2003 Saab 9-3 Electrical System Problems

NHTSA component category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM · data through 07/14/2026

36Electrical System complaints

17%Of all 212 complaints

#1Most-reported category

Source: U.S. NHTSA complaint data. Complaints are unverified reports from vehicle owners — a complaint is not a confirmed defect.

How electrical system ranks on this vehicle

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM36 · 17%

SUSPENSION:FRONT27 · 12.7%

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION23 · 10.8%

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING15 · 7.1%

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE14 · 6.6%

Share of the 212 complaints citing each category; one complaint can cite several. Full breakdown on the 2003 Saab 9-3 overview page.

What owners report

“VEHICLE COMPUTER BEGAN TO MALFUNCTION. VEHICLE COMPUTER NO LONGER WORKS. SHOWS ODD DATA ON DISPLAY SCREEN LOCKS MAY NOT WORK. WINDOW MAY NOT WORK CAUSING…”NHTSA complaint 10172038 — filed 10/28/2006

“BRAKE PADS & ROTORS, SEAT BELT, BATTERY REPLACEMENT, TIRE, TRANSMISSION, SUNROOF MALFUNCTION.”NHTSA complaint 10136875 — filed 09/18/2005

“THE CONSUMER WAS ABLE TO REMOVE THE KEY FROM THE IGNITION SWITCH WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS STILL RUNNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER…”NHTSA complaint 10107432 — filed 02/17/2005

Excerpts are shortened and scrubbed of personal details; they are individual, unverified reports.

Electrical System complaints by year filed

Frequently asked questions

Does the 2003 Saab 9-3 have electrical system problems?

Electrical System is the most-reported problem area on the 2003 Saab 9-3: 36 of 212 complaints on file (17%). Complaints are unverified owner reports, not confirmed defects.

How many complaints does the 2003 Saab 9-3 have in total?

212 complaints were on file with NHTSA as of 07/14/2026. Across all categories, 12 involved a crash, 6 involved a fire, 17 reported injuries, and none reported deaths.

What does NHTSA's electrical system category include?

NHTSA assigns each complaint to standard component categories; this page reports the ELECTRICAL SYSTEM category exactly as NHTSA defines and records it.

About this data — Complaint figures on this page are consumer reports submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a U.S. government agency. NHTSA does not verify individual complaints; a complaint is not proof that a defect exists, and counts reflect what owners chose to report, not confirmed failure rates. Recall information comes from official NHTSA safety recall campaigns; recall repairs are free at authorized dealers. Always check your specific vehicle by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. CarModelProblems.com is an independent site and is not affiliated with NHTSA or any vehicle manufacturer. Data through 07/14/2026.