NHTSA Complaint #10200558 — 2002 SATURN LS

ON SUNDAY, AUGUST 12 AS I WAS DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY IN UPSTATE NY, MY 2002 SATURN L200 SUDDENLY BEGAN DECELERATING AND AS MUCH AS I PUSHED ON THE ACCELERATOR, THE CAR CONTINUED TO STOP. I MANAGED TO PULL OVER TO THE SHOULDER, WHICH WAS VERY SCARY BECAUSE THE TRAFFIC WAS HEAVY AND MOST CARS WERE SPEEDING AROUND ME. THE CAR DIED AND WOULD NOT RESTART. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO A SATURN DEALER WHO, WITHOUT EVEN EXAMINING THE CAR SAID IT SOUNDED LIKE THE TIMING CHAIN HAD BROKEN. THIS DIAGNOSIS PROVED TO BE TRUE AND I WAS TOLD THAT I NEEDED A NEW ENGINE. AFTER DOING SOME RESEARCH I LEARNED THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM OF THE L200 SERIES. I ALSO BECAME ANGERED BECAUSE I HAD BROUGHT MY CAR TO SATURN AT LEAST THREE TIMES COMPLAINING OF THE WARNING SIGNS--THE CAR HAD DONE THIS SAME THING SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE, BUT ALWAYS RESTARTED AFTER A WAIT OF ANY WHERE FROM ONE MINUTE TO THREE HOURS. EACH TIME I BROUGHT IT TO SATURN THEY ACTED LIKE THEY NEVER HEARD OF THE PROBLEM BEFORE, AND TOLD ME THEY COULD FIND NOTHING WRONG WITH THE CAR. THEY SHOULD HAVE KNOWN ABOUT THIS PROBLEM BECAUSE A TSB HAD BEEN ISSUED ABOUT IT AND ALL SATURN MECHANICS SHOULD HAVE BEEN TAUGHT ABOUT THIS PROBLEM. I PAID $21,000 FOR THIS CAR, WITH THE INTENTION THAT IT WOULD LAST AT LEAST 10 YEARS. I JUST FINISHED PAYING FOR IT A FEW MONTHS AGO. I BELIEVE SATURN SHOULD PAY TO FIX THIS. THE TIMING CHAINS SHOULD HAVE BEEN RECALLED. I WOULD LIKE TO FILE A CLASS ACTION SUIT AGAINST SATURN. *TR