Model year report

2002 Saturn Vue: what breaks, and at what mileage

What breaks on the 2002 Saturn Vue

On the 2002 Saturn Vue, the failure owners report most often is timing chain, belt or tensioner failure, and the reports cluster around 92,500 miles. The earliest to appear is other powertrain problem, reported by a median of 35,000 miles. Overall it scores 64 out of 100, high risk for a 2002.

High risk for a 2002 — 248th riskiest of the 329 2002 vehicles we can rate. 220 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork.

The failures owners actually file about

Owners have reported 44 named failure modes on the 2002 Saturn Vue, and the three most-reported carry 37% of everything filed.

Timing chain, belt or tensioner failure leads with 38 reports, about 0.6 per 1,000 vehicles and with the middle half of reports between 68k to 112,500 miles.

Other electrical problem follows with 26 reports, usually reported between 31k to 95,000 miles. 1 of those report mention a fire.

Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure follows with 17 reports, usually reported between 50k to 110,000 miles.

By system, the reports fall mostly into electrical (58), engine (55) and transmission (18).

At what mileage it happens

175 of the reports on the 2002 Saturn Vue came with an odometer reading, and half of those were filed before 79,000 miles.

Cumulatively, 26% by 50,000 miles, 61% by 100,000 miles and 93% by 150,000 miles of the dated reports had been filed, with 4 filed above the top of the chart.

The busiest stretch is between 110,000 and 120,000 miles, which alone holds 11% of the dated reports.

19% of the dated reports were filed below 36,000 miles.

In the order they tend to show up: other powertrain problem around 34k, other steering problem around 64k, other engine problem around 67k and other electrical problem around 70k.

Median

Timing chain, belt or tensioner failure

92k
Other electrical problem

70k
Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure

70k
Other powertrain problem

34k
Ignition switch, key fob or immobilizer failure

120k
Other engine problem

67k
Other steering problem

64k
Tail light, brake light or signal failure

110k
Other body or interior problem

52k
Other fuel system problem

107k
Steering column or shaft failure

43k
Control arm, ball joint or bushing failure

84k

Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens

Showing the 12 most-reported failure modes of 44. The full list is in the table below.

How reports accumulate

Share of reports filed by each mileage

half by 79.3k

Every report with an odometer reading, cumulative, from 0 to 200,000 miles. A further 4 reports came in above that, which is why the line stops short of the top. A curve that climbs early is a car with early problems, whatever its total.

Line share of reports filed by that mileage
Dashed the median reported mileage

How bad it is when it goes

Across the named modes, 11 mention a crash, 6 a fire and 4 an injury. Those are the words owners used in their own complaints, and NHTSA does not verify them, but they are the closest thing in this data to a measure of what a failure actually did.

The average severity weight across every report on this year is 4.74, where a stalled engine or a failed airbag weighs many times more than a rattling trim panel, and a figure this high means the reports are dominated by failures with safety consequences rather than annoyances. The weighting is set out in full on the methodology page.

What the top failures cost to put right, as editorial estimates for an independent US shop rather than figures from NHTSA: timing chain, belt or tensioner failure at $1,200–$4,500, other electrical problem at $250–$2,000, control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure at $700–$3,000 and other powertrain problem at $400–$4,500. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.

36% of the reports on this year sit in the engine, transmission, drivetrain or cooling systems — the four where a repair bill is usually four figures.

