2002 Saab 9-3 Convertible

ODI OPENED PE05-017 BASED ON 35 REPORTS OF ALLEGED ENGINE STALLING DUE TO THE FAILURE OF THE IDM CASSETTE ON THE SUBJECT VEHICLES.ALL COMPLAINANTS REPORTED THAT THE ENGINE SHUT DOWN SUDDENLY WITHOUT WARNING AND MOST REPORTED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT RESTART.IN 3 INCIDENTS, THE COMPLAINANTS REPORTED SMOKE AND/OR FIRE RESULTED FROM THE IDM FAILURE.DURING PE05-017, ADDITIONAL FAILURE DATA WAS IDENTIFIED AS NOTED IN THE FAILURE REPORT SUMMARY ABOVE.THE COMPLAINT DATA REPRESENTS INCIDENTS WHERE THE COMPLAINANTS ALLEGED A STALL OR FIRE.ON SEPTEMBER 13, 2005, GENERAL MOTORS (GM) NOTIFIED NHTSA OF A SAFETY DEFECT ON 95,081 MY 2000-2002 SAAB 9-3 AND 9-5 VEHICLES WITH 4-CYLINDER GASOLINE ENGINES AND 8,117 MY 2001 9-5 VEHICLES WITH 6- CYLINDER GASOLINE ENGINES (RECALL 05V-399).THE NOTIFICATION STATED THAT CERTAIN VEHICLES WITHIN THESE POPULATIONS MAY EXPERIENCE OVERHEATING AND BURNOUT OF THE ISOLATED GATED BIPOLAR TRANSISTOR (IGBT) WITHIN THE IDM DUE TO INCREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO ELECTRICAL LOADS.OVERHEATING OF THE IGBT OCCURS MOST OFTEN AT ENGINE START-UP FOR BOTH A 4-CYLINDER AND 6-CYLINDER ENGINE, BUT IT MAY ALSO OCCUR WHILE THE ENGINE IS RUNNING.WHEN THE IDM FAILS ON A 4-CYLINDER WHILE IT IS RUNNING, THE ENGINE MAY STALL WITHOUT WARNING, WITH NO ABILITY TO BE RESTARTED.WHEN THE IDM FAILS ON A 6-CYLINDER ENGINE WHILE IT IS RUNNING, THE DRIVER WILL INITIALLY EXPERIENCE REDUCED POWER AND ROUGH OPERATION BECAUSE THE ENGINE WILL ONLY BE RUNNING ON THREE CYLINDERS.THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WILL FLASH.IF THE DRIVER CONTINUES, UNBURNT FUEL IN THE EXHAUST CAN CAUSE THERMAL DAMAGE TO THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER.THE ENGINE MAY STALL AND NOT RESTART.THERMAL DAMAGE TO OTHER UNDERHOOD COMPONENTS AND THE UNDERBODY MAY ALSO RESULT FROM PROLONGED DRIVING.THE RECALL POPULATION ENCOMPASSES 84% OF THE STALLING AND FIRE COMPLAINTS (215 FOR VEHICLES WITH 4-CYLINDER ENGINES AND 36 FOR VEHICLES WITH 6-CYLINDER ENGINES).THE 36 MONTHS IN SERVICE (MIS) STALLING RATES FOR EACH MODEL YEAR OF RECALLED VEHICLES WITH 4-CYLINDER ENGINES WERE ALL GREATER THAN TWO PERCENT.ALTHOUGH THE 36 MIS STALL RATE FOR THE RECALLED MY 2001 VEHICLES WITH V6 ENGINES WAS LOWER, AT 1.3 PERCENT, THESE VEHICLES ALSO HAD THE HIGHEST RATE OF CONFIRMED (OPEN FLAME VERIFIED) FIRES AT 62 PER 100,000 VEHICLES.GM WILL INSTRUCT OWNERS TO BRING THEIR VEHICLES TO A DEALER FOR IDM INSPECTION AND REPLACEMENT, IF NECESSARY.CONSEQUENTLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.ODI WILL MONITOR THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE SCOPE AND REMEDY OF GM'S ACTION AND TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED.

SLOWLY APPROACHING STOPLIGHT, AND DRIVERS SIDE, SIDE AIRBAG GOES OFF FOR NO APPARENT REASON. DRIVER WAS STRUCK IN SIDE OF HEAD, AND UPPER BODY, SOME HEARING LOSS SUFFERED ALSO.

