KnownCarProblems2006 Saab 9-3 Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 179 complaints with NHTSA about the 2006 Saab 9-3, most often about the air bags (49% of complaints, typically around 93,000 miles). It is 4th of 12 9-3 model years by number of complaints and has 2 recalls.
Most common 2006 Saab 9-3 problems
Air bags
87 complaints · 49%Half of these problems showed up before 93,000 miles. Parts named most often: frontal.
I would like to report that on tuesday, january 29, 2013, I was in an accident which destroyed the front end of my car. The car was subsequently declared a total loss by my insurance company. In spite of the significant impact, my airbags did not deploy. To confirm that this was a malfunction with the car, the car's…
Takata recall, I took my 06 Saab 93 aero into bellevue washington cadillac dealership to get my air bag recall fixed, after I hot the recalled airbag replaced they reset my ECM and now my airbag light is on intermittently and drains my battery dead over night! I have called bellevue cadillac and they refuse to do…
Brakes
30 complaints · 17%Half of these problems showed up before 37,500 miles. Parts named most often: power assist, antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip, foundation components.
On cold startup the vehicle has no power assisted brakes. This has lead to numerous occasions where you get in the car and begin to back out and nearly hit another vehicle. It takes nearly a minute after startup of the vehicle before it is safe to put it in gear.
Found my cap to my brake reservoir cracked open like a tin can above the threads. The plastic literally split in two. The cap still could be twisted on and off easily, but would no longer prevent brake fluid from escaping. Cap will be replaced with a new one. I have heard similar complaints from people with my car…
Engine
16 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 39,000 miles. Parts named most often: cooling system, engine.
Tl contact owns a 2006 Saab 9-3. While driving approximately 50 MPH, the power steering failed. Immediately, the brake and accelerator pedals failed to respond and the engine stalled without warning. The engine failed to restart after several attempts. Roadside assistance was called to the scene and the vehicle was…
1. The events leading up to the failure. None 2. The failure, how often it occurs, and its consequences. Periodic uncommanded changes in throttle. Dealership test equipment shows evidence of data corruption on channel 1 of the two channel throttle position sensor (tps) occurring every couple of seconds. Driver…
Seat belts
15 complaints · 8%Half of these problems showed up before 104,000 miles. Parts named most often: front.
Two items: 1. The seatbelt failed to catch when pulled forward and would unravel and not return. The seatbelt fails to stop the passenger should there be a sudden stop. 2. Both the left and right side tail light assemblies have shorted and melted at the electrical connection.
The contact owns a 2006 Saab 9-3. While parked, the front driver side seat belt failed to retract. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. The contact was unsure of what part needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 90,000.
Fuel system
14 complaints · 8%Half of these problems showed up before 105,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2006 Saab 9-3. While driving various speeds, the vehicle hesitated and shook during acceleration. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the fuel pump needed to be replaced, but not repaired. The VIN was excluded from NHTSA campaign number: 11e009000 (fuel…
Vehicle will not turn over. It was determined by dealership that new fuel pump was needed to correct problem. Vehicle occasionally within the past couple of years would almost stall out when coming to a complete stop.
Electrical
13 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 40,000 miles. Parts named most often: ignition, wiring.
Tl contact owns a 2006 Saab 9-3. While driving approximately 50 MPH, the power steering failed. Immediately, the brake and accelerator pedals failed to respond and the engine stalled without warning. The engine failed to restart after several attempts. Roadside assistance was called to the scene and the vehicle was…
Wheel lock ignition module malfunction. This is the error that occurs on sid. The wheel lock release will not function correctly and the key will not start the car. Occasionally, it will take 30 minutes for the wheel lock to release and allow the car to driven. Typically, this code occurs during the summer months when…
Steering
8 complaints · 5%Half of these problems showed up before 34,000 miles. Parts named most often: column.
Tl contact owns a 2006 Saab 9-3. The contact stated that the air bag light remained illuminated. The air bag light switch was replaced by a Saab dealer. In addition, the steering wheel lock failed. The dealer informed the contact not to drive the vehicle. The ignition was replaced. There had been no further…
Tl contact owns a 2006 Saab 9-3. While driving 20 MPH, the steering wheel locked and the vehicle stalled. No warning lights were illuminated prior to the failure. The contact crashed into a ten foot barrier. Gm sent an engineer to gather evidence and survey the damage. One occupant was injured and a police report was…
Suspension
7 complaints · 4%Half of these problems showed up before 52,000 miles. Parts named most often: front.
