2003 Saturn VUE Power Train Problems
Owners have filed 316 complaints with NHTSA about power train problems on the 2003 Saturn VUE, 51% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 75,000 miles. The words owners use most often: “vti transmission” (17% of reports).
- 316power train complaints
- 75,000median miles at failure
- 5mention a crash
- 3mention an injury
- 0related recalls
- $7,750typical repair cost reported by owners
- 26%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Vti transmission: mentioned in 55 of 316 complaints (17%)
How much does it cost to fix?
Owners who wrote down what they paid or were quoted put the typical power train repair on the 2003 Saturn VUE at $7,750, and half of them between $6,450 and $9,000.
Based on 25 NHTSA complaints about this problem alone that state a repair bill or quote (2007–2017), converted to 2026 dollars with the U.S. consumer price index. These are owners' own figures, not a quote: they include dealer quotes, and owners who file complaints often faced larger repairs, so they can run higher than typical shop prices. Prices vary by shop, region and warranty coverage. How we calculate this.
At what mileage do power train problems happen?
Based on 260 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 316 complaints, 5 mention a crash, 1 a fire, 3 an injury.
Saturn VUE power train complaints by model year
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists power train for the 2003 Saturn VUE. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
This is more information related to Complaint 11761129: After online researching of other '03 2.2L Saturn Vue-owners stalling experiences, it appears that this vehicle has a long history of others like me: an unsafe, unpredictable stalling problem which carries no warnings or logging of error codes…
Car stalled while driving in traffic XXX. Engine died. Warning lights ON. Restarted. Stalled 3 more times in traffic but luckily had space to pull off & engine restarted. Made it into my garage. Restarted, Check Engine Light was ON, but went OFF after time. Car would NOT move in gear. Retried…
The contact purchased a 2003 Saturn Vue. The contact stated that two days after purchasing the used vehicle, the vehicle was taken to AutoZone, where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact stated while driving 45-50 MPH, the contact noticed smoke coming from underneath the hood and…
Frequently asked questions
Do all 2003 Saturn VUEs have power train problems?
No. NHTSA has 316 owner complaints about power train for the 2003 Saturn VUE (51% of the 622 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 2003 Saturn VUE power train?
No recall currently lists power train for this vehicle.
At what mileage do power train problems start?
The median reported mileage is 75,000 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
How much does it cost to fix power train problems on the 2003 Saturn VUE?
Owners report a typical cost of $7,750 (half paid between $6,450 and $9,000), from 25 complaints that state a repair bill or quote, in 2026 dollars.
What do owners say about power train problems on the 2003 Saturn VUE?
The most frequent phrase is “vti transmission”, in 55 of 316 complaints.
Other 2003 Saturn VUE problems
See all 2003 Saturn VUE problems or power train problems across all VUE years.