2007 Saturn Aura Engine Problems

I HAVE A 2007 SATURN AURA WITH 103,000 MILE AND THE TIMING CHAIN (BELT) WENT. UPON INVESTIGATING THE ISSUE I LEARNED THE SAME GM ENGINE IN MY AURA IS IN THE 2007 GMC ACADIA. GM HAS A RECALL ON THE TIMING BELT FOR ACADIA ENGINES AND EXTENDED THAT WARRANTY FOR 10 YEARS WITH 120,000 MILES. DESPITE OTHERS AURA OWNERS COMPLAINTS FOR SAME ISSUE WITH SAME ENGINE THEY WILL NOT EXTEND THAT SAME COURTESY TO SATURN AURA OWNERS. LUCKILY I WAS NOT DRIVING THE CAR WHEN THE BELT MALFUNCTIONED.

WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY THE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON . I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER THIS WEEKEND AND WAS TOLD THAT THE TIMING CHAIN HAS STRETCHED AND THAT THE CAMSHAFT ACTUATOR IS NOT STAYING INTO POSITION . THERE IS CURRENTLY A RECALL ON THIS ENGINE IN EVERY CAR MODEL EXCEPT THE SATURN .

ENGINE TIMING CHAINS PROBLEM. MY CAR ONLY HAD 18,800 MILES ON IT WHEN THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. TOOK IT TO A DEALER AND WAS TOLD I HAD TO SPEND 2000 DOLLARS ON HAVING THE TIMING CHAINS REPLACED. THE DEALER SAID IT WAS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS ENGINE. GM WOULD NOT HELP BECAUSE MY CAR WAS JUST ABOUT 10 YEARS OLD. THE OIL WAS CHANGED ALONG WITH THE FILTER EVERY 3,000 MILES BY A DEALER . WHEN IT WAS REPAIRED THE MECHANIC SAID IT WAS MISSING THE CAMSHAFT THRUST WASHERS. GM DIDN'T CARE THE TIRES WERE OUTLASTING A TIMING CHAIN THAT SHOULD BE GOOD FOR OVER 100,000 MILES.

CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED WITH CODES P0016 AND P0017, THE CAUSE OF WHICH IS A STRETCHED TIMING CHAIN. THIS SAME EXACT PROBLEM IN THE GMC ACADIA, WITH THE SAME ENGINE, RESULTED IN A WARRANTY EXTENSION TO 10 YEARS AND 120,000 MILES. THIS CAR HAS ONLY 86,000 MILES AND WILL NOT PASS EMISSIONS DUE TO THE DEFECTIVE ENGINE DESIGN/ AND OR TIMING CHAIN PROBLEM. COST TO REPAIR IS ANYWHERE FROM $1600 TO $3000 AND MAY REAPPEAR IN AS LITTLE AS 20,000 ADDITIONAL MILES.

THE ENGINE POWER REDUCED AND THE TRACTION LIGHT COME ON. WHEN TRYING TO TAKE OFF THE ENGINE HAS NO POWER. ALSO WHEN YOU ARE DRIVING AT REGULAR SPEED IT WILL REDUCE WITHOUT WARNING. IT MAKES ME FEEL VERY UNSAFE TO DRIVE. THIS CAR HAS BEEN NOTHING BUT ISSUES FROM DAY ONE AND NOW THAT THEY STOPPED MAKING THEM GM DOESN'T WANT TO HELP. THEY JUST WANT TO SELL YOU A NEW CAR.

I STARTED THE CAR (IN THE RAIN) SUDDENLY THE TC LIGHT CAME ON AND ALSO THE WARNING WORDS ENGINE POWER REDUCTION. THE CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. I LEFT THE CAR FOR THE WEEKEND IN THE DRIVEWAY AND WHEN I STARTED IT ON MONDAY, EVERYTHING SEEMED OK.

SES LIGHT ILLUMINATED AT APPROX 95,000 MILES WHEN BACKING OUT OF MY DRIVEWAY. CODE READ IS P0017. I TOOK TO MY LOCAL IOWA CITY GM DEALERSHIP TO DIAGNOSE AND WAS TOLD IT'S A STRETCHED TIMING CHAIN. I'M THE VEHICLE'S SECOND OWNER AND PURCHASED IT 6 YEARS AGO AT 33,000 MILES. I'VE ALWAYS PERFORMED REGULAR OIL CHANGES AT THE SPECIFIED INTERVALS AND TAKEN GOOD CARE OF THE CAR. I WAS QUOTED $2,500 TO FIX THIS, AND TOLD THIS IS NOT UNDER WARRANTY. A TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN WAS ISSUED FOR CERTAIN EFFECTED VEHICLES OF THE SAME YEAR WITH THE SAME ENGINE BUT EXCLUDES THE SATUN/AURA XR: HTTP://WWW-ODI.NHTSA.DOT.GOV/TSBS/. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE WITH THE CAR AND WOULD I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHY MY 3.6L ENGINE IS NOT COVERED UNDER THE ABOVE BULLETIN.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 SATURN AURA. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 55 MPH, THE ENGINE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE DEALER DIAGNOSED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN AND TENSIONER BELT NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 136,000. THE VIN WAS NOT PROVIDED.

