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I have created a case with Saturn already. I will email this to you as soon as I can find your email address. My frustration is with the fact that the GM Dealers change, and so one dealer said, they can waive the diagnosis fee if I been to them before. I did not go to them before since my GM dealer closer to my home is no longer a GM dealer. Due to the changes of relationships, I need to suffer the expense... it's not fair. Perhaps they can transfer my file from the previous GM dealer to the new one. I spent hundreds at the previous dealer to fix brakes, regular maintenance and service, and now you mean to tell me this information is lost between dealers?
If anyone is interested, I had a third problem with "no click, no crank, and no start when key is turned to start. This was not a passlock problem. It turns out that there is an inline fuse taped to the wire bundle in the trunk. The fuse looked good. Thankfully I i tested it electrically and replaced it. My car was out of commission for 2.5 months while I tried "just answer" and all the usual internet sites including this one. No one had a clue except that they said check the fuses. No one alerted me about the inline fuse and its location. I found it on my own after finally getting a detailed wiring schematic. I hope that those who have fixed their Saturns will post the cures because it would have caused thousands to fix these three problems if I had went to a GM dealer. As the posts on this site will confirm, trouble shooting is the very last thing attempted by the dealer. I was advised that the BCM needed to replaced or reflashed, the ECM had a failure, the park neutral switch had failed and on and on. No one said check the inline fuse in the trunk. Finally, I love my Saturn Ion. I am sorry it has had these problems but I believe that the cures for these predictable, common and even inherent problems should be made common knowledge so that we can continue to drive and enjoy our Saturns.
Does anyone have a true solution to fix this?
Were you planning on having the fixed at a GM dealership? Please keep me posted.
Thank you,
Caron, GM Customer Service
After reviewing the case the vehicle must be diagnosed by a GM dealership and
unfortunately there is a diagnosis fee. As all major companies or corporations,
we have standard operating procedures. GM does handle their customers
individually, and not all circumstances are the same, so they must be handled on
a case by case basis. If you decide to have the vehicle diagnosed please feel
free to contact your agent directly.
Thank you,
Caron, GM Customer Service
And here was my reply to that:
Classic case of GM not taking accountability. I appreciate your canned response
and lack of help. Solidifies my frustrations with GM. As a tax payer, I bailed
GM out and now, GM is saying, to me, oh well! I sure hope GM goes down to the
ground as it deserves in terms of no longer being able to operate this way.
Please do not take my tone personally as I'm sure you are following your
standard code. Is there an address to send the CEO a letter? If you can email it
to me directly I appreciate it.
Many thanks and good luck!
I am beginning to think that Caron is a mde up computer avatar because clearly she speaks like a GM robot.
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Just for the record I am a real person and not a robot.
Thank you,
Caron, GM Customer Service
http://www.saturnfans.com/forums/showthread.php?t=92569
If you buy the switch just have a local mechanic do it. Print the instructions from the above site and take them to him. It will run about $100-150. That beats paying GM though right... and will have a warranty?
Here is where I bought my switch and is the same for all ions 2003-2007/
http://www.amazon.com/ACDelco-D1461F-Switch-Assembly/dp/B000IZ0VOW/ref=sr_1_1?ie- =UTF8&qid=1313695084&sr=8-1
I know people that have had to replace this every few years. The way I see it, it's a part of maintenance. I'll let you know how the install goes this weekend.
have you heard of this problem before? Why would the mechanic say i needed a new battery (which worked fine before I had my car towed to him and then say i also need a starter? well over $500 as compared to the $25 + labor.
why would saturn not make this a recall if so many people have the same problem?
I apologize for your frustrations. Can you please send me your VIN? I will look into recall information for you. Have you spoke with an Authorized Saturn Service Center? I look forward to your response. Have a great weekend!
Christina
GM Customer Service
My advice is to take it to a GM dealer. Anytime you are experiencing concerns you should take it to a GM dealer. I also always advise to call Customer Assistance, or you can contact myself, if your dealer is having difficulties. The dealer has GM options such as Technical Assistance to help get the vehicle fixed. GM has a working relationship with our dealers. This keeps GM in the loop of whats going on. As well as if there was a recall to come out for that concern in the future, we could look into reimbursement. This is not possible with an independent dealer. I hope this helps.
