Most common 2004 Saturn Vue problems
Share of the 276 complaints; one complaint can involve more than one system. "~" is the median mileage when the problem started.
Saturn Vue complaints by model year
Best Vue years: 2010, 2005, 2009. Years to avoid: 2003, 2008, 2007, 2006. Compare all years →
2004 Saturn Vue recalls (2)
Electrical system › Ignition
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2002-2004 Saturn Vue vehicles manufactured September 11, 2001, to April 6, 2004. In the affected vehicles, it may be possible for the key to be removed from the ignition when the ignition is not in the "Off" position.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicle to see if the key can be pulled out when the ignition is off. If it can, dealers will replace the ignition cylinder and keys, free of charge.
Equipment › Other › Labels
Certain sport utility vehicles equipped with 3.5l v6 (l66) engines fail to conform to the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 120, "tire selection and rims for vehicles other than passenger cars." the front and rear wheel rim size specifications on the tire/certification label are not correct.
Remedy: Owners will be provided with a corrected label and installation instructions. Owner notification began on December 15, 2003. Owners should contact Saturn at 1-800-553-6000.
NHTSA defect investigations
Federal safety investigators have looked into a possible defect involving the 2004 Saturn Vue:
Rear suspension toe control link
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened this preliminary evaluation to investigate allegations of rear suspension failure in the subject vehicles during certain severe driving maneuvers.the investigation was prompted by NHTSA-conducted ncap dynamic rollover test incidents involving my 2004 Saturn vue vehicles and one consumer complaint that alleged when recovering from a road edge departure, the left-rear…
What 2004 Saturn Vue owners say
Transmission & drivetrain all 93 →
Transmission has Lube issues for Honda and TRANSGO HONDALK fixes that but requires several hours labor pulling transmission. Transmission and torque converter overheat causing failure. Mine overheated and stalled crossing traffic, wouldn't go into gear. Caused accident.
While driving down a city avenue during rush hour, the transmission failed. No warning, just failed. Several good samaritans pushed me across 3 lanes of traffic to get me off the busy road. It died while I was in gear and driving. I did find out that this model was part of a recall and I ended up paying 2500 for a new transmission because they said the recall had expired that I did not take in on time. 5 years later, it's doing the same thing. A new transmission costs around 3000. What part did they pay? Did they even replace it? 2 years after that the engine quit on a highway off ramp with less than 100K miles. I had to replace that. Then 1 year later, the entire brake system had to be replaced to the tune of 1200. We got a tune up and oil change as we were headed to breckenridge, the tech said we were lucky because the brakes would have been useless in mountain driving. …
Electrical system all 78 →
The contact owns a 2004 Saturn Vue. The contact stated that the light on the instrument panel was abnormally dim. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds over a bumpy road surface, the rear end of the vehicle was swaying from side to side. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle made an abnormally loud sound at start up, and it was difficult to remove the key from the ignition switch after turning off the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 Saturn Vue. The contact stated that the driver's seat caught fire from the heated seat feature. The contact extinguished the fire. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The VIN was unavailable. The approximate failure mileage was 68,000.
Suspension all 33 →
The contact owns a 2004 Saturn Vue. The contact stated that the light on the instrument panel was abnormally dim. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds over a bumpy road surface, the rear end of the vehicle was swaying from side to side. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle made an abnormally loud sound at start up, and it was difficult to remove the key from the ignition switch after turning off the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000.
I was driving from providence ri to athens oh. I was in west virginia around morgantown, driving from 68 west to 79 south ramp, and I was driving in the range of speed limits. Suddenly in the ramp, I felt car is turning unwantedly to the left, and I tried to bring it back to the road but I could not, and the car hit orthogonally the jersey barriers on the left hand side of the ramp. My airbags opened, one of my tires exploded, and front of my car completely wrecked. Fortunately, no one hit me from side and behind. I could really die, I see death in front of my eyes when I was turning with the car. I had replaced my control arm, shocks rotors, brake pads, all in the past two months of the accident. But this car was terribly bad in the turns and ramps before the accident. …
2004 Saturn Vue engines & fuel economy
| Engine | Transmission | Drive | MPG city / hwy / combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.2L 4-cyl | 5-speed manual | FWD | 21 / 26 / 23 |
| 2.2L 4-cyl | CVT | FWD | 19 / 26 / 22 |
| 2.2L 4-cyl | CVT | 4WD/AWD | 19 / 24 / 21 |
| 3.5L 6-cyl | 5-speed automatic | FWD | 18 / 25 / 20 |
| 3.5L 6-cyl | 5-speed automatic | 4WD/AWD | 17 / 23 / 19 |
EPA ratings. Class: SUV.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 2004 Saturn Vue a good car?
Based on 276 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, the 2004 Vue rates average: about as many complaints as a typical year of the Vue at the same age. Complaint counts don't account for sales volume or individual maintenance, so have any used car inspected before buying.
What is the most common problem with the 2004 Saturn Vue?
The transmission & drivetrain — 93 complaints, 34% of all complaints for this model year, most often about automatic transmission. Next are the electrical system (78) and suspension (33).
How many recalls does the 2004 Saturn Vue have?
There are 2 recalls for the 2004 Saturn Vue, the most recent from August 8, 2014 (ignition). Recall repairs are free at any authorized dealer — check whether yours has been done with the VIN recall check.
What are the best and worst years of the Saturn Vue?
The best years by complaints, compared at the same age, are 2010, 2005 and 2009. Years to avoid or approach with caution: 2003, 2008, 2007 and 2006. See the full Saturn Vue years comparison.
At what mileage do 2004 Saturn Vue problems happen?
The median mileage reported in complaints is about 78,000 miles; 32% of problems with a recorded mileage started before 50,000 miles.
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.