Saab Electrical System: Module

Saab is recalling about 103,202 vehicles over a problem with the electrical system. Overheating of the igbt occurs most often at engine start-up, but it may also occur while the engine is running.

Campaign
05V399000
Manufacturer
SAAB CARS USA, INC.
Reported
14 September 2005
Vehicles
103,202
Built between
Jun 1999 – Jun 2002
Models
2
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
NHTSA investigation
Owners notified
13 March 2006
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between June 1999 and June 2002. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 2000-2002 Saab 9-3Built June 1999 to June 2002
  • 2000-2002 Saab 9-5Built June 1999 to June 2002

What the defect is

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.

What could happen

Overheating of the igbt occurs most often at engine start-up, but it may also occur while the engine is running. Engine stalling may occur, which could result in a crash.

What gets fixed

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. AN INTERIM LETTER WILL BE MAILED TO OWNERS IN OCTOBER 2005, INFORMING THEM OF THE CONDITION. PARTS ARE NOW AVAILABLE AND OWNERS WILL BE NOTIFIED TO BRING THEIR VEHICLES IN TO THE DEALERS TO HAVE THE IDM REPLACED BY LETTER DATED MARCH 13, 2006.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtJune 1999 to June 2002
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA14 September 2005
  3. Owners notified13 March 2006

Your rights

A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.

That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 14 September 2005.

To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.

Manufacturer contact

Owners may contact saab at 1-800-955-9007.

Official source

Manufacturer's recall number
15021
Recalling manufacturer
SAAB CARS USA, INC.
Recall initiated by
ODI

Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

Additional notes

Saab recall no. 05087.CUSTOMERS may also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to http://www.safercar.gov.

Check your own vehicle

This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.

A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.

Same component

Same brand