2004 Saturn ION 2 from North America - Comments

My car lurched forward very awkwardly when it was turned off and the key was out of the ignition, as if someone had pushed it with some force from behind.

I don't care for the way it drives/shifts gears.

I hear gas slosh around in that tank in my car when I put it in park.

I truly love the design of this car, both inside and out. The customer service at the Saturn dealership is outstanding, also.

However, when it comes to driving it (which, I drive a lot), I don't consider the Saturn Ion to drive all that smooth. It lurches at low speeds and when I park. It doesn't just move forward a bit, but it seriously pushes me forward. I don't quite understand why it does this, only that there could be something wrong with the shifting of gears.

Recently I realized that the gas in the Ion was making a knocking/sloshing noise when I put it in park. I thought that it was the oddest thing. I have never been in someone else's car when it had just been put in park, and heard the gas in their car slosh around.

There are other various small cons I have noticed about my Saturn Ion 2, but since I have not read any consumer reports dealing with any problems I have experienced, I guess I'll just put them aside. Just thought I'd share my thoughts.

I totally agree with the beauty of the car, but it is misleading. I have had nothing but problems with my 2004 Saturn Ion. It has been at the dealer's almost every 3 months, whether it be for recalls or other problems. The reason that I bought this vehicle was that my sister owned a Saturn for 13 years, and she never had any problems with it except for the service. Saturn doesn't give proper service. The people are polite, but the excuses are unbelievable, such as leaving your vehicle there overnight so it could be serviced as the first one in line, and yet I had to call myself because no one called me to let me know the status of my car. Then they said, "We were really busy, so we did not have time to service your car," and, "Well, my mechanics left for vacation and I didn't know, and I didn't want to have your car serviced by just any mechanic. I really needed that one." Yes, of course they needed the one that took his vacation. I had this happen 3 times at 2 different dealerships, thinking that the last option was to go to a different location to have a second opinion. I have had problems with oil odors, fuel odors, changing of gears (1st gear), and dented rims. I have proof on paper from 2 different garages stating that my rims are crooked. One Saturn dealer denies it and the other acknowledges but, of course, blames the client. I am now driving the car with crooked rims, and I will have to pay the cost to have them replaced. I thought buying a new car meant that I would not have any problems. It's too bad that Canada does not have a lemon law. I can just imagine how I am going to be serviced after my guarantee is up with Saturn. I am now selling the car even though I am losing money on it. The car has 8600km and will be 1 1/2 yr old in July. It's too bad, because the model is gorgeous. (I added tinted windows, CD car radio, and a remote.) Too bad it has got to go.