Christina
GM Customer Service
don't want to be disappointed
called GM multiple times and they say that a diag is 90 and then whatever it is to replace the part so ball park was like 450 and the diag doesn't come off the top of the total. soooo i just kept doing this
turn key forward and let sit in run position until light stops flashing usually ten min
then turn the key back to off and pull key out then start her up! works first try every time
now if its the grease how does this technique work every time what does this do to stop the grease from causing it to malfunction.
however i am TIRED of this happening so i WILL buy the part today at Auto Zone for 54.00 and do it myself because i am pretty handy and have all tools req
also i will post my results and let anyone know if the problem persists or is remedied but it seems that it will only be a temporary remedy anyways.
i WILL tell ya what though if someone goes on YOUTUBE and posts a fix for something and it gets 40,000 hit and a large amout of feedback something is WRONG and should be recalled but once again it is what it is
thanks everyone for listening to my rambling...
also the only reason that i came in here and wrote this was because i was going to head down to auto zone to buy the part when guess what my car didn't start!!
so i thought id come in and give GM a piece of my mind because i knew i had at least ten min to write this
I don't have the kind of money where i can afford the hit and miss. I know there are so many out there with this problem. It is very frustrating that there is not one sure way to fix it. and btw, when i would turn the car on and it wouldn't start. nothing happened. no click no trying to start no messages coming up. there was one constant symbol that came up and when i looked in the saturn book it always said something about emissions.
You can pay for a new starter too which it doesn't need. And GM is the problem ?
As for that GM tech: he's lying. They used that frigging switch on Ions, Cobalts, G5s, HHRs and Colrados and Canyon trucks. They have most definitely seen this problem before. Google search "Cobalt Ignition switch problems" or something similar and see what comes up.
If you go through the proper procedures, the GM service provider hearing from corporate will be wayyy more willing to listen to you and help you with your problem ,even work with you on the diagnostic.
It's a sure thing you're not going to get it fixed with your current mechanic just throwing parts at it. And charging you for the privilege of guessing.
Believe me I empathize. I've been fighting this for 6 years already and for the time being it's fixed.
Click on gmcustsrv and there's the email connection. Send VIN, model year, phone #, all pertinent info. Let them try and help you.
GM has felt the wrath from this and it's other indiscretions towards it's customers over the years. There's a reason they went bankrupt. Life isn't fair and when the time comes, people move on. Good luck with this. Stop fighting it. Sometimes you simply have to go where yopu don't want to go to get some sort of resolution.
Stay the course. You will get this sorted out in the end. Just keep hacking away.
Now I have the issue where my key gets stuck in the ignition. I try to turn the car off and the key will turn part way and then lock. I can hear a bunch of clicking noises and after a few minutes there is a specific loud click I know to listen for now. When I hear it I am able to turn my key and take it out of the ignition. About four months ago my car failed to start on my way home. At that time I got a new battery. THIS MORNING when I tried to leave my car would not start at all. I would turn the key and it would tick repeatedly and the lights on the dash would flash but it would not start. I did hang out for a good 30 minutes trying to start it and a neighbor came by and gave me a jump which started it up.
I no longer have my warranty and I cannot afford to have them fix another factory defect.
I have read a lot of the posts and it looks like everyone keeps coming back to it being the ignition switch. I just wonder how many times I have to replace something before my car will actually function correctly.
Has anyone had any issues with the key getting stuck? I haven't come across any posts yet that mention it. I am wondering if the key getting stuck and now my car not starting may be related.
here is what I JUST WENT THRU LESS THEN A WEEK AGO
the start issue IS the switch and even though the dealer replaced it once it WILL need to be done multiple times once every few years actually
buy the part at auto zone for 60 bucks cuz it has a lifetime warranty the part is by AC delco i do not remember the part number tho google it or re read this thread your find it
now DIRECTLY AFTER I REPLACED MY SWITCH my ignition stuck permanently in the run position i was pissed it was a coincidence tho
some people pull the fuel pump fuse when this happens but then you have to disconnect the battery too here is what i do when it gets stuck in the run position
PULL THE PLUG TO THE IGNITION SWITCH it kills all you need to be killed and to start the car just plug it back in
but back to the igniton part
wonderful fantastic glorious all knowing CHEVY wanted 850 of my hard earned dollars and i cried
they said i needed a new ignition cylinder, a new housing, a new switch (ya i told em i JUST replaced it) the car needed to be rekeyed and the car had to be re programmed.
after i was done crying i put my game face on!!
went to my car pulled off the steering covers took off my windsheild wiper switch pushed in the two detents (two holes on top of the key cylinder) google that too or look up chiltons manual at autozone (youd think i work there) or i can tell u
Push the first hole pull the cylinder a litttle
push the second hole back hole closest to driver door) pull cyninder out a little
then push the first one again and pop!! out she comes
take that little booger to a lock smith and be like hey mate
is this thing bad?
mine the trap door for the springs popped open and caused the jam
also the magnet in there was funking with the key
dude charged me 12 bucks
ya 12 BUCKS compared to 850
PSH
ALSO DONT USE A KEY NOT MADE FOR THE CAR
i coerced a very sweet key making lady into using a key for an older ion on my 2006 and i THINK that added to some of my problems
buuut i didnt wanna pay 60 for the proper key
questions comments concerns ??
get back to me thanks!
