Recalls, owner-reported complaints, investigations and safety data
Data refreshed
Our database contains 2 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 1997 Saturn S-Series Sedan, most frequently naming the electrical and engine categories. 10 manufacturer communications are on file.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
When owners filed reports about this model year
Not enough dated records to plot a meaningful trend — 2 months of data.
Complaints grouped by the component NHTSA recorded
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
No recalls in our database for this model year
That does not guarantee a specific vehicle is unaffected — recalls are issued against VINs, and new campaigns are announced regularly. Check a VIN on NHTSA.gov.
Reports submitted to NHTSA, shown in the owner's own words
THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE WIRING THE CAR IS A 1997 SATURN AND I HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THE HEATER BLOWER MOTOR WORKING SOMETIMES AND THEN NOT YOU HAVE TO PLAY WITH THE WIRING TO GET IT TO WORK AND THE SAME FOR THE BLINKERS THE BLOWER WORKS NOW AND THE BLINKERS DON'T? *NM
OIL FOUND IN COOLANT IN MY 1997 SATURN SL IN SUMMER 2004 AFTER MINOR FRONT-END COLLISION. IN THE 2-3 MONTHS PRIOR TO COLLISION, I HAD TO ADD COOLANT EVERY 3-4 WEEKS, AS COOLANT LOW WARNING LIGHT WOULD COME ON. COOLANT HAD NORMAL APPEARANCE PRIOR TO ACCIDENT. CAR RAN FINE, TEMP GAUGE NEVER WENT ABOVE NORMAL. CAR HAD @ 78,000 MILES WHEN THIS BEGAN TO HAPPEN. ADVISED BY MECHANIC FRIEND THAT I HAD PROBABLY BEGUN TO DEVELOP A CRACKED HEAD BEFORE ACCIDENT, THIS WAS A COMMON OCCURRENCE IN SATURNS BUILT IN 90'S. THE COLLISION POSSIBLY WORSENED CONDITION. HE ADVISED THAT HEAD WOULD CERTAINLY NEED TO BE REPLACED, BUT CAR COULD POTENTIALLY RUN FOR SOME TIME BEFORE OVERHEATING PROBLEMS DEVELOPED-STATED I WOULD HAVE AN EXPENSIVE REPAIR, AND I COULD REPAIR NOW OR WAIT UNTIL I HAD TO REPLACE PART. HE ADVISED CAREFUL WATCHING OF GAUGE AND OIL IF I CHOSE TO WAIT. CAR RAN FINE FOR 6 FULL MONTHS AFTER OIL FIRST FOUND IN COOLANT, WITH FREQUENT OIL "TOP-OFFS" AND RELIGIOUS WATCHING OF TEMP GAUGE, WHICH NEVER WAVERED FROM NORMAL IN THOSE 6 MONTHS. ABSOLUTELY NO NOTICEABLE EFFECT ON CAR'S PERFORMANCE. IN LATE NOVEMBER CAR FINALLY OVERHEATED. THE CRACKED HEAD I KNEW I HAD 6 MONTHS AGO IS NOW BEING REPLACED. I AM FORTUNATE TO HAVE "FRIENDS IN THE BUSINESS," SO MY REPAIR WILL NOT BE AS EXPENSIVE AS THE FOLKS FORCED TO GO TO THE DEALERSHIP. I AM REPAIRING THIS CAR BECAUSE OTHER THAN THIS INCIDENT, THE ONLY MECHANICAL REPAIRS NEEDED HAVE BEEN A FEW MINOR REPLACEMENT CAMPAIGN PROGRAM ITEMS (HORN ISSUE AND STEERING ISSUE) TAKEN CARE OF FOR FREE BY THE DEALER AND ONE MINOR OIL LEAK FIXED UNDER WARRANTY. *JB
A bulletin sent by a manufacturer to its dealers. Not a recall, and repairs are not necessarily free.
INFORMATION REGARDING SUNROOF SERVICE PROCEDURES AND SERVICEABLE SUNROOF COMPONENTS. *SLC
VISIBILITY:SUN/MOON ROOF ASSEMBLY
SUBJECT REGARDING SUNROOF SERVICE PROCEDURES AND SERVICEABLE SUNROOF COMPONENTS. *JG
SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY
SUBJECT REGARDING SEAT BELT LATCH FALLS TO THE FLOOR OR IS DIFFICULT TO RETRIEVE WHEN PUTTING ON SEAT BELT. *JG
INFORMATION REGARDING NEW PROCEDURE FOR SUNROOF ACTUATOR TO MODULE TIMING. *SLC
VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS
ON SOME VEHICLES WHENEVER THE WINDOW IS CYCLED FROM FULL UP TO FULL DOWN OR, FULL DOWN TO FULL UP POSITION, THE WINDOW REGULATOR MAY EXHIBIT A POPPING, CLICKING, AND / OR BINDING NOISE THAT IS TRANSMITTED INTO PASSENGER COMPARTMENT. *TT
STRUCTURE:BODY
ON SOME 1991 - 2000 SEDANS, WAGONS AND COUPES, A WHISTLE TYPE NOISE IS HEARD AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. *TT
Manufacturers file copies of the bulletins they send to dealers with NHTSA. These often describe diagnostic or repair procedures for a known condition. They are not recalls: repairs described in a bulletin are usually only free if the vehicle is still under warranty or the manufacturer has extended coverage.
Complaint and recall counts across every year of this model
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers. Older model years have had longer for reports to accumulate.