IllustrationVEHICLE HIT GUARD RAIL DURING ICY ROAD CONDITIONS WHICH RESULTED IN THE SEAT BACK COLLAPSING.
1994 Saturn Sl
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 1994 Saturn Sl do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 171.5.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Sl years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
Limited mileage data: 16 of 286 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Seat Belts. Review the 49 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Seats. Review the 48 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 44 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
51 crash reports4 fire reports32 injury reports
What owners actually said
286 reportsVEHICLE WOULD LEAK OIL INTO THE SPARK PLUGS. ENGINE HEAD GASKETS SEALING IS NOT RETAINING THE OIL. *AK *ML
SHOULDER BELT MOTOR ON DRIVERS SIDE WILL OPEN AND SLIDE FORWARD WHILE DRIVING, DEALER CONTACTED, AND CANNOT REMEDY THE PROBLEM. ALSO STATES MANUFACTURER'S DEFECT. NO WARRANTY. REPAIRS WILL BE AT OWNER'S EXPENSE. *AK
EA 98017, SEATBACK FAILURE; THE SEATBACK ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE HAS COLLAPSED. THE DEALER IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. THE SEATBACK HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED. *AK
WHILE DRIVING AT 70 MPH, THE CRUISE CONTROL WOULD NOT DISENGAGE WHEN DRIVER TAPPED THE BRAKES/ACCELERATOR OR BY TURNING OFF SWITCH. HUSBAND PULLED UP EMGERENCY BRAKE TO STOP VEHICLE, AFTER BRAKES FAILED, WHICH CAUSED VEHICLE TO FISHTAIL AND HIT SIDE OF BRIDGE. THE VEHICLE WILL BE REPAIRED. *AK
CONSUMER WAS IN AN ACCIDENT ON 18 NOV 98 , AND AIR BAG DID NOT DEPLOY. HE WAS DRIVING ABOUT 60 MPH WHEN HE HIT THE OTHER CAR.
CONSUMER STATES THE SEATS ARE NOT UPDATED OR STRENGTHENED, SEEING CRASH TESTS ON TV SHOWED SEAT COLLAPSING AND THIS VEHICLE DOES NOT COMPLY. DEALER CONTACTED AND IS NOT AWARE OF THE PROBLEM, PROBLEM OCCURRED SEVEN TIMES IN THE TESTS, PROBLEM STILL EXISTS. *AK
NTERMITTENTLY THE POWER SHOULDER BELT USED TO RETRACT. NOW SHOULDER BELT DOES NOT RETRACT AT ALL. DEALER AND MANUFACTURER HAVE BEEN CONTACTED. *AK
HELLO, THE CAR WILL SOMETIMES STALL WHEN COMING TO A STOP. IT WILL AT OTHER TIMES JERK AND HESITATE ON ACCELERATION. WHEN COLD, AFTER STARTING, IT WILL HAS A DECREASE IN RPM AS THE GAS PEDAL IS PUSHED DOWN, KINDA LIKE IT BOGS OUT. WORST OF ALL AFTER WARMING UP THE IDLE WILL SURGE TO ~2500 RPM EVEN WITH THE ACCELERATOR OUT. THIS…
Read full complaint
HELLO, THE CAR WILL SOMETIMES STALL WHEN COMING TO A STOP. IT WILL AT OTHER TIMES JERK AND HESITATE ON ACCELERATION. WHEN COLD, AFTER STARTING, IT WILL HAS A DECREASE IN RPM AS THE GAS PEDAL IS PUSHED DOWN, KINDA LIKE IT BOGS OUT. WORST OF ALL AFTER WARMING UP THE IDLE WILL SURGE TO ~2500 RPM EVEN WITH THE ACCELERATOR OUT. THIS MAKES SHIFTING SOMEWHAT PROBLEMATIC. IF YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR ME, IT WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED. THANKS TONY
SINCE PURCHASING THE VEHICLE NEW IN 1996, CONSUMER HAD TO PURCHASE 3 BATTERIES AND 2 ALTERNATORS. BOTH ONLY LASTED APPROXIMATELY 12 TO 15 MONTHS. SATURN MECHANIC IN FLORIDA STATED THAT THE BATTERY AND ALTERNATOR ARE BUILT TOO CLOSE TOGETHER. DEALER AND MANUFACTURER HAVE BEEN NOTIFIED. *AK
Official recalls
199V045000 · Seats
Mar 12, 1999
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES. SOME FRONT SEAT BACK RECLINER GEAR TEETH MAY WEAR EXCESSIVELY THROUGH REPEATED USE, AND COULD CAUSE THE SEAT BACK TO SLIP PARTIALLY REARWARD WHEN FORCE IS APPLIED.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: IF THIS HAPPENS WHILE THE VEHICLE IS BEING DRIVEN, IT COULD CAUSE A LOSS OF CONTROL, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FRONT SEAT RECLINER MECHANISMS.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
4RQ00005 · Front Seat Back Can Recline Or Collapse
Opened Feb 16, 2000 · Closed Aug 19, 2000
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Seats:front Assembly:recliner
No summary supplied.
