To whom it may concern:
I am a VERY dissatisfied 2006 Saturn Ion owner. This is not the first issue I have had that is potentially dangerous but is the only one that GM has issued a recall on. I own a 2006 Saturn Ion 3 with the original inspection date of 3-29-2006. Over the summer months I began to notice a faint smell of gasoline when my car was in the on position and after I had turned it off. I checked the ground under the tank to check for any leaks but didn't notice anything. I chalked it up to the heat and the possibility of fumes needing to escape because of the high temperatures but continued to notice the smell all summer.
Finally, when the temps cooled I had my husband drop the tank to take a further look at the issue. He found that there was a crack where the one of the hoses attaches to the fuel pump. I started to do some research to find where we could find the least expensive fuel pump to replace mine and stumbled upon a forum that had other Saturn owner's complaining about the same issue. One of the complaints said that GM was aware of the issue and had issued a recall. It listed http://www-odi. nhtsa. dot.gov/cars/problems/recalls/recallsearch. cfm as a resource for the information. This is the website for U.S. Dept. of Transportation - National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for defects. The part is defective because when subjected to hot weather climates, the plastic swells and cracks leading to a fuel leak. I located the recall information which lists 2006 Saturn Ions register in Nevada and Arizona in to "official recall" section but below states "A special coverage will be implemented in the same time frame for 20006 model year vehicles registered in : AL, AR, CA, FL, GA, HI, LA, MS, NC, NM, OK SC, TN, and TX..." Well.. my car is a 2006 and is registered in the state of TX.
So, I followed the instructions included and called Saturn. They checked my VIN and promptly told me that there were no recalls applicable to my vehicle and that my issue would not be covered. They instructed me to take my vehicle to a local Saturn dealership and created a case that we would pursue for reimbursement if my local dealership was unable to help with the cost of replacement. I called Saturn of Austin to check their knowledge of the recall and the "special coverage" that applied to my vehicle. They too told me that my vehicle would not be covered. They told me that the info on NHTSA's website does not hold Saturn accountable and Saturn would not acknowledge a replacement until it came from GM. I even explained that one of the documents is a letter from the director of product investigations and safety regulations of GM and was on a GM letterhead. He told me, again, "It does not matter. The letter I have does not include ANY 2006 models." I have included these documents as attachments. They can also be found at http://www-odi. nhtsa. dot.gov/cars/problems/recalls/recallsearch. cfm and filter 2006 Saturn Ion, select document search.
GM has vehicles on the road that are leaking fuel with defective parts that have been proven to be fire hazards and are refusing to replace them even though I have documents that state my vehicle should be covered. I'm a consumer that will pay for the auto industry's bailouts and they let me drive a potentially harmful vehicle and do nothing to ensure my safety!
Please help! People driving these vehicles NEED to know! They DESERVE to be safe!
Thank you for your attention,
Paige Morris
830-220-0857
paigedmorris@gmail. com
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