2004 Saturn Ion problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Steering (309) · Electrical System (161) · Electrical System:ignition (38)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Saturn Ion model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
🛣️ Complaints by mileage
713 NHTSA complaints that reported an odometer reading.
Safety recalls (4)
Electrical System:ignition:switch 2014-04-30 · campaign 14E021000 · 14,529 vehicles
Defect: UCI-FRAM Group is recalling certain LS1328 ignition Switches sold as Wells LS1328, Duralast LS1328, Airtex 1S6097, and Carquest 53-27479, and LS1497 Ignition Switches sold as Wells LS1497, Duralast LS1497, Airtex 1S10961, and Carquest 53-27967, for use on various General Motors model and model year vehicles during repair and replacement of the original ignition switch. The weight on the key ring and/or road conditions or some other jarring event may cause the affected ignition switches to move
Risk: If the ignition switch moves from the run position to accessory, the car would stall and the air bags will not deploy in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of personal injury to the occupants.
Fix: UCI-FRAM Group has notified its purchasers to quarantine and return all inventory. Any switches already installed in vehicles will be replaced by GM dealers as part of NHTSA recall 14V-047, free of charge. UCI-Fram's purchasers should contact UCI-FRAM Group at 1-800-890-2075. GM vehicle owners requiring additional information on that recall campaign should contact GM at 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), 1-800-762-2737 (Pontiac) or 1-800-553-6000 (Saturn).
Electrical System:ignition 2014-04-10 · campaign 14V171000 · 2,191,014 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2005-2010 Chevrolet Cobalt, 2006-2011 Chevrolet HHR, 2007-2010 Pontiac G5, 2006-2010 Pontiac Solstice, 2003-2007 Saturn Ion, and 2007-2010 Saturn Sky vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the key can be removed from the ignition when the ignition is not in the "Off" position.
Risk: If the key can be removed from the ignition when the ignition is not in the "off" position, the vehicle could roll away: (a) for an automatic transmission, if the transmission is not in the "Park" position; or (b) for a manual transmission, if the parking brake is not engaged and the transmission is not in the "Reverse" position. This potential for rollaway increases the risk for a crash and occup
Fix: General Motors will notify owners, and for vehicles that were built with the defective ignition cylinder and have not previously had the ignition cylinder replaced with the redesigned part, dealers will replace the ignition cylinder and cut and, if necessary, re-learn two ignition/door keys for each vehicle. For vehicles that were built with the redesigned ignition cylinder or had the ignition cylinder replaced with the redesigned part, dealers will cut and, if necessary, re-learn two ignition
Steering:electric Power Assist System 2014-03-31 · campaign 14V153000 · 1,373,177 vehicles
Defect: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2004-2006 and 2008-2009 Chevrolet Malibu, 2004-2006 Malibu Maxx, 2009-2010 HHR (non-turbo), 2010 Cobalt, 2008-2009 Saturn Aura and 2004-2007 Ion, and 2005-2009 Pontiac G6. In the affected vehicles, there may be a sudden loss of electric power steering (EPS) assist that could occur at any time while driving.
Risk: If power steering assist is lost, greater driver effort would be required to steer the vehicle at low speeds, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will perform one of four bulletins. Parts are not currently available. GM expects to send an interim notification around May 28, 2014. When parts are available, owners will be mailed a second letter to come in to have the applicable bulletin applied. Bulletin 14115 covers model year 2004-2007 Saturn Ion, 2009-2010 Chevrolet HHR and 2010 Chevrolet Cobalts. Dealers will replace the EPS motor. Bulletin 14116 covers model year 2004-2006 Chevrolet Malibu and M
Air Bags 2014-02-10 · campaign 14V047000 · 2,190,934 vehicles
Defect: This defect can affect the safe operation of the airbag system. Until this recall is performed, customers should remove all items from their key rings, leaving only the ignition key. The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from the key ring. General Motors LLC (GM) notified the agency on February 10, 2014 that they are recalling 619,122 model year 2005-2007 Chevrolet Cobalt, and 2007 Pontiac G5 vehicles. On February 25, 2014, GM increased the recall to include an additional 748,0
Risk: If the key is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ignition switch, free of charge. An interim notification was issued to owners of 2007 and earlier models on March 10, 2014, informing them of the safety defect. Owners of 2008 and later vehicles will be mailed an interim letter on April 21, 2014. All affected owners will receive another letter once parts are available. The recall began on April 18, 2014. Owners may contact Chevrolet at 1-800-222-1020, Pontiac at 1-800-762-2737 or Saturn at
Service bulletins (525)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2025-07-18 · PIP5601C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this pi communicates the requirement to provide a pico file to receive diagnostic assistance from tac.