Every reported failure mode

Mileage figures are percentiles of owner-reported readings. Click a column to sort.
Failure mode	System	Reports	With reading	25th	Median	75th	Per 1,000	Typical repair	Severity
Timing chain, belt or tensioner failure	engine	38	35	68k	92k	113k	0.6	$1,200–$4,500	Critical
Other electrical problem	electrical	26	23	31k	70k	95k	0.4	$250–$2,000	Moderate
Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure	electrical	17	16	50k	70k	109k	0.3	$700–$3,000	High
Other powertrain problem	transmission	15	10	10k	34k	105k	0.2	$400–$4,500	High
Ignition switch, key fob or immobilizer failure	electrical	13	11	93k	120k	140k	0.2	$250–$1,500	High
Other engine problem	engine	13	9	16k	67k	100k	0.2	$300–$4,000	High
Other steering problem	steering	10	8	46k	64k	131k	0.1	$350–$2,400	High
Tail light, brake light or signal failure	lighting	6	6	—	110k	—	0.1	$100–$900	Moderate
Other body or interior problem	body	6	2	—	52k	—	0.1	$200–$2,000	Moderate
Other fuel system problem	fuel	5	3	—	107k	—	0.1	$300–$2,200	High
Steering column or shaft failure	steering	4	3	—	43k	—	0.1	$600–$2,500	Critical
Control arm, ball joint or bushing failure	suspension	4	2	—	84k	—	0.1	$400–$2,200	High
Other speed control problem	adas	4	4	—	105k	—	0.1	$250–$2,000	Critical
ABS module or sensor failure	brakes	3	3	—	200k	—	0.0	$500–$2,400	High
Strut, shock or spring failure	suspension	3	1	—	41k	—	0.0	$500–$2,000	Moderate
Other suspension problem	suspension	3	2	—	45k	—	0.0	$350–$2,000	Moderate
Stalling while driving	engine	2	2	—	63k	—	0.0	$300–$2,500	Critical
Thermostat failure	cooling	2	2	—	74k	—	0.0	$250–$900	Moderate
Instrument cluster or gauge failure	infotainment	2	2	—	69k	—	0.0	$350–$1,400	Moderate
Other brake problem	brakes	2	1	—	12k	—	0.0	$300–$1,800	High
Other lighting problem	lighting	2	1	—	70k	—	0.0	$120–$1,200	Moderate
Other driver assistance problem	adas	2	2	—	48k	—	0.0	$250–$1,800	High
Other visibility problem	glass	2	0	—	—	—	0.0	$150–$1,400	Moderate
Complete engine failure or seizure	engine	1	1	—	74k	—	0.0	$4,500–$12,000	Critical
Misfire or rough idle	engine	1	1	—	53k	—	0.0	$250–$1,600	Moderate
Overheating	cooling	1	1	—	151k	—	0.0	$400–$3,500	High
Transmission slipping	transmission	1	1	—	22k	—	0.0	$1,200–$5,500	High
Transmission will not engage a gear	transmission	1	1	—	76k	—	0.0	$1,500–$6,000	Critical
Transmission fluid leak	transmission	1	1	—	92k	—	0.0	$300–$1,800	Moderate
CV axle or driveshaft failure	drivetrain	1	1	—	127k	—	0.0	$450–$2,200	High
Differential or transfer case failure	drivetrain	1	1	—	30	—	0.0	$900–$4,200	High
Wheel bearing or hub failure	drivetrain	1	1	—	137k	—	0.0	$350–$1,200	Moderate
Fuel pump failure	fuel	1	0	—	—	—	0.0	$600–$2,600	High
Fuel tank, filler or EVAP failure	fuel	1	1	—	20k	—	0.0	$250–$1,800	Moderate
Alternator or charging system failure	electrical	1	1	—	55k	—	0.0	$450–$1,600	High
Wiring harness or short circuit	electrical	1	1	—	7k	—	0.0	$400–$3,500	High
Loss of braking	brakes	1	1	—	65k	—	0.0	$400–$3,000	Critical
Premature brake pad or rotor wear	brakes	1	0	—	—	—	0.0	$300–$1,400	Moderate
Seat belt or retractor failure	airbag	1	1	—	6k	—	0.0	$200–$900	High
Loss of power steering	steering	1	1	—	120k	—	0.0	$600–$2,800	Critical
Rust or structural corrosion	body	1	1	—	100k	—	0.0	$500–$6,000	High
Headlight failure or clouding	lighting	1	1	—	119k	—	0.0	$150–$1,800	Moderate
Wiper or washer failure	glass	1	1	—	1k	—	0.0	$120–$800	Moderate
Other wheel or tire problem	wheels	1	0	—	—	—	0.0	$200–$1,500	High
Unclassified problem	other	15	9	13k	49k	96k	0.2	—	Moderate

Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound. Repair costs are typical independent-shop ranges for the failure, not figures from these reports.

How often, against how many were built

Scaled by an estimate of how many of these cars exist, the 2002 Saturn Vue draws about 3.3 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 77th percentile of complaint rates among 2002 vehicles we can rate.

That denominator is the weakest number on the page and it is fair to say so plainly. Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound.

The working figure is 67,385 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 2002 vehicles, which is what the risk score uses, is far more robust than the rate itself.

What owners wrote

Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The odometer reading is the one the owner gave.

