1. the power steering on my vehicle went out three times last week (3/14/10, 3/16/10, and 3/18/10). 2. a warning noise would sound like when there is low fuel, and the dash showed the message "pwr str". a couple of seconds later, the power steering went out. Each time the vehicle was started after, there was no problem. 3. I contacted the Saturn dealership where I purchased the vehicle, and diagnostics were run. The dealership found a code resulting in a new power steering motor being needed. Fortunately, my extended warranty covered the repair as the cost total over $400.

- O'fallon, IL, USA

My car is a 2006 Saturn Ion. The problem is that the power steering on the car will go out while the car is in operation. If the car is shut off and then restarted, the power steering will be operative for about 5 minutes but then die again. This process is repetitive. The power steering fails everytime the car is being driven over a distance of 2-3 miles. My cursory research shows that this is a common problem, and that it creates a grave safety hazard for the failure occurs while the car is on the highway. Every case I have researched (and there are many) shows this is happening between 30,000 to 60,000 miles on most Ions. Please help - the cost of the repair is anywhere from $1200 to $1500 dollars. I take my daughter to school in this car everyday and simply do not have the income to scrap this car and go purchase another one. I fully expect that you will do nothing about this since you are in the tank for GM and to busy chasing Toyota, but your own stated policy is too remedy any situation where safe operation of the car is rendered practically impossible. What could be more dangerous than operating a car that loses it ability to be steered while it is in motion. Please do your job and address this!! I beg. This problem has been reported and it is time to cure it.

- Goose Creek, SC, USA

The contact owns a 2006 Saturn Ion. While driving at 70 mph the power steering light illuminated on the instrumental panel. The steering wheel was very hard to steer. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and turned the vehicle off and then back on. The vehcile began to operate normally. He drove about 5 miles down the road and the failure occurred again. The dealer was contacted and they stated that there was no recall for his vehicle. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired at the time of the complaint. The failure mileage was 76000 and the current mileage was 79000.

- Pioneer, TN, USA

I have been experiencing power steering failure every day since 2-16-10. When I start the car the power steering is working, then after a few minutes the power steering fails, the message comes up pwr str and it becomes increasingly difficult to turn the wheel.

- Spring, TX, USA

I was driving my 2006 Saturn Ion and the power steering went out. When I restarted my car it went back on, then went out again about 100ft up the road.

- Ogden, UT, USA

Power steering turns off frequently while driving, in a fifteen minute drive to work the power steering will shut off around 3 times.

- Phopenix, AZ, USA

Power steering failed while I was driving. Had to pull over, turn off car, and turn back on. Third time this happened.

- Kenmore, NY, USA

My 2006 Saturn Ion 2 has an issue with the power steering. The light comes on and then the power steering turns off and we have to manually steer the car. There is no rhyme or reason as to when or why it comes on. We will then turn the car off, then back on and then the same thing will happen. This makes for a dangerous situation, especially when turning corners. We are currently in the process of having our mechanic look at it to see if he can fix it. Apparently the Saturn's steering column is the same one that is in the Chevy cobalt that was recently recalled.

- Yorkville, IL, USA

I purchased a GM certified 2006 Saturn Ion with 41000 miles on the car after several months of driving my power steering have been giving me problems. A warning chime comes on and "pwr str" shows up on my dashboard, I would then loose power to my steering and makes it very hard to turn the wheel. If I shut off the motor and restart the car the power steering is ok but only for a short while until the power steering go out again. I called the dealer and told me it would cost about $800-$1000 to repair the steering. I also google and found out that many other owners of Saturn Ion and Chevrolet cobalts have the same problems with the power steering. Is there a recall with the electric power steering on the GM's compact cars?

- Macungie, PA, USA

I was driving in rush hour traffic in los angeles and the power went out on the steering. I thought the engine died, but realized it had not. I struggled to keep in on the road until I could get off the freeway and stop. After I turned off engine and then turned it back on. I drove a few hundred yards and the bell chimed and the message on dash said, steering power or something like that. I decided to tow the vehicle with an rv to the nearest to my campsite santa maria. They told me it was a regular problem with Saturn and the steering motor was defective. I saw online several complaints about this on dot and the Saturn dealer confirmed, it was a regular problem. It was very expensive to replace, but worse, I could have been killed or hurt or killed others on the freeway.

- Indio, CA, USA

2006 Saturn Ion power steering went out in the middle of a turn. After the car has been shut off for some time, the power steering will work for a very short time (30 seconds or so) before it stops working again all together. It appears after some research that the steering column power steering unit is out. There is also a recall on a GM product that uses the exact same unit for my vehicle, although my Saturn was not in the recall.

