2008 Saab 9-3 engine problems
68 complaints about engine have been filed for the 2008 Saab 9-3, which is 31% of all its NHTSA complaints. It is the 2nd most reported problem area for this model year.
At a glance
- Complaints
- 68 31% of this year's complaints
- Typical mileage
- 86,000 miles 61 complaints with mileage
- Crashes and fires
- 1 and 0
- Injuries and deaths
- 0 and 0
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
When engine problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 2 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 2 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 6 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 15 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 16 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 11 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 6 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 2 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 1 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 61 engine complaints that report mileage, the median is about 86,000 miles, and 16% were reported before 60,000 miles.
These complaints mention 1 crash.
What owners wrote
While accelerating on a freeway on ramp, the engine began to misfire and stutter. Trying to merge with the flow of traffic, power was unavailable. The engine operated normally when not accelerating. The car was unable to keep up with the flow of traffic and would only maintain a speed of approximately 50 MPH. Pressing the accelerator more causes more stuttering. The check engine light flashed on briefly and then went away. The problem resolved itself after pulling over and shutting down and restarting the engine.
On the 2007-2011 saab 9-39-3 there is a common issue with the intake valve seals going bad causing a rough idle and/or misfire on cold starts. Mine exhibits this behavior but is not still under warranty. This is not just wear and tear it is a bad part or bad design that is basically designed to fail. To fix this it costs $1500+ and GM should be responsible for a flaw in the vehicle regardless of the 5 year/100,000 mile warranty.
Other problems reported for the 2008 Saab 9-3
- Air bags 71 complaints
- Fuel system 15 complaints