OH ALSO I BELIEVE THE FACT THAT JUMPING THE CAR STARTED IT TO BE JUST A COINCIDENCE
it could be tat you had a bad battery but i think that the anti theft just timed out
to do that just turn the key to the start position then let it drop into the run position the anti theft light on the dash will blink for ten min exactly
then become solid then shut off when it shuts off turn the key to the off positin then pull it out put it back in and start her upp
if this works then it IS your ignition switch and it should be replaced i know it sounds like a lot bt its all very easy and very worth it for a piece of mind knowing you wont be late to work or school or a family emergency
good luck to all of us saturn owners
How did your installation go?
the crazy thing for me is this not starting and then starting 10 minutes later..... this started in the summer of 2009. Intermittently it would not start and would sometimes take as long as 60 minutes, which always sucked and made me late for work. I got to the point where i would go out about 30+ minutes before it was time to leave and start the car. if it did start I would leave it running until it was time for me to leave. Finally, back in May I took the dog up to the fields to run around. when it was time to leave the fields the car wouldn't start. usually, once the car did start i would not have problems for the rest of that day. this time.... the car never started again and i finally had it towed to a mechanic someone recommended. he replaced the battery which I didn't think i needed and then was talking about a starter. the total between the battery and starter and labor was over $500. i don't have that kind of money and it has been there ever since. i did pay for the battery and that labor and he recently told me after doing some more research he thinks I should take it to the GM dealer.
The Saturn dealership where I bought the car went out of business and now the local Chevrolet dealership handles Saturns. I bought the car in 12/31/10 for an oil change and mentioned the problem. The man there said he had never heard of this before and told me for $100 they would run a diagnostic.
This is very frustrating to me, because from everything I have read, spending the $100 is the beginning of a very expensive and frustrating time and many times not accomplishing anything but being out of pocket a lot of money. I don't understand how there are so many people with this problem that it has its own blog, yet they won't recall it?
any help you can give me is greatly appreciated. My daughter will be back soon and I will be without a car to get to work.
saturntech9- I would definitely appreciate the part number and where to buy it for the micro switch. This will be the next thing I fix when I get my car running again. Thank you for all the information. When the key gets stuck the engine is actually OFF but I can restart it (however when I turn it off again it just gets stuck). It is in the park position at the time as you described. I will take a look under the console to see if I can determine what is causing the problem.
I hate that there are so many of us with the same issues but I appreciate everyone sharing their experiences with the rest of us so we know what to do.
Having the vehicle is diagnosed is a standard operating procedure required by GM. However, I can set up a case for you with Customer Assistance. They will work with the dealer to get this resolved for you. If you would like me to set up a case for you just send me an email with your contact information, current mileage, VIN, and involved dealer. I apologize for your frustrations, but appreciate the opportunity to work with you. Have a great weekend! I look forward to your response.
Christina
GM Customer Service
Make the attempt to let them help you. I can only say the car is working as intended, but it's been "fixed" before. And the people @ GM Customer Service did do the right thing. And via this thread too.
Much luck. Standing with you in solidarity.
Congratulations ! And yes: GM was amazing in this situation, no question.
My email is pamela.fryer@gnmail.com and I would prefer not to put my telephone number on this site. If needed, I can give it to you in a private email I am beyond frustrated and need this car fixed. What can you do? everyone says the dealer won't do anything and when I brought the car in to get the oil changed back in December it was the first time I went to Weseloh Chevrolet in carlsbad, CA. they are now the place that we are supposed to take the Saturns to since the Saturn dealership closed. I was told they had never heard of the problem. anything you can do would be great. and remember, the cold weather has nothing to do with this. I am in southern california and even when it was what we consider cold, the car still started. it has no preference, the not starting was always random. PLEASE HELP!!
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If you have a case with GM Customer Assistance they will work with you and the dealer, and involve technical assistance as needed to resolve your situation. I cannot guarantee that the bill will be covered; however they would evaluate your situation and look into it for you. I hope this helps!
Christina
GM Customer Service
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