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Engine & cooling

Saturn L Engine problems by year

346 complaints filed with NHTSA about the Saturn L's engine & cooling. Stalling, loss of power, oil consumption, overheating, head gaskets, timing chains and engine failure.

Engine complaints by model year

YearEngine complaintsCrashesInjuriesRecalls
2001346010

Latest L engine complaints

2001 Saturn LEngine & cooling

Recall bulletin #06074a ,timing chain engine stall. I called gm,and gm arbitration and they said I have no recallcs. This car only has 28,700 miles on it!! My Vin fits the criteria of the recall,and I went to the dealership and they confirmed it,but GM does not acknowledge it! page 4, dealer recall responsibility-all. 2nd paragraph Dealers are to service All vehicals subject to this recall, regardless of milage,age of vehical,vehicle, ownership as of Jan ,2008. I'm the 2nd owner,and there is no documentation that...

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this recall was preformed, 2 others were repaired. I have the car fax for this vehicle. My repair shop said it will cost @ $ 1000.00 to repair it. I'd be happy with a repair or a restoration check from Gm. I started a "Gm service request claim" # 9-7361453168. They never called me back,they canceled/ closed the request and did not approve the recall!! I'm at a loss at what to do at this point.Any help would be appreciated! Thankyou,Charlie

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 11454788
2001 Saturn LEngine & coolingTransmission & drivetrainElectrical system

Well first my engine control monitor is sending a bunch of random off codes from ma's air sensor vol low to crankshaft sensor volume low to o2 sensors to transmission codes, my side airbag on driver side blue up out of no were my key fob stopped reading and now my car won't start I know all of a sudden it's sending off codes for camshaft sensor and o2 sensors I believe there should be a recall on the ecm it's a very expensive replacement that seems to be a common failure it's dangers and defective.My car locked up...

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in middle of I busy intersection do to these codes and low voltage readings my name is [[redacted]] I live at [[redacted]] my #[[redacted]] accident date 10/17/2017 information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.S.C. 552(B)(6). *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · Power train · Electrical systemNHTSA 11035138
2001 Saturn LAirbagsEngine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2001 saturn ls. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 20 mph, the air bag and the engine warning indicators illuminated continuously. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the air bag was removed and not replaced with another. The contact was uncertain of the location of the air bag that was removed. The failure persisted after the repair. In addition, the engine oil leaked onto the ground. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 86,726. Updated 09/08/16*lj *cn

Filed Incident Air bags · EngineNHTSA 10873833
2001 Saturn LSteeringBrakesEngine & cooling

Driving down in congested morning traffic on highway when engine shut off. With engine off, brakes hard to push and steering very difficult. Vehicle coasted to stop. Engine would not restart. It just turned over. Shop said timing chain snapped and engine had to be replaced.

Filed Incident Steering · Service brakes · EngineNHTSA 10860136
2001 Saturn LEngine & cooling

Vehicle stalled while driving and would not turn back over. Found out later it was timing chain failure. The vehicle was traveling at highway speed in sourt carolina.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10840050
2001 Saturn LEngine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2001 saturn ls. When the vehicle was started, it immediately stalled without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the timing chain needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vin was not included in nhtsa campaign number: 07v519000 (engine) the manufacturer was notified of failure. The failure mileage was 62,000.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10766360
2001 Saturn LEngine & cooling

Car is 2001 saturn l200 with less than 100,000 miles and the timing chain broke as the car was pulling into the driveway. My vin is not covered by the timing chain recall issued by gm, so I now have a completely unusable car which is rated in good condition other than the timing chain unless I want to spend the 1000 plus to fix it. Gm/nhtsa issued recall number 07v519000 for other similar saturns in year and model for the timing chain, why not all of them in the same years? After speaking with gm and...

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researching the part number, my chain was built in the same wilmington delaware plant with the manufacture default diagnosis as the other recalled timing chains belonging to other 2001, 2002, 2003 saturn l series cars. This needs to be a covered recall for this car as well as there is obviously an issue with these chains breaking in the cars- thank goodness I was only pulling into the driveway when it broke rather than driving in heavy traffic on the road. Make this right gm- and cover this repair for this car.

Filed Incident Unknown or other · EngineNHTSA 10734985
2001 Saturn LSeats & seat beltsEngine & cooling

While driving my cars idle dropped and stalked my car in the middle of a turn. I got it restsrted and made it home. The next day driving out of town with infant in the back it stalled again. This time leaving us stranded in a intersection. Kind people pushed us off the busy roadway I had to have it towed my husband discovered it was my iac valve. To replace this its over 150 dollars it continues to leave me stranded when I turn and when im in a intersection! My interior on my drivers seat has sunk to below the metal seat frame I have to sit on pillows to see properly!

Filed Incident Seats · EngineNHTSA 10725219
2001 Saturn LSuspensionTransmission & drivetrainEngine & cooling

Replaced water pump, timing chain and pulleys at approximately 90k miles. App. 10K miles later, timing chain broke and had to be replaced again. Multiple issues with suspension, fuel sensors, oil filter casing.

Filed Incident Suspension · Power train · EngineNHTSA 10721624
2001 Saturn LEngine & cooling

We drove the car to eat. When we came back out the car would not start. We had it towed to the mechanic and he told us the timing chain jumped a couple of teeth. It also bent some or all the values. The same makes and models have had recalls for this issue. Our car was not under recall for some reason. What if I was driving 70 mph and this happened we could of been in a huge wreck. *Tr

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10704804
2001 Saturn LTransmission & drivetrainEngine & cooling

Good afternoon, I am a the original saturn owner who never received recall information regarding my 2001 saturn l series. I have experienced various problems that directly correlate to the recall listed below: recall 07v519000-pertaining to engine and engine cooling potential number of units affected: 20,514 summary: on certain passenger vehicles equipped with a 2.2L 4-cylinder engine, links in the engine's timing chain can separate. Consequence: if a timing chain link separates while the engine is...

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running, the engine will stall and will not restart increasing the risk of a crash. Remedy: dealers will replace the timing chain free of charge. The recall began on january 15, 2008. Owners may contact saturn at 1-800-972-8876. The recall listed above has effected our vehicle on two different occasions; the first of which was fixed out of our own pocket for $4,614.29 On 9/18/12. I have receipts to prove these repairs. Also, this recall effected our vehicle a second time on 12/4/2014. Unfortunately, due to our current circumstances we are unable to fix this vehicle out of our own pocket again. We love this car, and hope you can be of assistance. Thank you in advance. *Js

Filed Incident Power train · EngineNHTSA 10669411
2001 Saturn LEngine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2001 saturn ls. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 mph, a banging noise emitted from the engine before the vehicle suddenly stalled. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence and examined by an independent mechanic. The technician diagnosed that the timing chain had failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact was informed that the vehicle was not included in nhtsa campaign number: 07v519000 (engine). The failure mileage was 170,000.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10653929
2001 Saturn LEngine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2001 saturn ls. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 25 mph, the vehicle overheated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the timing chain needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 178,000.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10616235

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked daily. Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data

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