Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2001 Saab 9-5 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
1. Driving at approximately 40mph, complete engine failure with out any warning. 2. Car could break but power assisted steering was non funtional, steering functioned with out power assistance, but very hard to safely steer vehicle. 3. Was able to move car off road into grass ditch away from rear traffic. 4. Black smoke came from drivers side of engine with smell of burnt plastic and rubber. 5. Certified Saab mechanic diagnosed car and found that the ignition cassette failed and burned from within. Replaced ignition cassette at a cost of $500. 6. There are two ignition cassettes in the Saab 95. The remaining unit has 60,000 miles on it. 7. If this failure took place on a highway in fast moving traffic, a tragic accident could result. There is no warning of the failure. I had three children in the vehicle. 8. …
On two occasions our 2001saab,9.5 6 cylinder transmission cassette failed. Leaving my husband and my self stranded with a smoldering car. On oct 19th 05 we were able to get off the hwy in the nick of time, heavy smoke had begun to pour out from under the hood. The fire was contained but the ignition cassette,the cause of the fire, the wire harness, battery and,spark plugs were destroyed and had to be replaced. At the time of this incidence we were driving in the southern sierras in a seasonal dry forest area. It was fortunate that a we were able to pull off the road in a safe spot. On aug.15th, 08. The replacement part failed again and as before the spark plugs, installed several months previously had to be replaced the continued failure of this part in an intrinsic manufacturing defect. …
Exiting the highway on an overpass bridge the engine stopped without warning and would not restart. A few moments later smoke was visible from under the direct ignition cover and small flame was apparent. The flame went out after a few moments. However, we were left stranded on an unlit bridge overpass that was under construction at dusk (with an infant and toddler). Saab roadside assistance was contacted (they suggested we wait with the vehicle for approximately an hour until a tow truck could reach us.) this incident follows a string of minor electical / electronic "bugs" in which erroneous signals about light failures were displayed and the headlights failed to turn off when the key was removed (this is an automatic feature on saabs).
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 Saab 9-5. While driving approximately 55 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning and failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The vehicle was eventually able to restart. The failure occurred on numerous occasions. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 05V399000 (electrical system). The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.
Add yet another direct ignition cassette failure to this list of complaints!! Driving home from the grocery store the car quit in the middle of a very busy intersection. Smoke and fire ensued. Where is the recall??!?!?!?
I have an '01 9-5 and have had the di cassettes fail twice, once causing damage to the catalytic converter. The first dic failure was on 8/19/2003 at 62,453 miles without warning. I was driving 45 MPH and the vehicle stalled without warning and would not restart. I had one di cassette and 6 spark plugs replaced on 8/20/2003. On 12/22/2003 (4 months later) with 64,080 miles on the vehicle, while driving 60 MPH on the highway, the engine light came on and suddenly I was only able to travel around 20-30 MPH with much shaking to the vehicle. This dic failure caused the catalytic converter to burn up. The technician said that both di cassettes have to be replaced when one fails or you run the risk of recurrence. I had two di cassette, one catalytic converter, one thermostat, and spark plugs replaced on 12/23/2003 (one dic was credited because of the previous work on 8/20/2003). …
Driving on thruway,cruise went off sudden loss of speed,ck engine light on. Engine stalled would only idle and shake wouldn't move. Had it towed to shop cleared code ran 1/2 day OK then ck light came back on, pulled it back into my shop. I searched internet for solutions pointed to faulty throttle body. I"m a certified for 34 year motorcycle technician so I took it off and disassembled it as I wanted to get to the bottom as it"s reason for failure. I discovered everything was OK except all of the wire insulation within the internal area of the throttle body had failed and peeled away causing a electrical short or spike. This is due to the use of inferior wire insulation not designed for it"s application. Dlr had new $457.00 part in stock. I installed it,worked fine dlr inspected it. …
I had a "direct ignition cassette" failure on my Saab 9-5 2001. I found from www.saabservices.com that there was a recall on this part for model years 2000-2002. The dealer has indicated that my vehicle, although in that category, did not qualify for a recall part replacement. However, I have copied the notice below and am filing a complaint as indicated in the notice below. Taken from the website: http://www.saabservices.com/Saab%20direct%20ignition%20cassette%20failures.htm "Saab direct ignition cassette failures update! A recall has been issued, for model years 2000 through 2002. Di cassettes have a serial number on them. The covered units are serial # d000000-d336210 and b083821-b096117 for 4cyl engines, and c048743-c073404 for 6cyl engines. Contact your Saab dealer for more info! Be aware that the price has declined significantly, but we do not expect this to last very long. …
I was traveling at a high speed on the bronx river pkwy and my passenger reached into the back seat. Her leg hit the key and turned the car off while I was traveling at 60 MPH. Luckily nobody was hurt. The car locked up and I shifted into neutral. It took a few anxious moments/minute or two before I realized what had happened. This happened two more times when I decided to contact Saab. Their response in a letter is as follows " we have reviewed your concerns about the placement of the ignition switch with garden city Saab, corporate technicians, and field representatives. Saab cars USA, inc. Has determined your vehicle is operating as designed." !!!!! So, they have designed a car to switch off while driving. All I asked was to be let out of my lease as this is a dangerous car and I no longer feel safe driving in it. …
Complaint is that Saab USA has declined to replace/reimburse the cost of the idm/dic which failed on our 2001 Saab 9-5 v-6 VIN # . This was a recall by NHTSA in 2006. (NHTSA campaign # is 05V399000) Saab USA denied this repair as their data base did not include this VIN #. (this service request # to Saab USA is 17613448567) the final decision on this from Saab USA came from an un-named supervisor at [phone] ext # 31078. The cost for this repair was $677.50, including $70.00 for towing to a nearby foreign auto repair facility. From exhaustively searching the internet and also provided to me by the repair facility, the serial numbers of the defective idm/dic were found. The faulty units for a v-6 engine are c048743 through c073404. The serial # from this vehicle that failed is c061858. …
Related recalls
Electrical system › Ignition › Module
Certain passenger vehicles equipped with b205/b235 4-cylinder gasoline engines and b308 6-cylinder gasoline engines May experience overheating and burnout of the isolated gated bipolar transistor (igbt) within the ignition discharge module (idm) due to increased susceptibility to electrical loads.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect to see what version idm is in the vehicle and replace the idm if it is a version built prior to the introduction of qp3.
NHTSA investigations
Engine stall/ engine compartment fires
Odi opened pe05-017 based on 35 reports of alleged engine stalling due to the failure of the idm cassette on the subject vehicles.all complainants reported that the engine shut down suddenly without warning and most reported that the vehicle would not restart.in 3 incidents, the complainants reported smoke and/or fire resulted from the idm failure.during pe05-017, additional failure data was identified as noted in…
Electrical complaints in other 9-5 years
Frequently asked questions
How common are electrical problems on the 2001 Saab 9-5?
NHTSA has 48 complaints about the electrical system of the 2001 Saab 9-5, 59% of the model year's 82 complaints. The component named most often is ignition › module (25 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2001 Saab 9-5 electrical problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 05V-399 (module, Sep 14, 2005). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2001 Saab 9-5 electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 58,000 miles, and 12% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 4 fires and 0 injuries to electrical system problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.