2005 SATURN ION — Owner-Reported Problems

NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation Snapshot 2026-08-21 565 complaints · 0 recalls
Most-reported system: STEERING (234 complaints · 41.4%)
Safety signals:
  • Crashes 31
  • Fires 4
  • Injuries 19
  • Deaths 0
Compare with 2004 →
NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Component Problem Distribution

Share of owner complaints filed for each vehicle system (unaffected by sales volume)

Component Problem Distribution STEERING appears in 234 of 565 owner complaints (41.4%) in this vehicle snapshot. STEERING: 234 complaints, 41.4% of reports STEERING 234 · 41.4% · 9 crash reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: 167 complaints, 29.6% of reports ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 167 · 29.6% · 4 crash reports 2 fire reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING: 25 complaints, 4.4% of reports EXTERIOR LIGHTING 25 · 4.4% ENGINE: 21 complaints, 3.7% of reports ENGINE 21 · 3.7% · 2 crash reports 1 fire reports AIR BAGS: 20 complaints, 3.5% of reports AIR BAGS 20 · 3.5% · 11 crash reports POWER TRAIN: 19 complaints, 3.4% of reports POWER TRAIN 19 · 3.4% FUEL SYSTEM: 17 complaints, 3.0% of reports FUEL SYSTEM 17 · 3.0% VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: 13 complaints, 2.3% of reports VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 13 · 2.3% · 1 crash reports STRUCTURE: 7 complaints, 1.2% of reports STRUCTURE 7 · 1.2% · 1 fire reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER: 126 complaints, 22.3% of reports UNKNOWN OR OTHER 126 · 22.3% · 8 crash reports 2 fire reports 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

UNKNOWN OR OTHER is an NHTSA classification artifact and is always listed last.

View component data as a table
System / Component Complaints Share of Reports Safety Reports (Crashes / Fires)
STEERING 234 41.4% 9 crashes · 0 fires
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 167 29.6% 4 crashes · 2 fires
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 25 4.4% 0 crashes · 0 fires
ENGINE 21 3.7% 2 crashes · 1 fires
AIR BAGS 20 3.5% 11 crashes · 0 fires
POWER TRAIN 19 3.4% 0 crashes · 0 fires
FUEL SYSTEM 17 3.0% 0 crashes · 0 fires
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 13 2.3% 1 crashes · 0 fires
STRUCTURE 7 1.2% 0 crashes · 1 fires
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 126 22.3% 8 crashes · 2 fires
NHTSA Consumer Complaints, none on file, and NHTSA Defect Investigations Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Problem & Recall Timeline

