There are 7 owner-reported brakes complaints for the 2009 Saturn Aurain NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
THE BRAKE LIGHTS OF MY SATURN AURA WOULD AUTOMATICALLY SELF-ACTIVATE EXACTLY 5 SECONDS AFTER THE DRIVER PLACED THE VEHICLE INTO DRIVE. THE BRAKE LIGHTS WOULD STAY ACTIVE UNTIL THE DRIVER PRESSED THE BRAKE PEDAL, AT WHICH TIME THE BRAKE LIGHTS WOULD ACTUALLY DEACTIVATE. MY SON WAS DRIVING THE CAR ON I-94 AND WAS ALMOST STRUCK BY A SEMI TRUCK WHEN MY SON PRESSED THE BRAKE PEDAL AND THE BRAKE LIGHTS DEACTIVATED (TURNED OFF). I HAD THE CAR SERVICED AT GM AND HAD TO PAY A TOTAL OF $697.03 TO GET THE CAR FIXED EVEN AFTER I NOTIFIED THE SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE THAT THIS EXACT ELECTRICAL FAILURE WAS OUTLINED FOR THIS EXACT CAR IN GM RECALL #13036. THE RECALL REFERENCED THE BODY CONTROL MODULE AND BRAKE SENSOR, BOTH OF WHICH WERE REPLACED CAUSING ME TO PAY $697.03. THIS IS MY SECOND NOTIFICATION TO THE NHTSA, I REPORTED THIS ON JUNE 19, 2019 (NHTSA # 11221201) BUT I HAVE RECEIVED NO RESPONSE. AS OF TODAY'S DATE (SEPTEMBER 3, 2019) GM HAS NOT REIMBURSED ME.
DRIVING AND MY BRAKE LIGHTS COME ON. I STOP AND THEY GO OFF. AS I'M DRIVING I FEEL RESISTANCE LIKE MY BRAKES ARE BEING PUSHES
WHEN GOING DOWN ROAD BREAK LIGHTS ARE ON. WHEN PRESS BREAK PEDAL BREAK LIGHTS GO OFF. THIS IS SIMILAR TO RECALL CAMPAIGN 14V252000 BUT MY VIN IS NOT LISTED IN THE RECALL. WITH THIS I AM GETTING WARNING OF SERVICE ESC THEN SERVICE TRACTION AND MY TRACTION CONTROL LIGHT WILL STAY ON THE DASH. DURING THESE TIMES THE VEHICLE WILL SHIFT ERRATICALLY, UP SHIFTING AND DOWN SHIFTING AT INCORRECT TIMES. THIS MAKES IT DIFFICULT SOMETIME TO CONTROL THE VEHICLE. THE BREAK LIGHT HAPPENS AT ANY SPEED. THE ERRATIC SHIFTING HAPPENS MOSTLY WHEN VEHICLE IS GOING GREATER THAN 35 MPH.
AFTER HAVING ALL 4 TIRES REPLACED, MY BRAKES WERE IMMEDIATELY DISAPPEARING ON THE DRIVE HOME UNTIL I NO LONGER HAD BRAKES. AFTER TAKING THE CAR INTO A REPAIR SHOT TO HAVE LOOKED AT IT WAS DETERMINED THAT DUE TO THE SATURN AURA DESIGN, THE BRAKE HOSES JUST BARELY REACH WHERE THEY ARE ATTACHED TO EACH TIRE. WHEN THE TIRE WAS PUT ON A LIFT TO REPLACE THE TIRES THE SUSPENSION DROPPED JUST A LITTLE BIT WHICH CAUSED THE BRAKE HOSES TO STRETCH AND IN THIS CASE IT CAUSED A TEAR ON THE TWO BACK BRAKE HOSES. THIS IS A HUGE FLAW IN THE DESIGN OF THE 2009 SATURN AURA XR THAT COULD CAUSE BRAKE LEAKS JUST BY HAVING THE CAR PUT ON A LIFT. I HAVE HAD TO PAY $375 FOR THIS REPAIR THAT WAS DUE TO THE DESIGN OF THE BRAKE HOSES IN THIS VEHICLE. *TR
WHEN THE CAR IS BRAKING, THE BRAKE LIGHTS DO NOT COME ON. OTHER TIMES, THE BRAKE LIGHTS ARE CONSISTENTLY ON WITHOUT PRESSING THE BRAKE. I WAS JUST ALERTED TO THIS BY ANOTHER DRIVER AND AM UNSURE HOW LONG THIS ISSUE HAS BEEN PRESENT. I TESTED THIS TWICE AND THE BRAKE LIGHTS ARE NOT PROPERLY WORKING. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 SATURN AURA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH, THE BRAKE LIGHTS FAILED TO OPERATE NORMALLY AS THE ESC TRACTION WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT AN UNKNOWN PART HAD TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 39,000.
MY SON WAS PULLED OVER BY THE LOCAL POLICE FOR FAULTY BRAKE LIGHTS. HIS BRAKE LIGHTS WORK SOMETIMES, STAY ON AFTER HE HAS RELEASED THE BRAKE PEDAL OR DON'T COME ON AT ALL. I READ OF SIMILAR PROBLEMS WITH THIS SAME MAKE AND MODEL OF VEHICLE AND WANTED TO REPORT THIS ISSUE. *TR
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026