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Saturn VUE Rust

wn2424wn2424 Member Posts: 2
in Saturn
I couldnt believe my eyes!! We did have a hard winter in indiana, but rust all ready? talk about disappointed. Any way, the rust is coming up around the chrome piece that sits above the license plate on the tail gate door. I would really like to know if anyone else is seeing this issue.

I also have put two sets of brakes on this vehicle, the first ones the dealer ship covered the next two sets came out of my own pocket. I think it was all from a bad rotor that came from the factory. In addition to these two problems there is some type of squeaky noise that started in the front passenger side and now is on both sides.

I feel like I made a bad choice when I bought this brand new vehicle. :sick:
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  • 442dude442dude Member Posts: 373
    Brakes 1st...

    The rotors on these have been known to be troublesome - don't get them resurfaced - when you get new brakes again have the rotors replaced, usually gets rid of the problem. I'd recommend not getting it done at the dealer as they will just put on another set of GM rotors - do some research on the web - there are lots of good brands to choose from. NAPA sellls pretty good ones...

    Rust above chrome trim...

    I've read that there are sometimes issues in this are of the Vue with "rail dust" - basically what happened is that during transport from the factory (by train) dust from the railroad rails flies up and sticks to the paint...the metal dust then rusts looking like rust on the panel - they even have a procedure for removing it...I can't see your Vue so I can't tell if that's it but I've read of it in just that area...a good body shop or the dealer can fix it pretty easily if its not too bad...

    squeaky noises...

    commonly the bushings on top of the front struts of the Vue will squeak - go under the hood and spray some WD40 on top of the bushings on top of the struts - there are "slots" in the bushing where you can spray...that might get rid of it...

    good luck - the Vue is a pretty good car, hang in there!
  • susansnidersusansnider Member Posts: 2
    I purchased an '06 in Nov. of '07, 48,000 mi. on it. By Jan. '08 I noticed the paint bubbling up on the back tailgate around the chrome ornament plate. Took it in, was told it would be covereded under the corrosion warranty (10 years, 100,000 mi.) but needed to "rust through" first in order to have it covered. So, I assumed when I started seeing rust through the paint, that it would now be covered. At this point the paint had pretty much bubbled all around the chrome plate. A good friend of mine, who is now retired from painting cars for 30+ years, told me it is a defect with those types of chrome plates...they vibrate and aren't secure enough, and then it begins to vibrate the paint right off, water gets in, and wa la....rustola. Took it in for an oil change, discussed it and showed them, to which I was told it had to "rust a hole through" before it would be covered. Well, I thought that will never happen for as long as I own the car. So, I waited in the waiting room, went back to the service counter when my car was ready, and was told they had talked to one of the managers and that it was a "known problem" and that they would have it fixed, no cost to me. I was thrilled, they said they would have a loaner and all was working out as it should. Went in that following week to drop off and ended up talking to different staff, who were once again telling me it had to rust a hole completely through to which I repeated the conversation the previous week. What a frustrating experience. They did end up fixing it and I was told by the outside auto body company that does their (Saturn's) body/paint work, that it was a large recall and then clarified that it was a "silent recall." Not sure what the details are on this and was in a hurry, so didn't ask. Just didn't make sense that a "newer" car was already bubbling and rusting. Also was told by the auto body clinic that it was rusting on the top part of the tailgate under the back window, and that Saturn approved for them to fixe this and re-do the entire tailgate. One more issue, among many, that has been been experienced by me and others. Lastly, the right strut has been replaced 3 times....2 times by the previous (1 owner car) and then 1 time shortly after I purchased. Apparently, from what I've read online in blogs, this is another KNOWN problem with this vehicle.
  • 442dude442dude Member Posts: 373
    I'm glad you got it fixed the right way...all cars have their own issues...

    best of luck :shades:
  • bismarck318bismarck318 Member Posts: 49
    edited January 2012
    2006-2007 Vue Rusting around liftgate handle. This commonly seems to be occuring on the models with the chrome handles, & not the Redline versions with painted handle. Seems Saturn engineers did not properly isolate the handle from the painted metal liftgate, either vibration or there is a nasty reaction between the paint & the chrome handle. Paint bubbles & rusts around the handle. I have also seen rust on the same year along the length of the lower back window.

    Has anyone had any satasfaction from GM on this & got a straight answer to it's cause & effect?

    My body shop repaired this for around $350, & also did a nice job on insulating the handle from the paint. Although my car was just over 3 years old GM considered it surface rust, then said the car had too many miles for repair to be covered (70K).
  • saturn_vuesaturn_vue Member Posts: 14
    I caught my paint bubbles around the license plate light housing assembly early.
    I used a tube of clear silicone and ran a small bead all around the assembly to seal out any additional water/salt that could get behind the piece and cause more paint to work loose.
    I believe the paint originally worked loose from the piece vibrating causing the paint to chip.
    Moisture gets behind the loose paint and causes it to loosen more.
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