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Comments
As Kallop stated, the directions for filling for arbitration are at the back of the owner's manual. Here are the basics on the CA Lemon Law. And here is more information on the Arbitration Certification Program. I intend to file for arbitration on the grounds that my vehicle has been out of service for more than 30 days in the first 18 months. Those that are interested should read the Lemon Aid brochure.
So sorry about the repeat problems, Serrdon and others. I will let you know what I learn by going through the arbitration process.
Your comments about the rough downshifting caught my attention. I've also experienced the same thing. Immediately after I bought the car, I told the salesman about it. Wanted him to ride with me so I could show him, but he basically patted me on the head and said, "Haven't you ever owned a car with ABS?" How insulting.....
Well, I let it go, but the wobbly, clunky feeling continued for some time. Have to say it has smoothed out, and doesn't feel as bad as it used to. I've got over 6,000 miles on my car. Don't understand the callibration thing, and if someone wouldn't mind elaborating a bit on it, I would appreciate it.
Also, someone else mentioned the airbag light coming on. Yep, mine too. It's been in the shop twice for that particular problem. I've been told when the light comes on, airbags will not inflate, so it's unsafe to drive. It came on once more after being "fixed" last time, but hasn't happened again for a few weeks.
Thing is, I really like how this little SUV drives. Really a shame it's got so many problems. Oh, and my mileage improves dramatically when I leave the air condition off. Still not the sticker mileage, but better than it was. So, if I want hybrid mileage performance, I have to put up with sweating...
I am in the process of filing a Lemon Law for my Green Line. Fifth trip to the dealer with the check engine light on; two times on the hook. Two freeway shut-offs. Pre-recall wire harness modification was doneafter the second time towed in. The cpu's have been program "upgraded" three times. Still, the rough idle persists as does rough shifting and numerous rattles and groans when going around corners. Dispite how well the little SUV drives and how good the mileage (post wire harness) is, I have lost confidence in the saftey and reliability of the vehicle.
The Florida Lemon Law is specific and will offer Saturn ample opportunity to try to solve the problem. The result will be that with 4000 current miles and five engine check incidents on the books, in the six months it will take see the Lemon Law Process through, the car could be at the dealership six more times. Should the Lemon Law claim result in not being changed out of the vehicle, I will still get out of the Green Line in favor of another hybrid.
uh...what? I bought an SUV and can't put stuff in the back? Just so you know, all this "stuff" I had back there was one stroller, one small umbrella stroller and a diaper bag. That's it.
So I called corporate and started the dance again. After 2 days of avoiding me, they call back to tell me to drive with less stuff in the back. And that's their answer.
I will NEVER NEVER buy Saturn again as long as I live and I will tell everyone I meet not to buy them either. I feel sorry for my dealership guys because they've been great but they can't make the decisions.
My favorite part of talking to corporate was when "Kiana" told me there was no one else to talk to, this is the end of the line unless I want to write a letter to the GM who doesn't take phone calls. I asked "Kiana" for a supervisor and she said there isn't one. I hung up, called back and told the next brainstem my predicament he said he would put in a request for a supervisor (oh so now there IS a supervisor?) and he assured me yes, there is one above "Kiana" and he/she will call me tomorrow.
Re-think Saturn. Buy Japanese!
Unless their advertising specifically limited the amount of "stuff" you could carry back there, I suggest you hire a lawyer and persue a lemon law or other action. They advertise a certain Cu. Ft. of capacity, and they have to match that capacity, or they sold the vehicle dishonestly. Fraud is illegal and the courts (and Saturn) know this.
I think the Saturn Vue Greenline is turning out to be a stinker!
Best regards,
Kyle Johnson
Saturn Communications Director
Here's the open case number on my problem 1-24949106
i don't have the vehicle id number
but we could certainly use all the help we can get. just for the record, my husband has owned 8 GM vehicles in his life and he's only 31. He will never buy another one again after the way we've been treated. One customer might not hurt GM, but what about one customer who very likely could have bought on an average a car a year for the rest of his life? That's 70, possibly 80 vehicles. At 30k a car, that's over $2 million!!! I would think GM would want to keep a customer like that.
You can read the VIN from the outside of the vehicle - it is displayed at the base of the windshield where the driver looks out.