Observed complaint volume and manufacturer recall actions over time

Problem & Recall Timeline Owner reports in this snapshot begin in Jan 2005. 2005-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2005-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2005-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2005-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2006-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2006-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2006-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2006-Q4: 9 owner reports 9 2007-Q1: 5 owner reports 5 2007-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2007-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2007-Q4: 6 owner reports 6 2008-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2008-Q2: 10 owner reports 10 2008-Q3: 7 owner reports 7 2008-Q4: 12 owner reports 12 2009-Q1: 13 owner reports 13 2009-Q2: 9 owner reports 9 2009-Q3: 15 owner reports 15 2009-Q4: 12 owner reports 12 2010-Q1: 26 owner reports 26 2010-Q2: 51 owner reports 51 2010-Q3: 35 owner reports 35 2010-Q4: 13 owner reports 13 2011-Q1: 17 owner reports 17 2011-Q2: 11 owner reports 11 2011-Q3: 13 owner reports 13 2011-Q4: 15 owner reports 15 2012-Q1: 13 owner reports 13 2012-Q2: 10 owner reports 10 2012-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2012-Q4: 4 owner reports 4 2013-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2013-Q2: 7 owner reports 7 2013-Q3: 6 owner reports 6 2013-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2014-Q1: 29 owner reports 29 2014-Q2: 47 owner reports 47 2014-Q3: 24 owner reports 24 2014-Q4: 14 owner reports 14 2015-Q1: 13 owner reports 13 2015-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2015-Q3: 4 owner reports 4 2015-Q4: 7 owner reports 7 2016-Q1: 4 owner reports 4 2016-Q2: 2 owner reports 2 2016-Q3: 3 owner reports 3 2016-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2017-Q2: 6 owner reports 6 2017-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2018-Q1: 2 owner reports 2 2018-Q2: 4 owner reports 4 2018-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2018-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2019-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2019-Q2: 3 owner reports 3 2019-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2020-Q4: 2 owner reports 2 2021-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2021-Q2: 1 owner reports 1 2021-Q3: 2 owner reports 2 2022-Q1: 3 owner reports 3 2022-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2023-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2024-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q1: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q3: 1 owner reports 1 2025-Q4: 1 owner reports 1 Owner reports Jan 2005 Oct 2025 Investigation RQ10004 ● Investigation RQ10004 Investigation EA11014 ● Investigation EA11014
View timeline records as a table
Date Record type Count Record identifier
2005-Q1 Owner reports 4
2005-Q2 Owner reports 4
2005-Q3 Owner reports 7
2005-Q4 Owner reports 7
2006-Q1 Owner reports 5
2006-Q2 Owner reports 3
2006-Q3 Owner reports 3
2006-Q4 Owner reports 9
2007-Q1 Owner reports 5
2007-Q2 Owner reports 4
2007-Q3 Owner reports 2
2007-Q4 Owner reports 6
2008-Q1 Owner reports 2
2008-Q2 Owner reports 10
2008-Q3 Owner reports 7
2008-Q4 Owner reports 12
2009-Q1 Owner reports 13
2009-Q2 Owner reports 9
2009-Q3 Owner reports 15
2009-Q4 Owner reports 12
2010-Q1 Owner reports 26
2010-Q2 Owner reports 51
2010-Q3 Owner reports 35
2010-Q4 Owner reports 13
2011-Q1 Owner reports 17
2011-Q2 Owner reports 11
2011-Q3 Owner reports 13
2011-Q4 Owner reports 15
2012-Q1 Owner reports 13
2012-Q2 Owner reports 10
2012-Q3 Owner reports 4
2012-Q4 Owner reports 4
2013-Q1 Owner reports 3
2013-Q2 Owner reports 7
2013-Q3 Owner reports 6
2013-Q4 Owner reports 7
2014-Q1 Owner reports 29
2014-Q2 Owner reports 47
2014-Q3 Owner reports 24
2014-Q4 Owner reports 14
2015-Q1 Owner reports 13
2015-Q2 Owner reports 3
2015-Q3 Owner reports 4
2015-Q4 Owner reports 7
2016-Q1 Owner reports 4
2016-Q2 Owner reports 2
2016-Q3 Owner reports 3
2016-Q4 Owner reports 1
2017-Q1 Owner reports 1
2017-Q2 Owner reports 6
2017-Q3 Owner reports 2
2018-Q1 Owner reports 2
2018-Q2 Owner reports 4
2018-Q3 Owner reports 2
2018-Q4 Owner reports 2
2019-Q1 Owner reports 1
2019-Q2 Owner reports 3
2019-Q3 Owner reports 1
2020-Q1 Owner reports 1
2020-Q4 Owner reports 2
2021-Q1 Owner reports 1
2021-Q2 Owner reports 1
2021-Q3 Owner reports 2
2022-Q1 Owner reports 3
2022-Q4 Owner reports 1
2023-Q1 Owner reports 1
2024-Q4 Owner reports 1
2025-Q1 Owner reports 1
2025-Q3 Owner reports 1
2025-Q4 Owner reports 1
Defect investigation 1 RQ10004
Defect investigation 1 EA11014

Safety Recalls (0)

Official safety recall campaigns filed with NHTSA

Zero safety recalls recorded for this model year in official NHTSA records.

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Complaint Narrative Explorer

Verbatim owner-reported defect narratives from NHTSA public records

Data: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation · snapshot Aug 21, 2026
Safety incident filters
Showing 0 of 565 complaints · page 1 of 23

No complaints match the current filters.
EPA Fuel Economy Database Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Estimated Ownership Cost

EPA fuel economy ratings and annual operating cost estimates

Data: US EPA Fuel Economy Guide · snapshot Aug 21, 2026
Supported range: 1,000–60,000 miles per year
Supported range: $1.50–$10.00 per gallon
55% city45% highway
Estimate unavailable

EPA fuel-economy data is unavailable for this vehicle.

No estimate is shown when required EPA values are unavailable.

 Open Ownership Cost Calculator →

Adjacent Model Years

Immediate preceding and succeeding model year records

NHTSA Consumer Complaints Snapshot 2026-08-21 Open source record Read our complete data methodology →

Complaint counts reflect self-selected reports and are not normalised for production sales volume. We publish no reliability scores, superlatives, or vehicle rankings.

Methodology & Data Integrity

Data sourced from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Snapshot date: 2026-08-21.

Read our complete data methodology → Sources