Timing chain, belt or tensioner failure

While driving my 2002 saturn vue to work, the reduced power and service engine lights came on simultaneously, and I had no power. I pulled over to the side of the road where a state trooper sat behind me with his lights on so that I would not be rear-ended. My car was towed to a local repair station where it could not be fixed, so it was towed to the saturn dealer. It was reported to me that the timing chain broke and since the engine was a "zero tolerance" engine, the entire engine has to be replaced at a cost of over $2000. I have an extended warranty, but do not have copies of the receipts for oil changes so they will not honor the warranty (for which I paid $1700). Heritage (the company which I bought the warranty from when I bought the car at saturn) says that if I pay $435 to have the engine torn down, they will send an auditor to determine if they will pay for the repairs or not. My concern is that the engine that they will put in has 28,000 miles on it and the timing chain may break on this engine as well. *nm

68,000 miles NHTSA complaint 594895 filed 2006-09-04

While driving on the highway, our 2002 vue made a grinding noise and then began to lose power. As we were pulling off to the side, the vehicle stalled and then would not re-start. The saturn dealership towed the vue to their lot and informed us , that the timing chain had skipped and blew the motor. The timing chain was supposed to be no maintenance and didn't even need to be checked until 100,000 miles. My vue had 65,000 miles. After 3 weeks we were told that they would rebuild the engine at a cost of $3500- $3800 and saturn would pay half of that cost. Several weeks prior, the vehicle was stalling while driving and would not restart until it cooled off. We took it to the dealership and they replaced a sensor for the cam shaft. The switch for the back wiper has been replaced and we were told by saturn tech's that the motor for the back wiper also needs to be replaced, again at our cost. *jb

65,400 miles NHTSA complaint 596188 filed 2006-09-14

Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure

I own a 2002 saturn vue, 4cylinder, fwd with approximately 86,000 miles. Early this year the body control module (BCM) on this vehicle began preventing the doors from unlocking properly. I first noticed the issue when my key fob for my security system began to fail to unlock doors, causing the horn to chirp irregularly. I later noticed that in certain situations, unlocking the doors using the power lock button on each of the front doors would not unlock the doors. When I went to manually push the lock, it sticks or does not disengage the lock, essentially locking all passengers in. After crawling to the back seat I am able to push the lock button manually and escape. My fear is that in an emergency, the body control module will somehow prevent me from getting out of my car. *tr

86,500 miles NHTSA complaint 673811 filed 2008-06-13

I'm the original owner of a 2002 saturn vue AWD with the gm vti transmission and engine. Two days ago I experienced my transmission/engine failing for the fifth or sixth time since 2006. The very first time I took my vue to the dealership in austin, tx where I had to argue with first my service rep. Followed by his manager that the problem was with the transmission. Since the faulty gm design was still relatively new, they originally blamed me for poor driving, resulting a bad BCM which they made me pay in spite of my argument the faulty gm design was the origin of the problem. First time it cost me $1500 to repair my car that had less than 60,000 miles on it. This however was quite an ordeal since my vehicle actually lost power on three or four different occasions. I would immediately go to the dealership for assistance with what I knew was the transmission. After bugging them almost everyday with the same problem they finally admitted gms transmission problems and replaced my transmission on the third visit. The second transmission lasted approximately a year. In 2007 I had relocated within the state and was experiencing similar…

108,500 miles NHTSA complaint 786168 filed 2010-05-08

Recalls on the 2002 model year

NHTSA has issued 2 recall campaigns covering the 2002 Saturn Vue, affecting an estimated 67,712 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.

The campaigns cover electrical system:ignition and seat belts:front:anchorage. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.

Recalls also distort complaint counts. Publicity about a campaign reminds owners that complaining is possible, so reports for a recalled component often spike after the recall rather than before it.

14V490000

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION

202,155 vehicles 2014-08-08

Defect: 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.
Consequence: If the key can be removed from the ignition when the ignition is not in the "off" position, the vehicle could roll away: (a) for an automatic transmission, if the transmission is not in the "Park" position; or (b) for a manual transmission, if the parking brake is not engaged and the transmission is not in the "Reverse" position. This potential for rollaway increases the risk for a crash and occupant or pedestrian injuries.
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. The recall began in October 2014. Owners may contact Saturn customer service at 1-800-553-6000. GM's number for this recall is 14506. Note: Until a vehicle has been remedied, owners and operators are advised that when exiting, to be sure that the vehicle is in "Park," or in the case of a manual transmission, that the vehicle is in the "Reverse" position and the parking…