However, I'm not sure about posting the VIN on the Internet. You might want to contact the person privately rather than post to this forum.
Unless the compensate you for the inconvenience, my opinion is that they should buy the car back from you and test it themselves. Of course, they SHOULD have tested it BEFORE they sold the hybrid Vue.
Initial gas mileage was 20-22 MPG. I called dealer, he said "try another tank or two." By the time I became insistent, it was past the 30-day/3,000 trade-in by one day.
My mileage has not risen. Dealership has been very responsive, and has made numerous modifications, i.e., nitrogen in tires, etc. Service manager has test-driven car three times: twice for 75-80 miles, once for a full tank. They say they're getting 30-31 MPG.
I drive carefully. Don't gun the engine from stoplights. I'd be thrilled to get 30-31 MPG.
Very frustrated. Love the car otherwise, but at this rate, the mileage I'd expected (30), or the mileage I'd ACCEPT (less), and the difference in what I'm getting, is going to cost me $800-$1,000 a year.
Do I have any remedies/ I asked to drive another Vue, and dealer did not agree. I have always been able to "milk" more miles out of a car than the industry standard. I think I got a lemon.
Help, anyone? Car now has 15,000 miles, and I'm consistently getting 21 MPG. Mixed city and highway about 50-50. Green eco lite on a lot...
1) It's a lot heavier due to all of those batteries and the electric motor (lowers mileage)
2) It recaptures a portion of the kinetic energy of the vehicle when slowing or breaking
3) That energy is then recycled as an additional power boost when accelerating or going up hill
4) The engine shuts off when stopped
So you notice that when going up hill or down-shifting for additional power (when using cruise control) there is a large amount of wiggle-room for your actual speed. I've seen it going around +/-5mph around the current cruising speed. If you're not using cruise and "power through" that lag, you're eliminating much of that benefit.
Also, it's summer. If you have the AC switched to "yellow mode", you're loosing all of the benefit of the shut-off when stopped.
For what it's worth, our overall mileage has improved since getting the wiring harness and it seems that the car performs better. I think we've been seeing around 25-27 mpg, but haven't been tracking religiously.
Kyle Johnson
Saturn Communications
I have made it my personal mission in life to share my Saturn horror story with every person I ever meet. It may not help me with this piece of crap, but it may save someone else from making the same mistake.
The wife and I did get the FULL COVERAGE warrentee for the term of the loan (five years) so we have less concern and worries about what happens, down the road. We also have a Saturn dealership in our town.
Every person who buys a FIRST OF ITS KIND model in a new model year will have these hard stories of vehicle failures. I often wonder why this is unexpected. The new model is an EXPERIMENT until all the small issues are worked out. My question now is, will Saturn keep making this vehicle in a Hybrid model?
If you are successful you won't have to pay a penny - they will take the vehicle back and you will be free to buy another (presumably ICE) Vue, or any other brand or vehicle.
Also, wanted to give an FYI, my airbag check light came on and off for a few days before it went off for good a couple weeks back. When I took it in, they checked it and found the airbag was not working. So if you have had the light go on and think it's ok because it went off, I'd recommend having it checked.
And for the PP, your response came off a bit condesending. I may have just read it wrong as I'm a bit testy about this car. Yes, it's a first year car. I expect glitches. I don't expect perfection. But I DO expect to be able to drive it. In the 6 months I have had it, I've had the pleasure to be on first name basis with the tow truck driver (by some fluke, the same driver gets me every time!), rental car business, and now 3 different dealers. It becomes inoperable at least once a month. I don't see how you can justify that.
Just out of curiosity, who pays for the lemon law attorney?
I sent the vehicle identification number to your attention in an email to email@saturn.com. I sent it yesterday. Hopefully it will make its way to you.
Thanks.
I helped get your case reopened. As of last Friday, you'd had no further trouble with the vehicle and someone is to contact you tomorrow and if anything happened in the interim you were to contact Danyell, correct?