MY FAMILY HAS OWNED GM VEHICLES FOR 35 + YEARS. FEBRUARY 2016, I WAS DRIVING MY 2007 SATURN AURA XR (V6 3.6 L ENGINE) HOME AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I TOOK IT TO MY LOCAL GM DEALER WHO STATED IT THAT IT WAS A TIMING CHAIN ISSUE. REPAIR COST $ 1,667.05. THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE, WHY? IT IS THE THIRD TIMING CHAIN ON THE CAR. YES, THAT'S RIGHT THIRD! PROBLEMS WITH TIMING CHAIN & TIMING CHAIN TENSIONERS EASILY GO UNNOTICED AND CAUSE SERIOUS DAMAGE TO THE VEHICLE. A DEFECTIVE TIMING CHAIN CAN CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE AND PRESENT SERIOUS SAFETY CONCERNS. THE FIRST TIMING CHAIN FAILED AT 56,000 MILES IN MARCH 2013 THE SECOND TIMING CHAIN FAILED AT 80,000 MILES FEBRUARY 2016 IN 2 YEARS 11 MONTHS AND 24,000 MILES, THE TIMING CHAIN NEEDED REPLACEMENT SOMETHING IS INHERENTLY WRONG WITH THIS ENGINE AND/OR REPLACEMENT PARTS. IT IS UNACCEPTABLE TO NEED A THIRD (3) TIMING CHAIN ON A VEHICLE. OUR 2007 SATURN AURA XR HAS THE SAME V6 3.6 L ENGINE AS THE 2007 MODELS: (CADILLAC CTS, SRX, STS; GMC ACADIA & SATURN OUTLOOK) THAT GENERAL MOTORS ISSUED A RECALL CONCERNING PREMATURE WEAR OF TIMING CHAINS FOR THESE 2007 MODELS. GM SHOULD HONOR THE RECALL FOR OUR SATURN AURA XR. AS LOYAL GM CUSTOMERS, WE ARE REQUESTING REIMBURSEMENT FOR REPAIR EXPENSES OF $ 1,667.05 FOR REPLACEMENT OF SECOND (2) TIMING CHAIN IN LESS THAN THREE YEARS.

VEHICLE HAS A TIMING CHAIN PROBLEM, THROWING A P0017 TROUBLE CODE. MY MAKE , MODEL AND ENGINE ARE INCLUDED IN GM SPECIAL POLICY 11340A, COVERING THE SPECIFIC ISSUE OF A BAD TIMING CHAIN. THIS DIAGNOSIS WAS CONFIRMED BY A GM DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP AND GM REFUSE TO COVER MY VEHICLE IN ANY WAY. MY VEHICLE CANNOT PASS MY OHIO E-CHECK AND RUNS ROUGH, WITH RUNNING CONDITION DETERIORATING.

DUE TO SUDDEN LOSS OF ENGINE POWER, I NEARLY AVOIDED A COLLISION FROM ONCOMING TRAFFIC. THIS OCCURRED WHILE TURNING LEFT AT AN INTERSECTION WITH REGULAR TRAFFIC FROM AN AIRPORT. THE ENGINE TIMING CHAIN REQUIRED REPLACEMENT, WHICH WAS RATHER COSTLY. GM SPECIAL COVERAGE ADJUSTMENT BULLETIN #11340C COVERS SOME BUT -CONSPICUOUSLY- NOT ALL GM VEHICLES WITH THE SAME 3.6L ENGINE FOR UP TO 10 YEARS. I STRONGLY FEEL THAT UNEXPECTED LOSS OF ENGINE POWER (DUE TO WORN TIMING CHAIN OR ANY OTHER ISSUE) IN THE MIDDLE OF ONCOMING TRAFFIC IS A SAFETY ISSUE. I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY ALL VEHICLES WITH THE SAME DEFECTIVE ENGINE / TIMING CHAIN ARE NOT BEING PROACTIVELY REPAIRED BY GM.

