1995 Saturn Sl

TRANSMISSION DOWN SHIFTS FROM HIGH TO 3RD OR LOW. CAUSING HIGH RPM AT HIGHWAY SPEED. SOMETIMES REQUIRES YOU TO PULL OFF THE ROAD AND RESTART THE ENGINE TO REGAIN NORMAL SHIFT SEQUENCE. PROBLEM HAS PERSISTED FOR MORE THAN A YEAR. SATURN SERVICE REPS SAY THEY CAN NOT DUPLICATE AND THERE IS NO PROBLEM. NOT TRUE. NUMBER OF FAILURES BELOW REPRESENTS YEAR LONG PERIOD. *AK

MY 1995 SL1 SATURN DEVELOPED A CRACKED CYLINDER HEAD AT ALMOST NINE YEARS AND ONLY 55,000 MILES. SATURN ISSUED A LETTER DATED JUNE 1999 STATING THAT THIS MAY HAPPEN BUT IT WAS NOT A RECALL AND THEY WOULD EXTEND THE WARRANTY TO 6 YEARS OR 100,000 MILES, WHICHEVER CAME FIRST (ONLY HAD 1 1/2 YEARS MORE TO GO). THE COST TO REPAIR WAS GOING TO BE $2,400. SATURN KNOW OF THIS PROBLEM AND IGNORES ANY RESPONSIBILITY TO THE CONSUMER.*AK

1995 SATURN SL1 - CRACK IN CYLINDER HEAD CAUSING OIL TO LEAK INTO COOLING SYSTEM. I HAD TO PURCHASE NEW HEAD AND GASKET SET, OIL PUMP AND VARIOUS OTHER MISC. PARTS IN ORDER TO FIX THIS. SATURN HAS KNOWN ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND HAS NOT CORRECTED IT-I AM A VERY UNHAPPY SATURN OWNER. UP UNTIL THIS POINT, I WAS HAPPY WITH THE CAR. *NLM

BELOW ARE EXCERPTS FROM THE LETTER I WROTE TO SATURN. THEY BASICALLY BLEW ME OFF: PRESIDENT AND CEO SATURN CORPORATION ON JULY 5, 2000, I WAS REAR-ENDED BY A LATE MODEL FORD MUSTANG WHILE I WAS STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT IN MY 1995 SATURN SL-1. WHEN I WAS HIT, MY DRIVER'S SEAT BACK FAILED AND I WAS THROWN INTO THE BACK SEAT OF MY CAR AND SPRAINED MY LOWER BACK. AFTER ALMOST TWO MONTHS, MY BACK IS STILL IN PAIN AND I AM UNDERGOING PHYSICAL THERAPY. A YEAR OR SO AGO, I SAW A TELEVISION NEWS REPORT THAT STATED SATURN WAS RECALLING ALL 1995 SL-SERIES SEDANS BECAUSE OF AN INHERENT FAULT IN THE DESIGN THAT WOULD CAUSE THE SEAT BACK TO FAIL IN THE EVENT OF A REAR-END COLLISION. I CONTACTED SATURN OF BELLEVUE IN BELLEVUE, WASHINGTON AND AFTER TYPING MY VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER INTO THEIR COMPUTER, THEY TOLD ME MY CAR WAS NOT INVOLVED IN THE RECALL. WHEN I ASKED IF MY CAR WAS SAFE, THEY ASSURED ME IT WAS. IT IS NOW PAINFULLY OBVIOUS THAT MY CAR WAS NOT SAFE. I AM UPSET AND DISAPPOINTED WITH THE SATURN CORPORATION FOR TELLING ME IT WAS SAFE TO CONTINUE DRIVING A CAR WITH AN INHERENT SAFETY DESIGN FAULT. I RECENTLY CALLED SATURN OF BELLEVUE TO GET AN ADDRESS WHERE I COULD WRITE TO YOU, AND DURING THE COURSE OF THE CONVERSATION, THE SALESMAN I SPOKE WITH TOLD ME THAT SEAT BACK FAILURE IN A REAR-END COLLISION WAS A COMMON OCCURRENCE AND HE DIDN'T UNDERSTAND WHAT MY PROBLEM WAS. I SUBSEQUENTLY SPOKE WITH TWO INSURANCE ADJUSTERS WHO ASSURED ME THAT THIS WAS NOT A COMMON OCCURRENCE. AT THIS POINT, I AM ASKING THAT YOU DIRECT SATURN OF BELLEVUE OR SATURN OF RENTON IN WASHINGTON STATE TO RE-FIT MY OBVIOUSLY DEFECTIVE FRONT SEATS (BOTH DRIVER AND PASSENGER) WITH WHICH EVER SAFETY DEVICE YOU INSTALLED IN THE 1995 SATURN VEHICLES THAT WERE COVERED BY YOUR RECALL. *LA

BRAKES PULSATE WHEN STOPPING AND ALSO CAUSING STEERING WHEEL TO SHAKE. BRAKES CAUSED CAR NOT TO STOP ON TIME WHEN TRAVELING ABOUT 35MPH. I HAD JUST RECENTLY TAKEN THE CAR TO A SATURN DEALERSHIP AND THE BRAKES WERE INSPECTED AND I WAS NOT ADVISED ANYTHING ABOUT THE BRAKES. THEN JUST RECENTLY, WHEN I NOTICED MY CAR WAS EXPERIENCING EXTENDED STOPPING I TOOK THE CAR TO A DEALER BESIDES SATURN; I WAS TOLD THAT WHEEL CYLINDERS WERE LEAKING AND ROTORS WERE WARPED AND CALIPERS HAD TO BE REPLACED. BASICALLY, THE ENTIRE BRAKING SYSTEM WAS GONE. THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM FROM DAY ONE WITH THIS CAR. IN LOOKING AT PAST RECEIPTS FROM PREVIOUS OWNER, THIS SAME PROBLEM WAS COMPLAINED ABOUT AND SUPPOSEDLY FIXED AT THE SAME SATURN DEALERSHIP. THE BRAKES HAVE ALSO BEEN REPAIRED ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS AT OTHER AUTO MECHANIC DEALERS. *LA