2009 Saturn Aura Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2009 Saturn Aura most often describe intermittent loss of electric power steering assist, usually accompanied by a "Power Steering" or "Service ESC" message and restored temporarily by shutting the car off and restarting it. Many of these reports come at higher mileage and involve a dealer saying the vehicle is not covered by the steering recall. A smaller but consistent group of complaints covers automatic transmission shifting problems and unexpected brake-light or stability-control behavior.

1. 1
   Steering

   Intermittent loss of power steering assist

   • 195 complaints (50%)
   • median 124,206 mi at 8.7 yrs old (166 state mileage)
   • 3 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,300 (median of 5 quotes)
   • filed 2010–2026

   Owners describe the steering suddenly becoming very heavy, sometimes with a "Power Steering" or "Service ESC" message on the dash, and often say it happens during low-speed turns or while driving on the highway. Many report that turning the car off and restarting restores assist, sometimes only until the next drive. Complaints frequently mention that a dealer checked the VIN against the steering recall and said the vehicle was not included. Reported across a wide mileage range, from under 1,000 miles to over 200,000, with many reports between roughly 65,000 and 180,000 miles.

   Recall 14V153000

   What to check: Ask whether the steering assist recall was completed for this VIN, and test-drive at parking-lot speeds with the wheel turned fully to see if the assist cuts out. Note whether the power steering warning appears at start-up.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Vibration of my steering wheel. My electric power steering is failing. The service ESC and power steering failure messages suddenly illuminated on the dash board. The failure occurs when I try starting my car. The ESC light illuminates and locks up. I tried turning it on and off multiple times and it still locks up.”

   NHTSA complaint #11079641, filed 2018-03, 118,834 miles

   “When I was getting off the interstate I lose control of my power steering and the service ESC power steering light came on and I was able to pull over into a gas station I turned the car off turned it back on and the power steering started working just fine again.”

   NHTSA complaint #11045480, filed 2017-11, 100,000 miles
2. 2
   Transmission and drivetrain

   Harsh, delayed or jerky automatic transmission shifting

   • 58 complaints (15%)
   • median 83,109 mi at 6.6 yrs old (53 state mileage)
   • 3 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2009–2025

   Complaints describe hard thunks on upshifts, hesitation before a gear engages, engine revving before the car lunges forward, and in some cases loss of reverse or forward gears. Several owners report the car rocking or rolling after being placed in Park, and some link this to the shift-cable and shift-position recalls. Repair advice from dealers ranged from a transmission flush to a full transmission replacement according to the complaints. Mostly reported between about 70,000 and 200,000 miles, often during acceleration or when shifting into gear.

   Recall 12V460000Recall 09V0730002 related service bulletins

   What to check: Test-drive from cold and note any clunk or delay going into gear, and check that the shift lever engages Park firmly without the car rolling. Ask whether the shift-cable and shift-position recalls were performed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “When accelerating up to speed limit of 45 transmission shifted from third to fourth with a sharp thunk that shook the vehicle. I just had dealer service transmission {flush}. It hesitates when shifting into fourth gear a fraction of a second at slightly elevated engine speed {200-300} RPM then engages and shifts into fifth and sixth normal every time I drive it. The harsh shift only occurred once.”

   NHTSA complaint #10761817, filed 2015-09, 72,600 miles

   “The brake lights constantly stay on. When I hit the brakes, they go off for 5 seconds and then come back on. The ESC alert/traction control alert always turns on. Acceleration and transmission issues. Rpms shoot up and jerks into next gear. Sometimes these things are like this right from when I turn the car on, and sometimes they happen after I've been driving a little while. It has done this before and there was a recall on the car for it. I brought it in, and was fixed. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11355583, filed 2020-09, 160,000 miles
3. 3
   Electronic stability control

   Brake lights staying on and ESC/traction warnings

   • 128 complaints (33%)
   • median 98,000 mi at 8.0 yrs old (118 state mileage)
   • 4 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $970 (median of 8 quotes)
   • filed 2011–2026

   Owners report the brake lights illuminating without the pedal being pressed, sometimes switching off when the brake is actually applied, along with traction-control or "Service ESC" warnings. Some describe the stability system intervening during normal driving, and others say the warnings come and go. Complaints often reference the brake-light/stability-control recall, with some saying the problem returned after a prior repair. Reported from about 30,000 miles upward, occurring at random while driving or parked.

   Recall 14V252000

   What to check: Have someone watch the tail lights while the car is running and the pedal untouched, and confirm the brake-light/stability-control recall was completed for this VIN. Scan for stored stability-control codes.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The brake lights of my Saturn AURA would automatically self-activate exactly 5 seconds after the driver placed the vehicle into drive. The brake lights would stay active until the driver pressed the brake pedal, at which time the brake lights would actually deactivate. My son was driving the car on I-94 and was almost struck by a semi truck when my son pressed the brake pedal and the brake lights deactivated (turned off). …”

   NHTSA complaint #11252929, filed 2019-09, 85,000 miles

   “Every so often as the car is in motion if on the main roads or the freeway I get a warning regarding the 'traction control' and ESC warning or something like that, and the break lights are light up when I'm not even pushing on the break pedals. And some times when the warning lights come on, I'll lose some speed and again would have to accelerate whenever I'm driving just to stay at the speed limit. It gets very annoying when it just keeps happening. Please help.”

   NHTSA complaint #11340950, filed 2020-07, 72,000 miles
4. 4
   Electrical system

   Stalling, reduced power and rough running

   • 23 complaints (6%)
   • median 111,700 mi at 7.8 yrs old (22 state mileage)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2010–2022

   Complaints describe the car entering reduced-power mode, idling unevenly, shuddering or lurching, and sometimes stalling or refusing to restart. Owners mention throttle body replacement, sensor codes, and in one case an intermittent no-crank condition with the security light on. Several say multiple dealers were unable to pin down a cause. Spread from moderately low to very high mileage, often noticed while slowing for a turn or after the car has been parked.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask for any stored engine and body codes to be read, and check whether the throttle body or battery/ground connections have been replaced. Confirm the car starts reliably from cold, including after sitting.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “When it's hot out and I turn A/C on the vehicle's reduced engine power pops up and my vehicle will only go 10 to 20 MPH,if I'm on the freeway it drops down to that MPH and is so not safe I've tried fixing code after code and still have the issue,everyone online can't figure it out either after taking it to multiple GM dealerships or having there own mechanic try to fix it.when the vehicle is in park for 10 min.it will kick on and do it also.”

   NHTSA complaint #11341301, filed 2020-07, 120,000 miles

   “I was driving home on hwy 59 and my 2009 Saturn AURA xe jumped into reduce power mode and cut off on me ,,this happens from time to time since I bought the car, also the engine rpms go high emgine lights cut on and codes says sensors and throttle body along with air mass box has a leak and I have to cut the engine take off the battery too reset the computer, my ABS sensors turn on and off and the exaust keeps having leaks in the muffler either behind the motor or under the car by the catalac converter ..”

   NHTSA complaint #11373787, filed 2020-11, 185,456 miles

Buying note. Check the steering assist behavior carefully on a test drive and confirm whether the steering, shift-cable and brake-light recalls were completed for the specific VIN, since many complaints come from cars that were outside the recall populations. A pre-purchase scan for stored codes and a cold-start test drive will help reveal transmission and stalling symptoms.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.