NHTSA ID

10406287

Incident

Jun 3, 2011

USE OF HIGH BEAMS CAUSES QUICK FAILURE OF HEADLAMPS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10325364

Incident

Jul 15, 2009

Mileage

55,000 mi

ON AUGUST 13, 2006, MY WIFE WAS DRIVING OUR 2002 SAAB 9-3 CONVERTIBLE WHEN THE ENGINE CAUGHT FIRE. SHE WAS ABLE TO GET OUT OF THE CAR SAFELY, BUT THE CAR WAS DESTROYED. INVESTIGATIONS BY INTERNATIONAL MOTORS (FALLS CHURCH, VA) AFTER THE EVENT SHOWED THAT THE TRANSMISSION HAD DISINTEGRATED AND TRANSMISSION FLUID HAS SPRAYED THROUGHOUT THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT CAUSING THE FIRE.

NHTSA ID

10172272

Incident

Aug 13, 2006

Mileage

54,000 mi

2002 SAAB 9-3 WITH 54K MILES CAUGHT FIRE WHILE MY WIFE WAS DRIVING IT ON SUNDAY, AUGUST 13, 2006. *JB

NHTSA ID

10166447

Incident

Aug 13, 2006

DT: 5/4/05, CAR WAS AT DEALER5 FOR REGULARLY MAINTENANCE. DEALER REPORTED REAR BRAKES WERE RUSTED TO THE POINT OF NOT BEING ABLE TO OPERATE. SERVICE MANAGER SAID THAT SAAB HAD A HISTORY OF BRAKES DETERIORATING AT LOW MILES. CALLER COMPLAINED ABOUT SAAB, DEALER COULD NOT OFFER ANY HELP. NO PREVIOUS PROBLEM WITH VEHICLE, WHICH WAS IS REGULARLY SERVICED, AND RECORDS WERE AVAILABLE. *AK

NHTSA ID

10120254

Incident

May 9, 2005

Mileage

40,000 mi

ON APRIL 8, 2004 MY WIFES 2002 SAAB CONVERTIBLE WAS STRUCK BY A VEHICLE THAT FAILED TO YIELD AT A STOP SIGN. THE CAR WAS SEVERELY DAMAGED AND WAS TOWED TO NIMNICHT SAAB, THE ONLY AUTHORIZED SAAB DEALER IN JACKSONVILLE, FL. ALTHOUGH THE ACCIDENT RESULTED IN MORE THAN $8,000 TO OUR VEHICLE AND THE IMPACT ZONE WAS A T-BONE TYPE IMPACT TO THE DRIVER SIDE DOOR, THE DRIVER SIDE AIRBAG FAILED TO DEPLOY. AS OF THIS WRITING, OUR CAR REMAINS AT THE DEALERSHIP AND HAS YET TO BE REPAIRED. THIS REPAIR DELAY SITUATION HAS BEEN CREATED, IN LARGE PART, BY THE FACT THAT THE PRIMARY REPLACEMENT PART NECESSARY TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN ON FACTORY BACK ORDER SINCE MID-APRIL. OVER FIVE MONTHS LATER, THERE IS STILL NO SPECIFIC TIME-FRAME FOR RECEIPT OF THIS PART. TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE, NIMNICHT SAAB HAS RECENTLY INFORMED US THAT THEY NO LONGER HAVE INTEREST IN REPAIRING OUR VEHICLE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, AND ARE DEMANDING THAT WE REMOVE OUR CAR FROM THEIR LOT AND PAY THEM MORE THAN $1,000 IN STORAGE FEES. ID BE SINCERELY AND ETERNALLY GRATEFUL IF YOU WOULD CONSIDER OUR PLIGHT AND BRING AWARENESS TO YOUR VIEWING AUDIENCE TO THIS SEEMINGLY ENDLESS QUAGMIRE. DOING SO MIGHT CONVINCE THE PARTIES INVOLVED (SAAB CARS USA, NIMNICHT SAAB, ST. PAUL TRAVELERS INSURANCE) TO RESOLVE THIS MATTER TO EVERYONES SATISFACTION. *AK

