The 2009 Saab 9-3 has 2 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 142,505 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 46 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the air bags. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Recall campaigns
AIR BAGS16V0630002016-02-03113,716 affected
Defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2006-2011 Saab 9-3 vehicles manufactured May 31, 2002, to February 15, 2011, 2006-2009 Saab 9-5 vehicles manufactured June 7, 2005, to May 28, 2009, and 2008-2009 Saturn Astra vehicles manufactured April 11, 2007, to July 24, 2008. Upon deployment of the…
Consequence
In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's frontal air bag inflator on Saab 9-3 and 9-5 vehicles and will replace the driver's frontal airbag module on Saturn Astra vehicles, free of charge. The recall began on March 1, 2017. Owners may contact Saab customer service at 1-800-955-9007 or Saturn…
SEAT BELTS14V3180002014-06-1228,789 affected
Defect
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2004-2011 Saab 9-3 Convertible vehicles manufactured July 30, 2003, to February 15, 2011. In the affected vehicles, the driver's side front seat belt retractor may break, causing the seat belt webbing not to retract.
Consequence
In the event of a crash, a seat belt that has not retracted may not properly restrain the seat occupant, increasing their risk of injury.
Remedy
GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's seat belt retractor, free of charge. The recall began on October 6, 2015. Owners may contact Saab customer service at 1-800-955-9007. GM's number for this recall is 14222. Note: Special Coverage 10086 will replace the passenger side seat belt retractor…
Complaints by component
AIR BAGS
17
ENGINE
12
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
4
SEAT BELTS
2
SERVICE BRAKES
2
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
1
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
1
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
1
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
1
STEERING
1
Total complaints46
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“My 2009 saab 9-3 started and ran fine on the way to work, but at lunch it started for a couple seconds and shut off. The car cranks, but is audibly too free spinning. A local shop said compression in the engine was very low, and after multiple calls it seems that my car has the infamous "soft…”
“Misfires when cold, resulting in rough low idle speed and possible stalling after cold start.”
“My car has fallen victim to the soft intake valve issue. My car was parked in my driveway, it ran perfectly well the night before. I attempted to move it on christmas eve morning 12/24/2017 but it would not start. I then had it towed to my local saab mechanic, automotion in billerica, ma- the…”
“I have owned my 2008 saab 9-3 for about a year now and I have had an ongoing rough running issue that seems to be getting worse. When I start my car up in the morning it runs very rough. Ihave gotten it diagnosed and it is misfiring dramatically like 6000 on one cylinder and 1081 on another . I…”
“Takata recall I was informed in a letter that gm is working on airbag recall for my car. It stated that in case of an accident my airbag can explode and I may die. They also said that in another letter they will specify when the replacement part is available. It has been a while and I have not…”
“I was first notified of the recall in 2016, but told that the replacement parts not available. When I got the notice early this year that parts available, I called the authorized dealer several times and never got a response. On one occasion I spoke to someone who said he would call me back but…”
“Takata recall - my complaint is that absolutely nothing has happened, and that the status of the recall issued approximately one year ago is: "recall incomplete. Remedy not yet available". People are still dying out there because takata has not yet solved this problem. Those of us who own vehicles…”
“Tl* the contact owns a 2009 saab 9-3. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 16v063000 (air bags); however, the part for the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The air bag warning…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationEA21002 Opened 2021-09-17 · open
Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant…
InvestigationEA21002 Opened 2021-09-17 · open
Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant…
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2009 Saab 9-3 as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.