I WAS HAVING AN INSPECTION AND WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH MY CAMSHAFT CORRELATION. THEY DETERMINED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN HAS STRETCHED AND NEEDS TO BE REPLACED FOR $2000 DOLLARS THIS IS THE SAME ENGINE AS OTHER VEHICLES THAT HAVE BEEN REPAIRED UNDER SERVICE 11340C WHY IS THIS ENGINE NOT COVERED. *TR

ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND THEN WENT OFF THE SAME DAY. ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN A FEW WEEKS LATER. TOOK IT FOR SERVICE, SAID IT MIGHT BE BECAUSE AN OIL CHANGE WAS NEEDED BUT IF LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN IT WAS LIKELY THE TIMING CHAIN AND I SHOULD TAKE IT TO THE DEALER. LIGHT WAS ON IMMEDIATELY AFTER SERVICE AND THE SERVICE TRACTION LIGHT CAME ON AT THE SAME TIME (THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT LIGHT CAME ON). TOOK IT TO DEALER AND THEY CONFIRMED IT IS THE TIMING CHAIN. GOING TO COST ABOUT $2700 AND 2-3 DAYS TO FIX. NOT SURE WHY THIS MODEL WASN'T RECALLED WHEN THE 2007 SATURN OUTLOOK WAS RECALLED FOR THE EXACT SAME PART. *TR

TOOK CAR IN FOR SERVICE AT WHICH TIME ALSO REQUESTED COOLING SYSTEM FLUSH, UNABLE TO HAVE DONE AS SERVICE DEPT. FOUND A LEAK AT THE CROSSOVER PIPE WHICH NEEDS TO BE REPAIRED ONCE THEY RECEIVE THE PARTS. I HAD THE CROSSOVER PIPE REPLACED AND RESEALED IN FEB. 2013 AT 54233 MILES. FEEL THAT THIS SHOULD NOT CONTINUE TO GO OUT EVERY YEAR. *TR

I WOULD BE BOPPING ALONG ON THE HIGHWAY, THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN, THE CHECK ENGINE AND REDUCED ENG PWR MESSAGES APPEARED ON THE DRIVER INFORMATION CONSOLE. ON MY WAY HOME FROM WORK THE OTHER DAY AFTER THE RAIN STORM, I WAS DRIVING ON I-95 AND ALL OF THE A SUDDEN RECEIVED SEVERAL ERROR MESSAGES IN THE DIC: -SERVICE TRACTION -ENG PWR REDUCED THE CHECK ENGINE AND TC-DISABLED INDICATORS REMAINED LIT. SO I LIMPED THE REST OF THE WAY HOME ON WHAT FELT LIKE TWO-CYLINDERS. AFTER READING SOME INFO ON THE WEB I FOND OUT THAT WATER COULD BE COMING IN FROM SOME PLACE AND IS AFFECTING THE THROTTLE CONTROL MODULE (PART NO. 15780668). I THINK THIS IS ANOTHER ISSUE THAT GM NEED TO LOOK INTO BECAUSE IT CAN MAKE THE CAR JUST STOP ON THE HIGHWAY. *TR

THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS OFF AND ON FOR 3 WEEKS PRIOR TO TAKING THE VEHICLE TO THE SHOP. ALSO, THE SERVICE TRACTION LIGHT CAME ON THE DAY BEFORE I TOOK THE CAR TO BE EVALUATED. I WAS TOLD THE TIMING CHAIN STRETCHED DUE TO THE MANUFACTURER PRESET OIL CHANGE. MY CAR HAS 85, 500 MILES ON IT AND THIS IS THE FIRST ISSUE WITH THE VEHICLE. THE REPAIR IS $3000.00. THERE ARE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS SAME ISSUE WITH OTHER SATURNS AND GM VEHICLES. *TR

THE COOLANT CROSSOVER PIPE STARTED LEAKING SERIOUS ANTIFREEZE. I HAD IT REPAIRED IN NOVEMBER OF 2013 JUST TO HAVE IT START LEAKING AGAIN A FEW MONTHS LATER. I NEED TO HAVE IT REPAIRED AGAIN BUT MECHANIC TOLD ME IT WAS POSSIBLE A FLAW IN THE METAL DESIGN FROM THE MANUFACTURE NOT ALLOWING THE PIPE TO SEAL PROPERLY. I HAVE CONTACTED SATURN TWICE, ONCE LAST YEAR AND THEN AGAIN A FEW WEEKS AGO AND THEY WON'T ADMIT FAULT. I HAVE DONE SOME RESEARCH ON THIS AND IT WAS A SERIOUS PROBLEM WITH THE GM 3.5 MOTORS ON BUICKS, CHEVYS, PONTIACS AND OTHERS TO NUMEROUS TO LIST. THEY WERE AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM AND ONLY PUT OUT A SERVICE BULLETIN. MY MOST RECENT ESTIMATED IS 1110.00 AND LAST YEAR I PAID 430. THIS NEEDS TO BE STOPPED FROM GM GETTING AWAY WITH THIS. *TR

