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Vehicle safety record

2006 Saturn Relay Problems, complaints & recalls

Owners have filed 19 complaints about the 2006 Saturn Relay with NHTSA, most often about the body, doors & structure (5) and the brakes (4). Those complaints describe 2 crashes and 2 injuries. It is covered by 2 recalls, the latest in February 2009 for the steering. For comparison, the 2005 has 91 and the 2007 has 12.

NHTSA data checked

CAbout as many problems as a typical Relay year, for its age

#195 most complained-about 2006 vehicle

Complaints
19
Recalls
2
Crashes
2
Fires
0
Injuries
2
Deaths
0

Most common 2006 Saturn Relay problems

Share of all 19 complaints. One complaint can name more than one area. Tap an area for its complaints and recalls.

2006 Saturn Relay recalls 2

Recall repairs are free. Your dealer fixes them whether or not you bought the car there - check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see if yours is done. What to do

Steering

09E005000979 vehicles affected

The problem
Dorman is recalling 979 steering knuckles, dorman p/nos. 697-902 And 697-903, sold under dorman's "oe solutions<sup>tm</sup>" brand name, and napa p/nos. 7-8502 And 7-8503 which were sold for replacement use on the various vehicles listed above. A potential material or design defect could result in the steering knuckle breaking in the hub area.
The risk
A broken steering knuckle could result in loss of steering control and a possible crash without warning.
The fix
Dorman will notify owners and replace the defective steering knuckles free of charge and reimburse the repair facility or owner for labor. The recall began on february 23, 2009. Owners may contact dorman's toll-free hotline at 1-800-523-2492 and press 5.

Equipment: labels

05V55200032,068 vehicles affected

The problem
Certain trucks and sport utility vehicles fail to conform to the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 110, "Tire selection and rims." These vehicles were shipped with tire and loading information labels listing an inacccurate vehicle capacity weight.
The risk
A misprinted label could lead to improper vehicle loading specifications or tire inflation which could result in a tire failure, increasing the risk of a crash.
The fix
Owners will be provided with corrected labels and installation instructions. At the customer's option, a dealer can install the label for them. The recall began on march 31, 2006. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, gmc at 1-866-996-9463, hummer at 1-800-732-5493, pontiac at 1-800-620-7668, saturn at 1-800-972-8876, or isuzu at 1-800-255-6727.

What owners say

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19 complaints about the 2006 Saturn Relay

Newest first, as filed with NHTSA by owners.

Electrical systemDriver assistanceBrakes

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...

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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.

Filed Incident Electrical system · Electronic stability control (ESC) · Service brakesNHTSA 11030754
Transmission & drivetrain

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...

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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

Filed Incident Power trainNHTSA 10568801
Transmission & drivetrain

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

Filed Incident Power trainNHTSA 10568789
Transmission & drivetrainElectrical systemLights

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...

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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

Filed Incident Power train · Electrical system · Exterior lightingNHTSA 10568780
AirbagsCrash

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

Filed Incident Air bagsNHTSA 10558511
Engine & cooling1 injury

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.

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10498019
BrakesDriver assistance

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

Filed Incident Service brakes, hydraulic · Electronic stability control (ESC)NHTSA 10432537
Body, doors & structure

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.

Filed Incident Latches / locks / linkagesNHTSA 10399904
Steering

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

Filed Incident SteeringNHTSA 10335274
Transmission & drivetrain

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

Filed Incident Power trainNHTSA 10295177
Body, doors & structure

Tl*the contact owns a 2006 saturn relay. The contact stated that the driver's side door repeatedly opens and closes. She has taken the vehicle to the dealer more than four times within two months to have the door repaired. The dealer has seen many of the same vehicles with identical failures. They are experiencing difficulty repairing the door. The current and failure mileages were 34,600.

Filed Incident StructureNHTSA 10244633
Body, doors & structure

Power sliding door on 2006 saturn relay is not closing properly and opens unexpectedly. Door does not close completely, does not latch and occassionally door reopens while vehicle is moving. Trouble started abot two months ago but the regularity of this occurrance has increased significanlty over the last four days. *Tr

Filed Incident Structure · Latches / locks / linkagesNHTSA 10242466
BrakesEquipment & accessories

I have a 2006 saturn relay. It was an executive driven car and was purchased with 400 miles on it and the warranty transferred over to me. The traction control on this vehicle is defective. When the traction control engaged it would knock out the stability control, traction control, and abs system. Although I have breaks, they are manual breaks. At first saturn said the system is working to factory specs until it happened to their vehicle. Then all of a sudden there was a problem with mine. I do not feel...

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safe in the car because, I should not have to worry about what kind of breaking system I have when trying to engage my breaks. I do not want to cause harm to anyone or have any accident caused by this result in death. I do not want harm to me or my loved ones either. No one at saturn or saturn of greenfield senses the urgency of this situation. It isn't until I complaint that I at least get some type of action, although it results in the system failing again. I have my car in to have this issue fixed earlier this summer. This past weekend, the system failed three times in two days. Not a good result. I need this documented so that in the event I am involved in a serious accident, I will not be accused of not disclosing this situation. I can say that I did and no one took it seriously which will probably result in a long messy legal battle. I have done my part, but saturn of greenfield and gm (saturn) has failed to do theirs. *Tr

Filed Incident Service brakes, hydraulic · EquipmentNHTSA 10240568
Fuel system

We own a 2006 saturn relay 3 that we purchased in june 2007. We have become aware of a design flaw that exists in chevrolet uplanders and saturn relays that can lead to dangerous consequences. We have been advised by our dealership that gm is aware of the problem and has done nothing to rectify it. Because of the shape of the gas tank, if the car is idling while on an incline, gas dissipates from the engine and the car may stall. This can occur despite there being more than a quarter tank of gas in the car....