NHTSA ID

10088961

Incident

Apr 8, 2004

Mileage

8,800 mi

A CRACK FORMED ON THE INSIDE LAYER OF THE GLASS RIGHT WHERE THE DRIVER'S SIDE CONVERTIBLE TOP LATCH IN THE FRAME IS LOCATED. THE DEALER DECLARED THAT THIS OCCURRED AS A RESULT OF AN IMPACT AS OPPOSED TO STRESS FROM THE FRAME AND REFUSED TO CORRECT IT UNDER THE WARRANTY. THERE WAS NO SIGN OF AN EXTERIOR IMPACT AND THE CRACK ORIGINATED ON THE INTERIOR SIDE OF THE GLASS. THERE IS CLEARLY A DEFECT EITHER IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE WINDSHIELD OR IN THE MANNER IN WHICH THE TOP LATCHES TO THE FRAME, WHICH CAUSED THE GLASS TO CRACK *JB.

NHTSA ID

10078840

Incident

Jun 17, 2004

Mileage

19,000 mi

2002 SAAB 9-3 CONVERTIBLE, ABOUT 13,000 MILES CAUGHT ON FIRE. DROVE TO OFFICE, TURNED OFF ENGINE, & PARKED CAR. GOT OUT OF CAR & NOTED UNUSUAL SMELL DESPITE THAT GUAGES INDICATED "CHECKING OK"AY. *AK WENT INTO MY OFFICE & CALLED ZEE SAAB OF MILFORD WHERE NEW CAR WAS ORIGINALLY LEASED FROM & WHERE ALL SERVICES HAD BEEN PERFORMED. NO PROBLEMS HAD EVER BEEN NOTED WITH THE CAR. TOLD TO CALL SAAB ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE, WHICH I DID. WENT BACK OUTSIDE TO WHERE CAR WAS PARKED TO WAIT FOR ROADSIDE AND NOTICED SMOKE COMING FROM THE HOOD AREA. THEN SAW FIRE & FLAMES COMING FROM THE TOP OF THE HOOD AND UNDERNEATH THE FRONT OF THE CAR. IMMEDIATELY CALLED WITON CT FIRE DEPARTMENT AND WITHIN 15 MINUTES FIRE WAS EXTINGUISHED. IN THAT VERY SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME, THE ENTIRE FRONT OF THE CAR WAS SIGNIFICANTLY DAMAGED FROM THE FIRE. A NEWSPAPER REPORTER WAS WITH THE FIRE DEPT. & TOOK ABOUT 30 PHOTOS OF THE FIRE & THE RESULTING DAMAGE. SAAB ROADSIDE ARRIVED & I REQUESTED THAT THE CAR BE TAKEN TO SAAB OF MILFORD. I NOTIFIED ALLSTATE, MY INSURER. ALLSTATE CLAIMS REP & ENGINEEER EXAMINED THE CAR (ALTHOUGH REQUESTED,TO DATE, I HAVE NOT RECEIVED A COPY OF THE ALLSTATE ENGINEER'S REPIORT). ALLSTATE ENGINEER INFORMED SAAB OF MILFORD THAT THE FIRE WAS FROM "UNDETERMINED CAUSES" & CAR WAS "TOTALLED". DEALER INFORMED ME THAT DESPITE THE FACT THAT CAR HAD ONLY ABOUT 13,000 MILES, THE DEALER PERFORMED ALL SERVICES & THERE WERE NO WARNING LIGHTS OR INDICATORS OF A PROBLEM, THE DAMAGES WERE NOT COVERED BY SAAB DEALER OR MANUFACTURER WARRANTY. CLEARLY, FIRES DON'T JUST START AND THERE WAS SOME TYPE OF FAILURE(S) WITH THE CAR.

NHTSA ID

10068218

Incident

Feb 2, 2004

Mileage

13,000 mi

SAAB SERVICE CAMPAIGN: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES CONTROL MODULE'S ANALOGUE INPUTS MAY PRODUCE INVALID SIGNAL. THIS MEANS THE SOFT TOP'S CONTROL MODULE DOES NOT FUNCTION AS INTENDED. DIFFICULTIES IN OPENING/CLOSING SOFT TOP IN EXTREMELY HOT WEATHER. FUNCTION OF SOFT TOP MECHANISM RETURNS AFTER COOLING DOWN. CSC LETTER WAS RECEIVED. *PE