2004 Saturn ION 3 from North America - Comments

3rd Mar 2008, 05:30

"What is GM thinking?"

What things have gone wrong with the car?

Two ignition switch failures during cold weather, which caused a VA complaint to be filed against me at work. Sealed joints creak (front end). Climate control problems. HVAC blower sounds like an 8 mm projector. Ventilation knob turns, however, air flow is not directed to the desired setting; air blows out of the floor, dash, and defrost vents at the same time. Intermittent stalling when down shifting into first even when the clutch is engaged and/or in neutral. Choppy acceleration while in the 2,500-3,000 rpm range. Horrible handling in the snow (I have owned rear-wheel drive muscle cars which handled better on ice) for being a front wheel drive. I have purposely avoided certain routes during snowfall because the car is all over the place (yes the tires are still good). Worst of all is the condescending attitude at the dealership. I'm not one who will freak out. However I am one more person that is done buying GM products. One plus; the Ecotec 2.2L, though under-powered has better fuel efficiency than my old V-8.

General comments?


28th May 2009, 11:56

All the issues that you have had are all TSB (technical service bulletins) and if your dealership did their job they would have had all these problems fixed. Its interesting that you have poor driving in winter, I have winter tires and the high performance model (redline) and live in Canada. My car is a dream in the snow and ice, never been stuck once and the steering is on par with every other car I have driven.

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