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 2002 Saab 9-5 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
I would like to cite NHTSA campaign #05V399000. While driving my 2002 Saab 9-5 6 cylinder on 4/20/2006 I began to experience rough operation and reduced power of the engine. I was a short distance from my destination where I parked thinking I would need to be towed. At first I thought my car was overheating because there seemed to be steam coming from under the hood but there was an odd smell. I went into the coffee shop I was visiting and within a minute or two I turned to check on my car and I saw that the interior was filled with smoke. I went outside and noticed sparks and flames coming from under the vehicle in the area of the back seat and I immediately called the fire department. They arrived and put out the fire under the car and in the back seat where the flames had burned through the carpet. …
August 12, 2006 our 2002 Saab 9-5 sportwagon caught fire. Returning home from vacation the check engine light displayed. Information in the owner's manual and a phone call to our Saab dealer lead us to believe that the car was safe to drive. As we approached the toll plaza in mays landing, nj the car stalled and began to smoke. We evacuated the car. Toll personnel extinguished the fire and summoned the laureldale fire company and the nj state police. The action taken by the toll personnel prevented a potential disaster. The car was towed to an impound lot in egg harbor ctiy, nj . After a few hours we were able to arrange fora rental to transport us and our vacation baggage home. At this time we did not know the extend of damage to the car other than it could not be driven to our home and it was a Saturday. The closest Saab dealer in cherry hill, nj was not open for service calls. …
Loss of reversing lights, trunk opening warning light and cruise control function with no internal warning indications. Upon investigation, the cause was the failure of trunk wiring harness at 70K miles - 2 wires were completely severed, all others (6) had lost insulation. Failure is at the folding point just prior to entry into the trunk lid. Cause appears to be excessive tightness of the interior wires. The rubber boot was entirely intact, sealed to connectors in the body and trunk lid and there was no visible indication of the internal failure. Wires are separate inside the boot up until the trunk lid entry where they are wrapped with electrical tape. This was discovered only during service, not reported by self-check display which always reports light bulb outages in text messages on the 2 line Saab information display (secondary failure). …
Ignition switch shut off while on a busy highway twice! Once in 2006 and once later another year plus once in a driveway (car purchased used in the fall of 2005). The Saab switch is located in the center console and if it is hit it switches off and shuts down the car, same as recalled switches in other GM cars. Very dangerous on the highway, but I was lucky and able to steer to the side without a crash. There should have been a lock mechanism to prevent it from happening. It never occurred to me to report it though it is definitely a safety hazard in a what was at the time a GM owned product. I still own the car and drive it daily on the same highway, however am very much aware of the issue. I wasn't aware of what caused the shut down until it happened the second time a few months after the first time. You should include Saab in the recall of GM products.
My 2002 Saab 9-5 stalled and would not restart in the middle of a very busy 4 lane road. I have also noticed there are 14 other complaints on the NHTSA website with the same problem as mine. This an extremely dangerous problem a vehicle stalling on a highway or anywhere else can result in a crash or death. There was no prior warning of said issue. Saab dealer found code p1310 referred to tsb248-2428 and reprogrammed the sps. New #5387691 completed idm test and found current status 141 idd check code 57047. Located as an internal fault in the idm and also found the spark plugs fouled. Replaced idm and spark plugs. Direct ignition cassette. A TSB means that Saab knows about this problem. I feel unsafe getting into my vehicle now.
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 Saab 9-5. While driving at speeds of 40 MPH, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle lost power steering and braking ability. The contact was able to move the vehicle off the roadway and restart the vehicle. The vehicle resumed normal operation upon restarting. The dealer was contacted and advised that the electrical ignition module would need to be replaced. In addition, there was a recall for the failure yet his VIN was not included in the campaign (NHTSA campaign id number 06V410000- electrical system: ignition: module. The manufacturer confirmed the dealer's advice and would not provide any assistance. The failure and current mileage was 103,000.
2002 Saab 9-5 has had failure of headlight bulbs at a rate of one or two per year from the very first year I have owned this car. No other bulb has burned out in the past 8 yr. A local garage mechanic told me it was related to a faulty front electrical harness in the Saab but the dealer said this was not a recall, even though it has been a problem from the first year of ownership. Now I have 2 headlight bulbs burning out within one day of each other -- one high beam, one regular. Is there a recall of electrical harness on saabs to correct frequent headlight bulb burnout? So far I have just been replacing the bulbs at $50/bulb at the rate of one or two per year.
Dt*: the contact stated while driving 40mph in normal conditions, the engine light illuminated and the vehicle smelled hot. The vehicle was pulled to the side of the road for inspection and the engine turned off. However, the vehicle immediately restarted. The vehicle was driven to a service station where oil was added to the engine. The contact decided to have the vehicle towed to the dealer for additional inspection. The dealer performed diagnostic testing and determined the vehicle displayed an internal open circuit in the ignition. The dealer replaced the ignition module and the vehicle performed normally.
Dt*: the contact stated the vehicle completely stalled while driving 20 MPH. It was towed to the contact's home and then towed to the dealer. They determined the ignition module failed resulting in vehicle stalling and produce damage to other engine parts. The module, spark plugs and the catalytic converter were replaced which appears to remedy the problem. There is a NHTSA recall, # 05V399000 regarding the ignition module. The vehicle has the same problems as indicated in the recall; however it is not included in the recall due to the VIN. Updated 04/06/06.
On 13 occasions over the last two years, starting 9/13/03, the car's engine malfunction and automatic transmission fault warning lights came on and the car was automatically put in "limp-home" mode. In limp-home mode, the engine is depowered. This has happened when driving both on the highway and in the city, creating a very dangerous situation where the car is in the middle of traffic with little power to manuever. The dealership has attempted to repair this 12 times without success. Vehicle is leased.
Related recalls
Electrical system › Ignition › Module
Certain passenger vehicles equipped with 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 January 2003. The recall is expected to begin during December 2005.
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 2002 Saab 9-5?
NHTSA has 27 complaints about the electrical system of the 2002 Saab 9-5, 51% of the model year's 53 complaints. The component named most often is ignition › module (15 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2002 Saab 9-5 electrical problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 06V-410 (module, Oct 26, 2006); NHTSA recall 05V-399 (module, Sep 14, 2005). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2002 Saab 9-5 electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 46,000 miles, and 17% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 2 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.