10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
38,894 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.

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problem #6

Sep 212018

Vue

  • 88,367 miles
I had just returned home from shopping when I experienced a complete brake failure. Fortunately the incident happened on my driveway as I was driving up to the front of my garage. Since I was moving very slow I was able to stop by shifting the trans into "park". I looked under the vehicle and saw a puddle of break fluid on the driveway at each rear wheel. The vehicle was picked up by a towing service and delivered to auto-lab of troy, mi 48084. Their inspection found that both brake lines at the rear wheel cylinders were completely rusted through which allowed the fluid to spay out of them when the brake pedal was applied.

- Birmingham, MI, USA

problem #5

Jul 282018

Vue

  • 145,000 miles
I was driving on a busy highway, braking regularly with the stop and go traffic, my brakes suddenly locked up on me and I was barely able to get back up to 50 mph. Eventually I was close to highway speeds, but the car wasn't shifting correctly. This happened a few times, and we began replacing parts on the brakes. Then, while driving again, the brakes locked down and stopped the vehicle. Once locked, the brakes did not release, or do not release completely. And we discovered - ultimately, once this happens you simply can't fix it. The first thing that we did is we replaced the brake pads, rotors, tie rod ends and boots, because we thought the pads were going bad and the rotor was warped (the front end had started having a shimmy at higher speeds sometimes also). That seemed to fix all but the shimmy so we then replaced the two front tires and had them rebalanced and realigned. After that the brakes suddenly locked up rather hard. I managed to get off the highway safely, but the vehicle would barely do 10 mph because of the brakes locking down. We took it in and replaced parts for all of the brake system. We replaced the pads, rotors, calipers, hoses, master cylinder and the ABS unit (only found in junkyards now). Then the brakes locked once again and caught fire! we put it out, but this was a known problem, especially when attempting to replace brake parts on this model. We found numerous reports online that this was a common problem for this model, and not just for 2005.

- Wichita, KS, USA

problem #4

Apr 232015

Vue

  • miles
My car has the ABS system light on, and there are tons of people with this problem! I have almost gone off the road tons of times when the roads have barely any snow or ice on them, and this is seriously a common problem that should have a recall! the ABS system on the Saturn Vues seems to go out all the time, which causes other problems, malfunctioning breaks, bearing degeneration too! I need to constantly change the breaks and now I need new bearings. My car only has 84K miles on it!!! and with my car, my transmission is also going out and that started at 60,000, miles and now its giving me real problems too! so the Saturn Vue 2005 AWD V6 car I have... has a common problem of cheap ABS system parts going bad, and bad transmissions! both need to be recalled, and addressed by GM.

- Colorado Springs, CO, USA

problem #3

May 222014

Vue

  • miles
Started smoking the 1st time. Replaced brakes, rotors and break caliper on passenger's side. Ran and drove fine for about 1 week and did it again. All brakes and all that was replced were smoking hot and brown in color letting me know that all parts over heated. My car has been parked since 2014 and not used until I hear a recall. I already know this problem will arise continually by all the information I have found. Dealerships can't even find the problem. What does that tell you.

- Tulsa, OK, USA

problem #2

Jun 112005

Vue

  • 0 miles
(1) air bags-I was involved in a multiple-vehicle accident caused by black ice in Dec, 2005 and not one of the airbags deployed. This was concerning. (2) brakes-from day one, when it rains, my brakes sound like an old person trying to move. (3) ignition-too many times to mention. When I would put the key in the ignition and try to start the car, it wouldn't move and I'd have to jolt the "frozen" steering wheel to finally get the key to turn/car to start. (4) I've seen both the brakes & ignition issues in other people's posts. Just wanted to put this out there for information's sake. Otherwise, the car's been great to me. 10 years old, only 47K miles on it and I just recently had to replace the battery for the first time ever.

- Deland, FL, USA

problem #1

Mar 202014

Vue 6-cyl

  • miles
Driving to Maryland from charlotte nc. I was on the hwy going approx. 65. car completely shut off, no noise, no warning. As the car slowed down, I coasted to the side of the hwy to a stop. Looked down at the gear shift, it was in drive. The ignition was in the on position. I put on the break and put the car in park and shut off the ignition. Waiting a few seconds, I turned the key. The car started up and the chime went off. It was the chime that the car makes when you open the door and the keys are still in the ignition.( a series of quick dings) I didn't open the door. All I did was start the car up. I continued, no problem. The same thing happened again on Saturday November 29th, 2014 on the highway going around the same speed. The car jerked slightly and shut off. This time it was at night. I coasted to the exit that was coming up. Had trouble steering because the steering went out, head lights dimmed. Car slowly came to a stop at the top of the exit. Same situation. Ignition on, car in drive. I put my foot on the break and put the car in park and turned the ignition off. Turned the ignition back on. Car started up and the chime that goes off if you open up the door with the keys still in the ignition, went off again. The same as before.

- Charlotte, NC, USA