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Further, the car cannot be restarted unless set on a level surface. This has happened to us on two occasions. My worry is that it could happen in a dangerous place (i.E. In a traffic jam in a tunnel such as the lincoln tunnel) where the car cannot be restarted and there is not easy access to evacuate. Gm is knowingly selling these models without disclosing the defect. Further, there is no disclosure after purchase until an event occurs and then there is no effort to remedy the defect. *Jb

Filed Incident Fuel system, gasolineNHTSA 10203316
Body, doors & structure

Tl*the contact owns a 2006 saturn relay. The contact stated that the rear passenger side sliding door failed to close properly. The door has to be slammed shut in order for it to close. There were no warning indicators prior to the failure. The vehicle has not been inspected by a dealer. The current and failure mileages were 7,000.

Filed Incident StructureNHTSA 10196756
Fuel system

2006 Saturn van is designed with the characteristic of running out of fuel when operating on an incline (nose up or nose down), with a 1/4 tank of fuel remaining. After this occurred the 2nd time I complained to the dealership and asked them to repair. They stated they were aware of the characteristic and that it could not be repaired. They cautioned me to not allow the gas level to drop below 1/2 tank. They stated this was listed as a characteristic of the car in the owners manual and that released them from responsibility.*Jb

Filed Incident Fuel system, gasoline · Fuel system, otherNHTSA 10169950
AirbagsCrash1 injury

Dt*: the contact stated the vehicle was involved in a collision and the airbags did not deploy. The contact was stopped in the center lane, when another vehicle attempted to get into the same lane. The contact's vehicle was hit on the front passenger side fender causing the vehicle to flip completely over and landed right side up. The contact sustained head and arm injuries and a police report was taken. All occupants were wearing their seatbelts. The airbag warning light was not illuminated prior to the crash. There were pictures available and the vehicle was deemed totaled.

Filed Incident Air bagsNHTSA 10166114
Brakes

I was traveling on az state route 87 on a 6 percent downgrade. I had applied the brakes a total of 3 times for no more than 3 to 5 seconds at a time, this occurred over a 5 minute time frame. On the third application the brakes began to cavitate very badly. This caused the vehicle to sway and brakes faded out. The brakes made a rubbing sound for the next several days. When brakes are applied while turning they make a grinding sound/feel. The vehicle was taken into saturn of arrowhead peoria, az on 07/06/06....

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They stated nothing was found wrong with brakes. They said it is common for brakes to fade on this vehicle going down hill. They stated we should downshift to compensate. They can not explain why brakes make sound while turning, they say brakes are fine. I personally believe problem is that brake rotors are to small for size of vehicle. That they heat up to quickly and fade out and rotors begin to warp. This is a design flaw that can be corrected by increasing rotor size and brake shoe size, there is plenty of room in wheel well. *Nm

Filed Incident Service brakes, hydraulicNHTSA 10163004
SteeringEngine & coolingFuel systemBody, doors & structureSeats & seat belts

1) Bought our saturn relay may 30, 2006 2) took it to the dealer it to the dealer because hood rattle, said it was nothing sent me home. 3) Called about the low mileage the van was making, said it was ok 4) 1 month and 26 days car breacks down repairs are made on 6/26/06 -sending unit was replace -sensory kit was replace -hood not closing was corrected latch was replace -and hood bumper was fix -intermittent engine noise ( not fix) -steering wheel vibrates when making a sharp turn ( not fix) most...

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important the middle seat that are both captain chairs do not have a arm rest so when the kids sit there and my mom they tend to loose there valance because there is nothing to hold them in place.--- They say that's the way they come and there is nothing to do about it. *Nm

Filed Incident Steering · Engine and engine cooling · Fuel system, gasoline · Latches / locks / linkages · SeatsNHTSA 10161708

Saturn Relay: every year compared

YearComplaintsRecallsCrashesFiresTop problemGrade
200712100Body, doors & structureA
200619220Body, doors & structureC
200591321BrakesF
All Relay years

2006 Saturn Relay vs rivals

VehicleComplaintsRecallsCrashesGrade
2006 Saturn Relay1922C
2006 Saturn Ion1,235644DCompare
2006 Saturn Vue300018CCompare

More sales usually means more complaints, so compare similar vehicles of the same year. The grade compares each vehicle with its own model's other years.

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Questions about the 2006 Saturn Relay

Does the 2006 Saturn Relay have any recalls?

Yes - NHTSA lists 2 recalls for the 2006 Saturn Relay: steering (February 2009); labels (December 2005). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see whether yours has been fixed.

What are the most common problems with the 2006 Saturn Relay?

By the complaints owners filed with NHTSA, the most common problem areas are the body, doors & structure (5), brakes (4), transmission & drivetrain (4).

How many complaints has the 2006 Saturn Relay had?

19 complaints have been filed with NHTSA, the first on July 6, 2006 and the latest on October 1, 2017. Of these, 2 describe a crash and 0 a fire, and together they report 2 injuries and 0 deaths.

Is the 2006 Saturn Relay a reliable vehicle?

Its Safety Index is 50 out of 100 (grade C: about as many problems as a typical Saturn Relay year, for its age). The index weighs complaints, crashes, fires, injuries, deaths and recalls against how long the vehicle has been on the road, compared with the same model's other years. It is not a measure of every repair - read the complaints and owner experiences, and have any used vehicle inspected before you buy.

Which Saturn Relay years have the most complaints?
What should I do if my 2006 Saturn Relay has a problem?

If it is a safety problem, stop driving it if it is unsafe and contact your dealer. Report it to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/report-a-safety-problem - enough reports start investigations and recalls - and share your experience here so other owners know what to look for.

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

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