01V386000

SEAT BELTS:FRONT:ANCHORAGE

327 vehicles 2001-12-18

Defect: Vehicle description: certain sport utility vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of fmvss no. 210, "seat belt assembly anchorages." some vehicles were produced with rear outer seat belt shoulder guide anchor bolts that were incorrectly installed.
Consequence: If these bolts were incorrectly installed, they would not withstand the load requirements of the standard. If an anchorage failed in a crash, the occupant would not be properly restrained and could have an increased risk of injury.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the rear shoulder guide anchor bolts. Owner notification began december 19, 2001. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact saturn at 1-800-553-6000.

Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.

How it ranks in the 2002 field

The score at the top of the page, placed among its peers. The zones are the same thresholds the scorer applies, read out of the scorer itself, so the picture and the band word cannot disagree.

Risk score against the rest of the 2002 field

Scores are ranked within the model year, never across years, because an older car has had longer to accumulate reports.

Left fewer and less serious reports
Right more, or worse
Marker this vehicle

How 2002 compares with the other years

High risk for a 2002 — 248th riskiest of the 329 2002 vehicles we can rate. Because the ranking is against the same model year only, age cancels out of it.

Across the 8 model years of this car that carry enough reports to score, 2007 comes out best at 62 and 2003 worst at 73, with 2002 itself at 64.

No other year of this model scores meaningfully better than 2002, so if this generation is what you want, the year is not the lever.

Within the 2002–2007 generation specifically, 2007 is the strongest year at 62 and 2003 the weakest at 73.

Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.

Risk score by model year, out of 100

Shorter is better. Years with too few reports to score are shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not good news.

Within the 2002-2007 generation, 2007 Saturn Vue scores best at 62 and 2003 Saturn Vue worst at 73.

What to look at before buying one

The mileages below are where the first quarter of reports for each mode had already been filed, which makes them the point at which a fault is worth looking for rather than the point at which it happens: other powertrain problem from about 10k, other engine problem from about 16k, other electrical problem from about 31k and other steering problem from about 46k.

On a 2002 Saturn Vue with more miles than that on it, the useful question to put to a seller or a mechanic is whether other powertrain problem has been dealt with, and if so with what parts and at whose expense. A car that has already had the repair is in a different position from one that has not.

None of this is a diagnosis. It is a list of what other owners of the same model year reported, ordered by when they reported it, which is a good place to point an inspection and a poor place to stop.

The limits of complaint data

220 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork. Every count on this page is therefore a floor: it is the number of owners who went to the trouble of filing with a federal agency, which is a small and self-selected fraction of the owners who had the fault.

Of those 220 reports, 175 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 80% of the sample rather than all of it. Owners also round: readings pile up on multiples of ten thousand, which is why this site publishes "about 90,000 miles" and not "91,438".

Named failure modes come from matching phrases in the complaint text, so a badly worded complaint can land in the wrong bucket. The effect washes out across hundreds of reports and does not wash out across five.

And nothing here predicts what one car will do. These are other people's complaints, filed years apart, on cars maintained by strangers. Read the page as a map of where this model year has previously gone wrong, then have the specific car in front of you inspected.

Questions this page answers

What are the most common problems with the 2002 Saturn Vue?

The most-reported failures are timing chain, belt or tensioner failure (38 reports, median 92,500 miles), other electrical problem (26 reports, median 70,000 miles) and control module (ecm/pcm/bcm) failure (17 reports, median 70,000 miles). Counts come from owner complaints filed with NHTSA, which are voluntary, so they show what owners bothered to report rather than every fault that occurred.

At what mileage do 2002 Saturn Vue problems start?

Other powertrain problem is the earliest failure mode to show up, with a median reported mileage of 35,000 miles and a quarter of reports before 10,000 miles. Across all failure modes on this year, the median report sits at 79,000 miles.

Is the 2002 Saturn Vue reliable?

It scores 64 out of 100 on our risk index, which is high — 248th riskiest of the 329 2002 vehicles we can rate. The score is a comparison against other 2002 vehicles, not a prediction about any individual car, and it is built from complaint rates, severity and how early failures appear.

Which year of the Saturn Vue is best?

Within the 2002–2007 generation, 2007 scores best at 62 out of 100 and 2003 worst at 73. Same body, same engines, different luck.

Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.

What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car

Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt 20 August 2026 Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed