1999 Saab 9-5 problems
The 1999 Saab 9-5 has 157 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (57%) concerns electrical system. After that come engine (10%) and brakes (6%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 157 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 57% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 5 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 4 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 77,000 miles 130 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 2 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 7 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 14 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 46 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 24 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 21 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 8 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 5 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 1 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 2 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 130 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 77,000 miles. For electrical system specifically, the median reported mileage is about 73,000 miles (79 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 5 complaints mention a crash; 1 complaint mentions a fire; 4 injuries reported. Its complaints are less severe on average than those of 81% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 1999 ranks 3rd most-complained-about out of 7 model years of the Saab 9-5 with enough data (60 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 2 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
My saab was totalled on 11/15/99 because it began to roll from side to side when I made a quick lane change. This rolling had happened twice before in similar situations but I managed to regain control both times. The last time I was not so lucky. I h
While driving 35 MPH, the consumer lost control of the vehicle on a snowy. The consumers vehicle was then struck on the side and the air bags failed to deploy, however the consumer noticed the air bag light had illuminated after the incident.
I have a 99 9-5 turbo. Over the course of the past week, my vehicle has stalled on me three times. The first, I was traveling alone at 20 MPH and the car stalled when I made a left turn into a gas station, leaving me vulnerable to ongoing traffic. An hour later, I had my children in the car and we proceeded to get onto the highway. The car stalled as I was going into highway traffic. Thanks to the skillful maneuvering of the other drivers, our lives were spared. The other occurred when we reached our destination.
There was no indication that this part would fail, until it did fail. I was driving and the engine just shut off, on the highway. I was able to pull to the side of the highway and roll off an off-ramp, but did create an unsafe condition while still on the highway. The part was a "direct ignition cassette", part #9197559, and it was easily replaced by my mechanic after the car was towed to his facility.
Dt: the consumer owns a 1999 saab model 95 that experienced an ignition problem. The vehicle would start but would not run properly. The car would lurch or convulse while driving. The engine would stall and then die completely. The vehicle would restart but continue to have those same problems. The vehicle has a manual transmission. The consumer took the car to the dealer. The dealer said it was an issue with direct ignition cassette and the dic would need to be replaced.