was due to a defective part. Gm stated the second transmission was out of warranty and they would not provided assistance. Updated 10/20/10.

Without warning, the Vue suddenly came to a dead crawl while accelerating and was almost t-boned. Vue practically died but the engine revved real high. Engine light and reduced power light were on. Got the Vue to crawl home another mile. Later, I started the car and there were no warning lights. Test drove around the block with no problem drove Vue to o'reilly auto parts and used code scanner. The code scanner (autoxray code scout 2500) displayed the following messages; engine light off, p1882 = ratio control performance, p0701 = transmission control system, range/performance, p0700 = transmission control system malfunction. Later, it happened again. Suddenly while accelerating and without warning I had no power. Engine was still running, engine light and reduced power light came on. No power and was right in the middle of traffic, almost rear ended. Picked up code scanner again and took to vehicle. Connected the scanner and read the same codes as above. This time transmission was completely disabled. Towed Vue to south county Saturn in st louis. The dealer called next day and said there is nothing wrong and there are no codes. Dealer said they must have codes in order to repair problem. (there are no specific codes that will display regarding the problem. When transmission fails codes are too broad and do not indicate specific problem. There are no sensors inside the transmission that monitor the actual problems. I insisted that they test drive the car. Reluctantly, they had a technician drive the vehicle home for the rest of the week. Later they said they put an additive in the transmission as per their technical bulletin and then the technician began taking the car home. The problem is the additive will temporarily fix the problem. Of course the transmission will not fail during the week long test drive. They called today and said we have to pick up the car and that the transmission is fine. Now the car is a ticking time bomb waiting for the next failure.

My 2003 Saturn Vue vti transmission failed at 59k miles. It was repaired under the extended warranty on the transmission. This new transmission lasted 12 hundred miles. It was again repaired under the warranty, then 1200 miles later it failed again. It was "rebuilt" by the Saturn dealership each time. It is now driving exactly the way it did after the 2nd repair and I believe it is only a matter of time until it fails again.

Transmission shift failures.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Vue. The contact bought the vehicle with 55,000 miles. At 75,000 miles, the transmission had to be replaced. The vehicle would not move when in right gear. The vehicle was towed to the Saturn dealer and they replaced the transmission with a new one, which included a 18,000 mile/one year warranty. On a separate occasion, while driving at an unknown speed uphill, the vehicle failed to accelerate. The contact depressed the brake pedal, but after a few minutes, she released the pedal and allowed the vehicle to slide back into a driveway. The vehicle was towed to a private auto body shop. The mechanic searched for a new transmission. The dealer stated that the transmission failed again. The dealer stated that they will install a new transmission at the contact's expense with the same warranty. The vehicle is still at the auto body shop being repaired. The failure mileage was 75,000 and current mileage was 124,000.

The contact owns a 2003 Saturn Vue. After pulling away from a stop sign approximately 40 feet away, the vehicle's transmission failed. The contact coasted to a stop and had to push the vehicle to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer and they stated that the transmission was defective; therefore, the transmission was rebuilt. Approximately seven months later, the transmission failed again without warning. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer and they installed a new transmission. After 30,000 miles, the transmission failed again and the vehicle was towed to the dealer. The dealer stated that the vehicle was out of warranty and the repairs would cost $6,000. Currently, the vehicle is at the dealer and has not been repaired. The failure mileage was 46,000 and current mileage was 75,000. Updated 09/17/08. The consumer stated the first time she he had problems with the tramission, a part was replaced, the second and third time the entire transmission was replaced. Update 09/24/08.

Saturn has ongoing problem with transmissions that they are refusing to recognize. My wife's Vue suddenly lost power today in traffic when the transmission failed and almost got in to a wreck. I am tired of them failing to take notice of this; the complaints about this are all over the internet.

2003 Vue, purchased new 9/03- 4 cyclinder vti transmission failed on 4 occassions, car would lose power while driving. Occured between 6-04 and 9-04 - very unsafe pulling out into traffic. Happened on 4 occassions, once car lost power totally - had to be towed. Dealer fixed a different problem 3 different times, problem remained, traded car in 9-04.

My Saturn Vue has a vibration/shudder at various speeds which is caused by a problem with the vti transmission and which started at about 6,600 miles. This is a well-known problem with the vehicle and transmission. Called my dealer and he offered to replace the transmission since so many vti transmissions have failed. The dealer said that they have replaced about 6 vti transmissions already (and that's only one dealer) so probably hundreds ot vti transmissions have had to be replaced nationwide. My Vue has had two recalls for the vti--including replacement of bolts and a software upgrade. The constantly variable transmission (vti) has been a problem transmission ever since it was introduced in the new 2002 Vue and hundreds of owners have had problems. The vti tranmission was delayed several times because of pre-production problems. Now thousands of Saturn Vue owners have many transmission problems, including on-the-road transmission failures which is dangerous. This is a proven defective transmission which has an impact on safety as well as resale value and/or saleability of the vehicle. Saturn needs to either buy back those Vue's with vti' transmissions or offer to replace the vehicle with a non-vti transmission model.

Vti transmission failed at 27650 miles.