- Wichita, KS, USA

On March 8, 2010, the power steering light came on in my car. This happened after I gave my nephew a jump start to his car. I say this because I read in the NHTSA complaint forum where a similar situation happened to an individual. My car is very difficult to drive; however, I need it for work purposes and everyday use. It has no warranty and from what I'm reading of complaints in the NHTSA forum, it is very costly to repair. After reading other complaints regarding this problem with documented dates earlier than 2010, I strongly recommend that GM recalls this steering problem (as they have done to similar other GM model cars) before someone is seriously injured!!!

- Cedar Hill, TX, USA

The contact owns a 2006 Saturn Ion. When the vehicle is turned on and running for a period of 30-60 seconds the power steering will suddenly stop functioning. If the vehicle is turned off and restarted the power steering will function normally. The vehicle was taken to the dealership where the contact had the power steering motor replaced. The current and failure mileages were 42669.

- Santee, CA, USA

While driving my 2006 Saturn Ion, my power steering light came on and I lost my power steering. This happened four times on 3/1/2010. I took my car to the Saturn dealer in turnersville, NJ on 3/2/2010 and they had to replace my power steering motor for a cost of $520. This sounds like the exact thing that warranted a recall of GM vehicles last week.

- Marlton, NJ, USA

Driving down the road at about 35 mph I hit a bump (frost heave) and the entire vehicle shut down. No engine, no electrical systems. The vehicle became difficult to steer and the brakes did not operate as well as when the vehicle was running. I forced the car to the side of the road, turned the key off and back on again and restarted the car.

- Agawam, MA, USA

While driving power steering light and warning sound alerts me to problem as I turn steering becomes very difficult. Power steering failed manual steering very difficult and dangerous as I returned home.

- Staten Island, NY, USA

I have a 2006 Saturn Ion redline. My complaint goes hand in hand with the recall on the Chevy cobalts. My power steering is going out every single time I drive my car. The warning light comes on along with a series of beeps. This makes my car very hard to turn and navigate under 15mph. This has become quite annoying and I cannot let anyone drive my car because I don't want them to hurt themselves or the car. I would greatly appreciate you looking into adding the GM Saturn Ion to the recall list. The part number is the same for both cars; P/N 19209137. Thank you for your time.

- Leeds, AL, USA

My son's 2006 Saturn Ion has electric power steering problems. It intermittently stops working while he is driving, it will only start working again if you pull over, turn the ignition off and restart the car. If you look at on-line forums our vehicle is not the only Saturn with electric power steering problems. Since the Ion is the same platform as the cobalt, why would the Ion not have been included in General Motors recent recall of small cars with electric power steering problems" would you ask General Motors to re-evaluate the scope of their recall" surely losing power steering is more dangerous than having heavy steering at slow speeds.

- Mount Pleasant, TN, USA

The contact owns a 2006 Saturn Ion. While driving at various speeds as low was 20 mph, the power steering warning light would illuminate on the instrument panel, followed by a dinging alarm. The steering wheel would become extremely stiff and almost impossible to turn. She would have to use both hands with extreme bodily force to turn the steering wheel in either direction. When turning the vehicle engine off and then restarting, the power steering would reset itself and return to normal. To date, the contact was awaiting a diagnosis on the failure. There were no recalls. The failure 67,000 and the current was 67,662.

- Honolulu, HI, USA

Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). My 2006 Saturn Ion's electric power steering goes out (suddenly stops) while I'm driving everyday. It goes out on the highways, off/on ramps, parking lots, school zones, etc., etc... each time I start the car and drive it goes out wheneverthis car has the "exact" same electric power steering as the cars GM recalled on March 2, 2010 but is not included in the recall. Why"?? is this because Saturn is going out of business" does this mean we are left holding the bag, so-to-speak, and responsible for the accidents that may happen when the steering suddenly stops working. Thank goodness my daughter wasn't driving it at the time. Big safety issue! I would like my car included in this recall since it's the exact same electric power steering manufactured into it. Please help before a serious accident occurs. [xxx] fyi - GM recalls compact cars to fix power steering assist safety recall covers 1.3 million Chevrolet and Pontiac models 2005 - 2010 Chevrolet cobalt 2007 - 2010 Pontiac G5 2005 - 2006 Pontiac pursuit (Canada) 2005 - 2006 Pontiac G4 (Mexico).

- Jacksonville, FL, USA