Unknown Or Other 2025-02-20 · PIP5358D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that have an unusual noise and is difficult to identify, isolate or pinpoint. technician should get record a sound clip or take a video of the noise for assessment by engineering. technician will need to
Electrical System 2024-10-25 · PIP4723J · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communicates to the dealer the process for downloading or updating operating software for the tire pressure monitor, active fuel injector tester, multi media tester, pico scope, gr8 starting/charging tester and vehicle data recorder tools, giving website address and ste
Unknown Or Other 2024-09-12 · PIT5099H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that the heater-vent-air conditioning blows warm air. before calling general motors technical assistance center technician will need to have high and low pressures, outside temperature, humidity, and ven
Unknown Or Other 2024-09-12 · PIT5099H · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that the heater-vent-air conditioning blows warm air. before calling general motors technical assistance center technician will need to have high and low pressures, outside temperature, humidity, and ven
Unknown Or Other 2024-09-06 · PIT3271P · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
this preliminary information communication provides information to the technician about changing the tire and wheel size on vehicles. general motors will only support a tire calibration for tires that have been sized, tested and designed for the vehicle in question and its applications. technician s
Showing the 6 most recent of 525 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2025-11-02 · Steering“the car doesn't always want to release the key. i have to stick my finger up in the column to push the little button to release it which is not convenient at all. it seems to do it if the wheels aren't completely straight. but still even with the steering wheel straight, sometimes it wont come out if its on a slight hill. ive had a new key made and…”
2023-07-06 · Electrical System · 230,000 mi“the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled. additionally, the contact stated that the key was stuck in the ignition. the failure was intermittent. the vehicle was taken to the dealer, who replaced the ignition switch and the ignition lock cylinder; however, the failure recu…”
2023-06-22 · Visibility/Wiper“the drivers side windshield wiper linkage failed at the junction of the metal rod and the plastic wiper mount causing the wiper to stop working. and the wiper arms are almost impossible to remove, even with a puller. obviously this condition is a safety issue, and other gm vehicles have been recalled for the same issue. why not the 2004 saturn ion…”
2022-12-13 · Steering“the contact owns a 2004 saturn ion. the contact stated while driving at various speeds, excessive force was needed to maneuver the steering wheel on several occasions. the power steering assist warning light was illuminated. the contact stated that he replaced the electric power steering motor; however, the failure persisted. the vehicle was not ta…”
2022-01-04 · Fuel/Propulsion System“my car started getting a strong odor of gas. a fuel pipe leak is causing the odor…”
2021-09-11 · Fuel/Propulsion System“hi i am a kind of new owner of an 04 saturn ion, this is actually the second complaint i've filled out. last july i had a mechanic friend look at my fuel filter and he had said the fuel line needed to be cut off becuase of how rusted on to the original fuel filter i'd got it with was and i didn't believe him so i replace it myself and when i got it…”
2021-03-02 · Fuel/Propulsion System · 100,000 mi“tried taking fuel filter off last july took a whole weekend of using penatrating oil and freeze off then i finally got the tabs to come loose, i thought maybe i messed up the new filter or didnt get enough rust off the fuel line and that's what was causing the strong smell of gas nd poor performance but changed it again and still that same problem…”
2021-01-29 · Steering · 85,000 mi“the fuel pump is leaking, gm refuses to fix it because the vin isn't associated with the recall, but the same year make and model of my car says it has a recall for the fuel system and pump.…”
2020-12-05 · Fuel/Propulsion System · 167,573 mi“fuel leak on rear driver side when the engine is running while car is stationary. it may have happened before the date and mileage stated below but that's when i first noticed the fuel leak.…”
2020-12-01 · Steering · 138,000 mi“power steering sticks. i take a 55mph curve and the steering wheel doesn't come back to center. it wants to take me off the roadway.…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.