2003 Saturn ION 3 from North America - Comments

I bought an '05 Ion Quad Coupe with 45,000 miles on it. I got it really cheap because it was a rebuilder. I had problems the second day of ownership because it kept dying. And it wouldn't turn over or anything like that. I ran a scan & got 3 codes. Then I got on the Internet & did a lot of research. There have been many owners reporting problems very similar to mine. With the same trouble codes. you would think it was because of what was causing theirs huh? Nope! It turns out it was the throttle body. The throttle servo cover had been beaten up in the wreck. I replaced it & it's been fine ever since. Another thing it could've been was leaking around the air intake tube from the airbox to the throttle body. Just for anyone that might have the same issues. I thought it might help.

Don't buy into all of what you read on the internet about these cars. The problems or the fixes for those problems. I had a Saturn "master tech" on a forum tell me that it was the ECM. He showed me a service bulletin & everything. It wasn't. I think they send out these service bulletins to not only try to make more money but, also make it easier for their mechanics, instead of that mechanic actually having to figure things out for himself.

I have since only had one other issue with the car. That's the front wheel bearing assembly. It's a good thing I can fix it as well. Overall I think it's a decent car for what I paid for it. I was replacing a very tired & old Acura. Now I don't think there is any comparison here. Acura is by far a superior car. there is no doubt about it. But there is a huge price difference too. When I bought this car I was looking at a Mazda 3. I just couldn't get the money for it at the time. So I got this car cheaply. When new, the prices of the 2 cars were very close. I would buy the Mazda. But for the cheap price I paid, I'm very pleased. It seems to be a sound car with good power & good gas mileage. But it is a cheap made car none the less.

If you own one of these cars & have any ability to fix small things your self, join saturnfans.com. There are a lot of Saturn owners on there & they are a BIG help. Most of the common problems with these cars can be fixed much cheaper than what the dealers want you to believe.

I also have had the A/C water leaking problem since 9/2007. My Saturn dealership service department has replaced the entire A/C system after six trips to the service station to have the leaking problem solved. They never could tell me exactly what the problem was caused by... they were stumped on this one they said. Everything seems to be working for now. I sure hope it's fixed for good, because it's such a hassle running my car to be fixed every month or so.