THE COOLANT CROSSOVER PIPE STARTED LEAKING SERIOUS ANTIFREEZE. I HAD IT REPAIRED IN NOVEMBER OF 2013 JUST TO HAVE IT START LEAKING AGAIN A FEW MONTHS LATER. I NEED TO HAVE IT REPAIRED AGAIN BUT MECHANIC TOLD ME IT WAS POSSIBLE A FLAW IN THE METAL DESIGN FROM THE MANUFACTURE NOT ALLOWING THE PIPE TO SEAL PROPERLY. I HAVE CONTACTED SATURN TWICE, ONCE LAST YEAR AND THEN AGAIN A FEW WEEKS AGO AND THEY WON'T ADMIT FAULT. I HAVE DONE SOME RESEARCH ON THIS AND IT WAS A SERIOUS PROBLEM WITH THE GM 3.5 MOTORS ON BUICKS, CHEVYS, PONTIACS AND OTHERS TO NUMEROUS TO LIST. THEY WERE AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM AND ONLY PUT OUT A SERVICE BULLETIN. MY MOST RECENT ESTIMATED IS 1110.00 AND LAST YEAR I PAID 430. THIS NEEDS TO BE STOPPED FROM GM GETTING AWAY WITH THIS. *TR

THE VEHICLE'S ENGINE SHUTS OFF WHILE IN THE "ON" POSITION AND MOVING. THE ELECTRICAL STAYS ON, JUST NO ENGINE POWER AND NO WARNING LIGHTS. WORST OF ALL, CAN NOT RECREATE THE PROBLEM. IT CAN HAPPEN A COUPLE OF TIMES IN A WEEK OR IT CAN GO MONTHS BEFORE IT HAPPENS AGAIN. WENT TO TWO DIFFERENT MECHANICS & NEITHER ONE CAN RE-CREATE THE PROBLEM. YOU LOSE THE ENGINE, POWER BRAKES, & POWER STEERING AND THE CAR IS STILL COASTING ALONG. LIKE TRYING TO A FLY A PLANE WITH NO PROPELLER. SINCE THE CAR IS COMING INTO OR GOING OUT OF A "STOP" POSITION, YOU CAN BE TRAVELING THROUGH AN INTERSECTION AFTER COMING FROM A "STOP" LOSE THE ENGINE, & NOW YOU ARE STUCK IN THE INTERSECTION. ACTION IS TO ROLL TO A STOP WITHOUT GETTING HIT. PUT THE CAR IN "PARK". TURN THE SWITCH TO THE "OFF" POSITION EVEN THOUGH THE ENGINE IS ALREADY OFF & RESTART. APPROXIMATELY 10 TIMES (+) THIS HAS HAPPENED SINCE OCT. '13. THE CAR ISN'T ON THE GM RECALL SO THEY WON'T LOOK AT IT. THEY WANT A MECHANIC TO FIND THE PROBLEM, BUT A MECHANIC CAN'T RECREATE THE PROBLEM. THE DEALERSHIP DOESN'T WANT ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT. I BELIEVE THIS IS THE 2ND TIME I HAVE FILED THIS COMPLAINT, IT HAS HAPPENED MORE SINCE THE 1ST TIME. THIS IS A GM SATURN AURA. THE IGNITION RECALL IS ONLY FOR SATURN ION. I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT TO DO. ALL I WANT IS A SAFE VEHICLE. UNTIL TODAY'S EVENT, IS THE CAR WANTS TO STALL/SHUT OFF BEFORE IT DOES. SO YOU GET A WARNING THAT THE CAR WILL SHUT OFF. HELPS PREPARE FOR THE INEVITABLE STALL + GIVES ME A CHANCE TO RECORD THE STALL. I HAVE AT LEAST TWO VIDEOS OF IT OCCURRING. THE NORM HAS BEEN, COMING INTO OR OUT OF A "STOP" POSITION: 1) WANTS TO SHUT OFF BUT DOESN'T, 2) VERY SHORTLY THEREAFTER AT A "STOP" POSITION - THE ENGINE WILL SHUT OFF, AND 3) RESTART THE CAR, 4) (NOT ALWAYS) SHUTS OFF AGAIN AT ANOTHER "STOP" VERY SHORTLY THEREAFTER, AND 5) NOT HAPPEN AGAIN FOR SOME RANDOM PERIOD OF TIME. *TR

HAVING TROUBLE WITH THE TIMING CHAIN ON MY 2007 SATURN AURA WITH ONLY 22,232 MILES. WHY WASN'T THERE A RECALL FOR THIS SINCE THERE SEEMS TO BE A LOT OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS. IT WILL COST $1200 TO REPLACE THE TIMING CHAIN, MONEY I JUST DON'T HAVE. *TR