Problems - Saturn Ion 1

I've got just under 5000 miles on my Ion and it's been having issues since about 3000 miles. Three or four times the fuel gauge has gone to zero and the passlock symbol lighted up on the dash. The car still drove fine and the problem fixed itself after a while. The most recent problem occured yesterday when I started up the car - the steering wheel was all locked up. It still turned a little bit, but was very, very tight. I restarted and the problem when away.

We bought the Ion because we wanted to save a little money but still have reliable transportation and had heard good things from a few people who owned Saturns ( the S- Series). However, we are now planning to trade in the Ion as soon as possible because let's be honest, a car with electrical problems after just 3000 miles isn't worth hanging onto.

As far as I can gather, the Passlock system is supposed to disengage the the fuel and lock up the steering wheel when it determines that you aren't using the right key. Something with the Passlock system on my car is all screwy and I suspect it's not easy to fix. The dealer was quite circumspect about and that gave me a bad feeling.

I asked myself, would it have helped if we spend a little more money and got an ION 3? Probably not, since it's all the same engine underneath the hood.

We are lucky that we are able to absorb the financial loss on the Ion and get a different car. I am sure that most Saturns are reliable vehicles, but unfortunately, mine just isn't one of them. There is no doubt in my mind that the problems will only escalate. I have no desire to be zooming down the freeway at 60 have the steering wheel lock up, or the fuel system disengage. We are just going to bite the bullet on the trade in and get a different car.

Good luck to everyone else out there with Saturn problems!

Reply to
sallysaturn via CarKB.com
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Do you have another late model car with a similar antitheft ignition system? According to my Toyota manual, if the wrong key gets too close to the ignition switch and it has a similar system, it can trick my Toyota into refusing to start.

Reply to
Art

Reply to
Rich Soucie

"Do you have another late model car with a similar antitheft ignition system? According to my Toyota manual, if the wrong key gets too close to the ignition switch and it has a similar system, it can trick my Toyota into refusing to start."

Oh... I keep a key for a 2004 Chevy Trailblazer on the same keychain. Only thing is, both of the keys are just keys. No chip in them or anything.

Reply to
sallysaturn via CarKB.com

"the sterring lock thing happened to me once did pwr str show up on your gauge cause thats what happened to me i restarted and havent had the problem since. The ion uses electronically assisted power steering and the computer "burped" and missed the startup sequnce thus thinkin the car was off."

That's a good explanation. Did your dealer tell you about this? I hope that the power steering won't go out while I'm driving!

Reply to
sallysaturn via CarKB.com

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