Owners have filed 1,222 complaints on the Saturn SL, covering 1995–2002. The system named most often is Engine And Engine Cooling (214 reports). Worst years by volume: 1995, 1996, 1997; cleanest: 2001, 2002, 2000. 159 reports describe a crash, 20 a fire, 1 a death. On average the car was 4.4 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Saturn SL
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 1,222 SL complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Engine And Engine Cooling 214 Read
My son had an accident involving 3 other vehicles. The motor of the 2002 saturn sl1 in which he was driving stalled as he exited the highway onto a service road. Once the engine stalled,he did not have the ability to steer or stop the vehicle. As a result, he struck 2 vehicles that were stopped at a red light causing…
While exiting the freeway, I came to a stop at the end of the ramp at a red light, the auto stalled, I tried to restart it without success, I then saw black smoke billowing from the engine compartment, by the thme the fire dept. Arrived the front end of the car was completely destroyed. The headlights were melted, as…
The contact owns a 1997 saturn sl2. While driving 35 mph, the contact noticed smoke rising from the hood. He then pulled over as the smoke turned into flames. After he extinguished the fire, he restarted the vehicle and oil sprayed out from the cylinder head. The dealer has not inspected the vehicle. The current and…
Power Train 152 Read
Caution: saturn automatic transmision may be dangerous if it hesitates and clunks into gear or downshifts inappropriately. Saturn's computer diagnostic system may not detect dangerous transmission control condition. Saturn corp. Policy on paying dealer for diagnostic work for warranty items may discourage dealer from…
Gear shift started smoking then caught on fire.*mr there was a recall for 2000-2003 saturns of the same model. The dealer stated they weren't responsible for the fire and wasn't going to pay for the damages. *ph
Consumer was traveling 55mph on wet roads vehicle downshifted into low gear at highway speed. Consumer lost control and crashed into a concrete bridge which guided him to a stop. Twice vehicle was in shop for clunking, and twice with downshifting added. Vehicle in a repair shop to see what damage has been done.*ak the…
Service Brakes 144 Read
Vehicle experienced brake failure.*mr while driving the consumer brake pedal went all the way down to the floor, as she was attempting to stop the vehicle at a traffic signal. It had resulted in a collision with the vehicle in front of her. About $600 worth of damages occurred not including the cause of repairs for…
I was in rush hour traffic and went to hit the brakes to stop and the car would not stop, it did not even slow down until I hit the other car, resulting in an accident
The consumer stated his wife was traveling about 40-50 mph coming off a ramp, she hit the brakes and when she released them, they locked up, which caused the wheel to catch on fire. The auto was taken to the shop by the insurance adjuster and the mechanic repaired the vehicle, however the manufacture did not want to…
Electrical System 138 Read
While driving 55 mph, the vehicle caught on fire in the center of the dashboard. The dealer stated that the electrical wires were faulty. No injuries reported. *ak
Vehicle caught on fire under the hood, near the battery, after having oil changed. Two parties have looked at the car and determined that the electrical system was faulty. The wiring near the battery was the affected area. The car was a loss with only 30000 miles on it. Saturn does not want to honor factory warranty.…
The starter motor energized without a key in the ignition or anyone in/near the car. It was in gear with the emergency brake engaged, and it ran over a 12 inch "stop" and into a freezer where it continued to run for sometime until it burned up. The freezer prevented it from going through the garage wall and into the…
Seats 80 Read
Upon rear impact, the driver's seat immediately fell backward to a total reclining position. The driver was forced backward, into a reclining position, unable to see through the windshield to navigate the car. The seat is not broken. When the lever was pressed, the seat returned to it's normal upright position
Upon sitting at a stop light consumer's vehicle was rear-ended. The driver's side seat back reclined completely. Upon impact, the air bags did not deploy. *ak
The contact stated the two front seats failed when the vehicle was in an accident, and both the driver and the passenger reclined. The vehicle was deemed totaled and the insurance company determined the front seat recliner was a manufacturer defect. Both the driver and the passenger were injured as a result
Steering 74 Read
No summary. Dt
The contact owns a 2002 saturn sl. While coming out of a left turn at an unknown speed, the power steering failed. The steering wheel seized and excessive force was required to steer the vehicle. The failure caused the contact to drive into a ditch, over a levee, and crash into a pipe. Once the vehicle came to a stop,…
Had to replace transmission casing had a bad leak wiring harness from ignition caught on fire putting me and my families life at risk rattles real bad in rear portion of car heater quit working
Tires 64 Read
The right rear tire separated at the sidewall, causing the car to swerve violently into the next lane, striking a tractor trailer and totaling the car
My front tire blew out on I-85 and I hit several trees.( DOT number: n/a tire size: pr 185 )
I was driving on a highway at about 50 mph as the rear passenger tire blew out, I lost control of the car, swerved over a lane then off the highway, hitting the curb and ending up in a grassy area. The police arrived and courtesy patrol arrived to assist in changing the tire. Their objective was to immediately get me…
Air Bags 58 Read
After a crash in a saturn and the air bags exploded. The passenger side of the dashboard area started smoldering. The fire department arrived and put the fire out before it did a lot of damage
Vehicle was involved in a six car rear end collision and neither air bag deployed. Dealer notified. Feel free to provide any further information
Vehicle was in a high speed frontal collision but none of the air bags deployed upon impact
SL years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Air Bags | 18 | 4 | |
| 2001 | Air Bags | 6 | — | |
| 2000 | Air Bags | 5 | 2 | |
| 1999 | Air Bags | 17 | 1 | |
| 1998 | Air Bags | 12 | 2 | |
| 1997 | Air Bags | 19 | 6 | |
| 1996 | Air Bags | 32 | 1 | |
| 1995 | Air Bags | 50 | 4 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 513 |
| Average complaints per series | 2.4 |
| Worst single series | 12 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 4.4 years |
A model average of 2.4 hides a worst series at 12. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
- No ads, on every page
- No ads, no tracking — and much more
How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the SL?
By complaint volume, 1995, 1996, 1997 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which SL years are the cleanest?
2001, 2002, 2000 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Saturn SL have?
1,222 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 1995–2002. Of those, 159 describe a crash and 20 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.