EA98017 · Seat Back Failures
Opened Jul 31, 1998 · Closed Mar 16, 1999
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Seats
IN ITS LETTER DATED MARCH 5, 1999, GENERAL MOTORS STATED THAT IT WILL RECALL 136,300 MODEL YEAR 1994 AND 1995 SATURN VEHICLE (ALL MODELS) BUILT BETWEEN JANUARY 1994 AND AUGUST 1994.DURING THIS PERIOD, SATURN'S SEAT SUPPLIER MANUFACTURED RECLINER ASSEMBLIES WHICH WERE OUT OF DESIGN SPECIFICATION, ALLOWING THE FRONT SEAT BACKS TO RECLINE OR COLLAPSE INADVERTENTLY.TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM, SATURN DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE DRIVER AND FRONT PASSENGER SEAT BACK RECLINER ASSEMBLIES.SEE NHTSA'S SAFETY RECALL FILL 99V-045 FOR DETAILS.
EA95003 · Cruise Control Failures
Opened Feb 24, 1995 · Closed May 31, 1996
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Equipment
THIS INVESTIGATION DOCUMENTED HTE FUNCTIONAL ABERATIONS THAT HAVE OCCURRED IN THE PERFORMANCE OF THE SUBJECT CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM.MOST OF THE MALFUNCTIONS INVOLVED FAILURE OF THE SYSTEM TO PROPERLY REGULATE VEHICLE SPEED WHEN ENGAGED, FAILURE OF THE SYSTEM TO ENGAGE, OR SELF-DISENGAGEMENT OF THE SYSTEM. THESE PROBLEMS WERE INVESTIGATED AND STEPS TAKEN BY THE MANUFACTURER TO REMEDY THEIR OCCURRENCES.SERVICE PROCEDURES WERE ISSUED FOR VEHICLES IN USE, AND A DESIGN MODIFICATION MADE FOR NEW VEHICLES.NO CONFIRMED ALLEGATIONS OF FAILURE OF THE SYSTEM TO DISENGAGE UPON COMMAND WERE IDENTIFIED.IMPROVED QUALITY CONTROL PROCEDURES AND DESIGN MODIFICATIONSIN THE SYSTEM WERE UNDERTAKEN TO ENSURE A MORE CONSISTENT LEVEL OF SYSTEM PERFORMANCE.THE DETAILS OF THESE FINDINGS AND THE RESULTING CONCLUSIONS ARE CONTAINED INTHE SUBJECT ENGINEERING ANALYSIS CLOSING REPORT.A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT TREND WAS NOT IDENTIFIED AT EHIS TIME AND FURTHER USE OF AGENCY RESOURCES DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST.THE AGENCY WILL TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.
PE94079 · Cruise Control Failure
Opened Nov 7, 1994 · Closed Feb 24, 1995
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Equipment
There is no summary currently available