Premature fatigue failure of coil spring on driver's front macpherson strut. Failure caught before tire puncture incident. Fracture occurred on bottom coil. Vehicle: Saab 9-3 2.0t year: 2006 mileage: 38000 miles awaiting dealer repair.
The front driver coil spring broke and the broken end of the coil was pressed against the side wall of the tire. When the tire was removed a 1/4" deep gouge was observed in the side wall. This incident happened while parked, I noticed a loud bang and a strange noise while the vehicle was moving. I immediately removed…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2006 Saab 9-3 recalls
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's frontal air bag inflator on saab 9-3 and 9-5 vehicles and will replace the driver's frontal airbag module on saturn astra vehicles, free of charge. The recall began on march 1, 2017. Owners may contact saab customer service at 1-800-955-9007 or saturn customer service at 1-800-553-6000. Gm's number for this recall is 28810.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2006-2011 saab 9-3 vehicles manufactured may 31, 2002, to february 15, 2011, 2006-2009 saab 9-5 vehicles manufactured june 7, 2005, to may 28, 2009, and 2008-2009 saturn astra vehicles manufactured april 11, 2007, to july 24, 2008. Upon deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.
Seat belts: retractor
Risk: In the event of a crash, a seat belt that has not retracted may not properly restrain the seat occupant, increasing their risk of injury.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's seat belt retractor, free of charge. The recall began on october 6, 2015. Owners may contact saab customer service at 1-800-955-9007. Gm's number for this recall is 14222. Note: special coverage 10086 will replace the passenger side seat belt retractor if it fails, free of charge, for the life of the vehicle.
Full defect summary
General motors llc (gm) is recalling certain model year 2004-2011 saab 9-3 convertible vehicles manufactured july 30, 2003, to february 15, 2011. In the affected vehicles, the driver's side front seat belt retractor may break, causing the seat belt webbing not to retract.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Desiccated air bag inflator rupture
Summary
From 2000 through 2017, takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("psan") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004l. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 blomquist report at www.NHTSA.gov/sites/NHTSA.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substa
Front suspension coil spring fracture
Summary
To date, odi is aware of 142 non-duplicative complaints related to the alleged defect.in addition, odi is aware of 2,626 subject vehicles with one or more warranty claims related to the alleged defect.in total, odi is aware of 2,714 unique subject vehicles that have experienced one or more front suspension coil spring fractures.odi is not aware of any crashes or injuries related to the alleged defect.the engineering design and testing data supplied by gm, along with the frequency of consumer complaints and warranty claims related to the alleged defect, tends to support the position that, in general, the coil springs that fractured on many subject vehicles did not achieve the expected service
Front suspension coil spring fracture
Summary
On august 28, 2008, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened a preliminary evaluation (pe08-051) to investigate alleged front suspension coil spring fractures in certain model year (my) 2003-2004 saab 9-3 vehicles sold or registered in salt belt states.(note: for purposes of this investigation, the salt belt includes connecticut, delaware, the district of columbia, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia and wisconsin).subsequent analysis of data provided by general motors corp. (gm) has LED the agency to expand the scope of this investigation
Reduced brake power-assist
Summary
Saab automobile ab, a subsidiary of general motors corp. (gm), manufactured 12,317 subject vehicles through february 15, 2008, equipped with the high feature v6 turbocharged engine identified by regular production option lp9.a tandem vacuum brake booster assembly provides brake power-assist.the engine is the primary vacuum source to the booster and its effect is amplified by a venturi.under certain conditions, such as a cold engine start or at high altitudes, an electric vacuum pump (evp) supplements engine vacuum.a pressure switch measures brake booster vacuum and commands the evp when to turn on/off.check valves are located at the intake manifold, venturi, and pressure switch. Gm identifie
Questions about the 2006 Saab 9-3
- What are the most common problems with the 2006 Saab 9-3?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: air bags (87 complaints, typically around 93,000 miles); brakes (30 complaints, typically around 37,500 miles); engine (16 complaints, typically around 39,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2006 Saab 9-3 have?
- 2 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from February 3, 2016 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2006 a bad year for the Saab 9-3?
- It is 4th of 12 9-3 model years by number of complaints, with 179 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.