I have had further trouble with the vehicle. They installed a monitoring device in it last week. The engine light came on on Sunday. Now it's back at the dealer. The battery pack now has to be replaced due to a "bad sensor" or something. However, I don't think that's it! There are too many people having the same difficulties. Are all the sensors bad? Or just a handful? or more likely, is the Greenline defective? So far, all evidence points to yes. Thank you for any help you gave in helping reopen the case. Danyell did not tell me to contact her if I had a problem. I was supposed to bring it back to the dealer. Frankly, I'm tired of talking to Saturn. They are offering me nothing which makes me believe I need better representation than just myself. Obviously, Saturn doesn't care about one little person. The way we've been treated through this whole ordeal is outrageous. Saturn has not once offered me anything for my trouble which has been CONSIDERABLE. No extended warranty, no trade in...nothing. I would settle for a 2007 COMPRABLE Vue with the same mileage and the same upgrades. My vehicle is fully loaded with leather and a sun roof. I would not settle for less. But Saturn isn't even offering me an extended warranty let alone another car. I am not comfortable driving the Greenline. It is unsafe! I have a small child. I don't want to be driving a death trap. And if something should happen to us while I'm in that car, Saturn will be VERY sorry considering all the prior knowledge it has had regarding the Greenline and it's multitudinous problems. All we want is to get what we paid for. Right now I have a $27000 piece of CRAP that I'm scared to drive. I want a $27,000 working vehicle. Is that too much to ask? Until Saturn makes this right, I will be shouting from the rooftops to anyone who will listen to STAY AWAY FROM SATURN. So now I'm serious and I've retained representation. Saturn will be hearing from my lawyer. And it's a shame it had to go this far. It is Saturn's fault for not testing this vehicle before putting it on the market. I should not have to pay for Saturn's mistakes and my child should certainly not have to be injured or killed by being a guinea pig for Saturn. I wonder what the local paper would think about this? That's my next move. It makes a great story, don't you think? And just think, if Saturn had done what they should and offered me (and these other people) some kind of compensation or trade-in, I wouldn't be on the verge of calling ABC! Too late. Sorry.
Everybody here with problems, send me your email addresses. Let's get together and out Saturn on the news. We need a bigger bully pulpit.
The concept behind the hybridization (belt alternator) in the Vue is not new, but this is a new design. I think they are having both production and design issues. Toyota went through a lot of work before their software was right, and even the Gen 2 had a major software problem in the first year (2004-2005).
It seems to me that Saturn wanted to get a Hybrid out the door and didn't fully test the prototypes. But that is just my opinion.
I say this because so far as I can tell the concepts behind the hybridization are sound.
Good luck on your efforts for justice, and I hope you can keep your cool.
If you have any pull, advise Saturn to buy back that hybrid Vue and take it apart to see what is wrong. Then fix the design issues or make your suppliers fix the parts. Take a look at the CR-V A/C Compressor forum to see how Honda is handling a difficult series of parts failures; it is a good example of dedication to quality.
Supply megfox with an ICE VUE. You've lost her as a satisfied Greenline customer.
I have been in contact with the area manager and when I expressed my fear of putting my three kids in the car, including the fact that when it breaks the tow truck can't take me with 3 kids and car seats so we are stranded on the freeway as my husband is overseas, his reply was that they weren't concerned with the safety of the car, there concern is that they get it out of the service department.
I guess that says it all.
Klingon proverb: "Revenge is a dish best served cold". Don't get angry with Saturn - get even.
I'm glad to hear that you got out of that situation with the power steering. That is trouble with these modern cars - everything is electrical, and if the power has problems, zap! you can lose a lot of functionality...
Just to clarify, that is 30 days out of service - in other words, at the dealer's repair shop instead of in your possession.
I found this forum today after looking for some info, any info, on line about how to contact an actual person with a real name at Saturn. We too have a Vue hybrid which has developed the "check engine/battery" problem, we also had the "wiring harness" repair done and it hasn't helped. So far, the car has been in the shop 12 days this time, with no end in sight. Saturn "customer service" (sic) is a bad joke.
I tried sending an e-mail to this Kyle Johnson guy - Of course he hasn't replied. Also, I was promised a call today from a "supervisor". Can you guess ? No call.
Saturn have absolutely no right to sell a car that doesn't work and that they cannot fix. I will never, ever buy a Saturn again.
My question now is, does anybody know an attorney who can help us in New York - We're covered under the state lemon law up to 18,000 miles - The car has 14 and change on it now. I do not trust this vehicle, and I want an exchange or a refund. Any help or referrals anybody could give I would appreciate.
thanks.
:lemon: :lemon: :lemon:
janet