2007 Saturn Ion problems & reliability
876 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2007 Saturn Ion, alongside 5 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
24 complaints report injuries (29 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2007 Saturn Ion vehicles were involved in 57 fatal crashes with 42 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Steering | 408 | 47% |
| Electrical System | 215 | 25% |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 130 | 15% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 79 | 9% |
| Air Bags | 65 | 7% |
| Engine | 34 | 4% |
| Power Train | 19 | 2% |
| Suspension | 17 | 2% |
| Unknown OR Other | 17 | 2% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 16 | 2% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 66,778 miles (middle 50% between 45,721 and 96,000 miles), based on 728 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“The power steering (the Eps, worst system ever) has been randomly cutting in and out driving down the road and traffic making turns shutting down and making it almost impossible to drive or Park stay between lines adjust as needed and it cuts in and out it has been fixed per recall once but it still continues to do it…”
Steering · filed Apr 17, 2026
“Power steering went out. I was driving and I was on the freeway and the steering wouldn't move like it should. It became very hard to steer so I exited off the highway and pulled in to a store barely missing the sign. I call a friend and had the car towed home and looked at. I was told the eps went out. The next time…”
Steering · filed Jun 23, 2025
“It won’t start! Been having starter problems. Battery not dead, and I also was told maybe crankshaft and starter”
Unknown OR Other · filed Oct 15, 2024
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- Electric Power Steering Failure
Engineering Analysis EA11014 · opened Sep 29, 2011 · closed Apr 15, 2014 · led to recall 15V064000
- Electric Power Steering Failure
Recall Query RQ10004 · opened Dec 15, 2010 · closed Oct 5, 2011
Technical service bulletins
835 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2007 Saturn Ion. The 10 most recent:
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that have an intermittent no crank, no start, or start stall concern with the security light coming on. Technician may…
PIC5650M · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 7, 2025
This PI communicates the requirement to provide a pico file to receive diagnostic assistance from TAC.
PIP5601C · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jul 18, 2025
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about the use of J-35616-64B and Mini 50 terminal test probe, replacement terminals, and terminated leads.
PIT5074R · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 30, 2025
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about the use of J-35616-64B and Mini 50 terminal test probe, replacement terminals, and terminated leads.
PIT5074R · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 30, 2025
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about the use of J-35616-64B and Mini 50 terminal test probe, replacement terminals, and terminated leads.
PIT5074R · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 30, 2025
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about vehicles that have an unusual noise and is difficult to identify, isolate or pinpoint. Technician should get record a sound clip or…
PIP5358D · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 20, 2025
This Preliminary Information communication provides information to the technician about the use of J-35616-64B terminal test probe, replacement terminals, and terminated leads. The J-35616-64B is the latest test probe…
PIT5074Q · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Dec 7, 2024
This Preliminary Information communicates to the dealer the process for downloading or updating operating software for the Tire Pressure Monitor, Active Fuel Injector tester, multi media tester, PICO Scope, GR8…
PIP4723J · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 25, 2024
This service bulletin provides information for maintenance cleaning of the fuel injectors and gasoline detergent additive.
04-06-04-051J · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 27, 2024
This service bulletin provides information on some vehicles that may rock or move slightly forward or rearward while in Park at start up after cold soak. This condition may be accompanied by a clunk noise. This is a…
08-07-30-026I · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 16, 2024
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2007 Saturn Ion has 5 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2007 Saturn Ion?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 66,778 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.